Tarzan of the Apes (1912)
…………………………………………………
Tarzan of the Apes Book Review
Tarzan of the Apes is a 1912 adventure novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It’s one of the best adventure books that remains entertaining to this day.
………………………………………………….
“Teach me to speak the language of men“
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
The story is famous by now and done so many times in movies. A man and a woman die, leaving their child in the jungle. He eventually grows up with the help of apes and becomes very strong. Finally, he encounters other humans arriving in the jungle. I personally loved that beginning probably the most. It set up the story so well and it’s just an epic, highly memorable opening.
My problem with the story is that it rushes through his childhood way too much in my opinion. Unfortunately, the apