Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Jungle Book, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Laws of Nature
Human and Animal Relationships
Loyalty
British Imperialism
Coming of Age
Summary
Analysis
After Mowgli’s fallout with the wolves, he goes to live in a nearby human village. Just outside the village, a few people see Mowgli and take an interest in him. One woman, Messua, remarks that he looks like her son, whom a tiger stole many years ago. However, she slowly talks herself out of the idea and decides that he cannot be her son.
Here, Kipling returns to where the first story in the collection, “Mowgli’s Brothers,” left off. Messua’s comments about Mowgli’s resemblance to her son suggest that he might actually be her son, given what the reader knows about Mowgli’s history with Shere Khan.
Themes
However, the village priest, who is there with Messua, thinks she could be right. He notices the wolf bites that cover Mowgli and determines that he grew up in the wild. The priest tells Messua that it is her job to take Mowgli in because he could be her son and she is the wealthiest person in the village.
Mowgli’s wolf bites likely appear concerning to Messua and the village priest, though to Mowgli, they are merely part of living with the pack. Like the animals in Mowgli’s jungle, Messua and the priest believe in acting selflessly to promote the betterment of a larger society.
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Messua asks Mowgli if he is her son. However, Mowgli does not respond because he cannot communicate with humans—he only knows how to speak with animals. Nonetheless, Messua takes Mowgli in. Although Mowgli agrees to live with Messua, he has a difficult time at first. He enjoys sleeping out in the wilderness and cannot get used to falling asleep with a roof over his head. As such, rather than sleeping inside, he goes outside where he can rest comfortably.
Although Mowgli may not belong among the animals, it is unclear whether he belongs with humans. After all, he cannot speak human languages and does not feel comfortable sleeping inside. As such, Mowgli finds himself in a difficult spot; he is somewhere between human and animal and does not know how to rectify his dual nature.
Themes
While Mowgli is outside, Grey Brother, a member of the wolf pack still loyal to Mowgli, approaches him. Grey Brother warns Mowgli that Shere Khan will likely return to cause more problems in the jungle. At first, Mowgli does not care. He is still angry with the wolves for betraying him and does not see how what Shere Khan does will affect him. However, Grey Brother reminds him that he could get kicked out of the village and end up back in the jungle. If that happens, then Mowgli will have to deal with Shere Khan because Shere Khan will surely come after him. Mowgli sees Grey Brother’s point. Before Grey Brother leaves, he promises Mowgli that he will keep him informed about what is going on in the jungle.
Grey Brother appeals to Mowgli using the Law of the Jungle, which places the good of the community over that of the individual. At first, Mowgli’s feelings of betrayal do not allow him to empathize with Grey Brother. However, Mowgli eventually remembers the lessons he learned with Baloo and recognizes that Shere Khan is a threat to the jungle. Like the Bandar-log, Shere Khan threatens the established order, which is especially problematic because he has recently seized a sizable amount of power.
Themes
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For the next three months, Mowgli builds a life in the village. He learns to speak with the villagers and works alongside them. The village people find Mowgli astonishing. He is incredibly strong and never gets tired. However, he does not understand the social mores of India, which makes it difficult to get along with other people his age. When some children make fun of him, Mowgli temporarily contemplates killing them. Ultimately, however, he decides it would not be a fair fight and decides against it.
Again, Mowgli finds it difficult to fit in with humans. Although Mowgli has a system of values, it does not match the values which those around him hold. For instance, Mowgli considers killing children simply because they make fun of him—an act of retaliation the people in Mowgli’s village would never tolerate, though does not know that.
Themes
In the evenings, all the village’s men gather around a campfire and tell stories about the jungle. Mowgli does not find their stories amusing because he knows what it is like to live in the jungle and knows the stories are not true. In particular, he mocks Buldeo, the village hunter, to his face because he tells a story about Shere Khan.
Although Mowgli is ignorant of how most humans live, most humans are similarly unaware of how animals live the jungle. Their stories tell Mowgli they have no idea how the jungle functions, and this causes him to lose respect for them.
Themes
Apparently, Buldeo once knew a money-lender with a limp who died in the forest. Because Shere Khan has a lame foot, Buldeo thinks the spirit of the money-lender possesses Shere Khan. Of course, Mowgli knows Shere Khan personally and thinks the story is ridiculous. The village men get annoyed with Mowgli, and he leaves. Mowgli is happy to go; he would much rather spend time with the buffalo than with the village men.
Buldeo’s story implies a belief in the supernatural that is utterly ludicrous to Mowgli. During his time in the jungle, Mowgli never hears about anything supernatural, so he has no reason to believe such a thing could be true. His skepticism underlies how significantly human culture and belief systems differ from the animal way of life. Furthermore, his interactions with Shere Khan confirm Buldeo’s story is fake.
Themes
While Mowgli is tending to the buffalo, Grey Brother pays him a visit. Grey Brother warns Mowgli that Shere Khan still wants revenge on him. He believes Shere Khan will try to attack and kill Mowgli soon. Mowgli does not fear Shere Khan, but he does not want to underestimate him either. He starts forming a plan to ensure that Shere Khan ends up dead instead of him.
Shere Khan’s hatred for Mowgli runs deep. Even though Mowgli no longer lives among the animals, Shere Khan still pursues him. Killing Mowgli, especially now that he lives among humans, would be a major violation of the Law of the Jungle, and it would put many other animals in danger.
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Mowgli learns that Shere Khan recently ate a pig, meaning that he will not be as spry as he normally is when he comes after Mowgli. This knowledge gives Mowgli an idea, and he asks several of his wolf friends for help. He wants them to herd the buffalo for him while he lures Shere Khan to a particular spot in a ravine. The wolves, including Akela, do as Mowgli asks. Mowgli lures Shere Khan exactly where he wants him. Meanwhile, the wolves drive the buffalo to where Shere Khan stands in the ravine. Mowgli knows Shere Khan cannot climb up the ravine because he is too full from his meal. Because Shere Khan cannot climb, the buffalo trample and kill him.
Shere Khan's decision to eat a pig and then hunt Mowgli speaks to his arrogance and gluttonous nature. As with other figures in The Jungle Book who try to disrupt the social order by standing on their own, Shere Khan dies as punishment for his disrespecting the Law of the Jungle. Mowgli’s triumph over Shere Khan demonstrates his mastery over the animals of the jungle, making him both admired and feared. It is a significant step in his coming-of-age journey, as he fulfills the prophecy that Mother Wolf out forth in “Mowgli’s Brothers.”
Themes
After Shere Khan is dead, Mowgli skins him. As he does, Buldeo approaches him and demands that Mowgli give him Shere Khan’s pelt. There is a large reward on Shere Khan, and Buldeo wants to collect it. However, Mowgli refuses and orders one of his wolves to pin down Buldeo while he finishes skinning Shere Khan. Mowgli’s control over the wolves terrifies Buldeo, and he calls Mowgli a sorcerer. Eventually, the wolves let Buldeo go free, and he runs back to the village.
Skinning an animal and taking its pelt is something only a human would do. It is an action that sets Mowgli apart from his animal brethren and brings him closer to someone like Buldeo, whether he likes it or not. Of course, Mowgli is not much like Buldeo either; Buldeo is a self-interested coward with no real power. Mowgli and his wolves quickly put Buldeo in his place.
Themes
When Mowgli returns to the village, he finds a large crowd of people. At first, Mowgli thinks the villagers plan to celebrate him; after all, he killed Shere Khan, a tiger they feared. However, instead, the villagers throw rocks at Mowgli and order him to go away. They think he is a sorcerer, and they do not want his evil presence lurking in their village.
The villagers' treatment of Mowgli is reminiscent of how the wolves treated him at the end of "Mowgli's Brothers." They are a superstitious tribe that does not understand Mowgli any more than Mowgli understands them.
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Messua does not fear Mowgli, but she asks him to leave the village for his own sake. Before he leaves, Messua thanks him for killing Shere Khan. Mowgli asks his wolf friends to herd the buffalo back to the village. If it were not for Messua, he would take revenge on the villagers, but he appreciates Messua's kindness and does not want to cause her any pain.
It is unclear whether Mowgli is Messua’s biological son. However, he is undoubtedly her adopted child, and he appreciates everything she does for him, just as he appreciates Mother and Father Wolf.
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Mowgli returns to Council Rock and shows the other animals Shere Khan's pelt. Many of the wolves are in attendance, and they ask Mowgli and Akela to act as their leader. Mowgli’s accomplishment impresses them, and they are glad Shere Khan is gone. Under Shere Khan's rulership, the wolf pack all but fell apart, and now the wolves want Mowgli and Akela to rebuild the strong community they once had.
Mowgli’s return to Council Rock with Shere Khan's pelt demonstrates his power, showing he is the most fearsome force in the jungle. The wolves bow down to him because they are without a leader, though it is unclear whether Mowgli can trust them, given their past betrayals.
Themes
Bagheera shuts the wolves down and tells them that they will have to live with the world they created. Likewise, Mowgli decides he will not hunt with the wolf pack. Instead, he plans only to hunt alongside his brother wolves. For now, Mowgli will continue to live in the jungle, though one day he will return to the world of humans and marry a woman.
With the exception of “Mowgli’s Song,” this section marks the end of the Mowgli cycle of stories in The Jungle Book. It is a bittersweet ending because, although Mowgli temporarily returns to his jungle, the narrator informs the reader he will eventually leave again. As the story ends, it is unclear whether Mowgli will ever find a place where he feels he belongs.
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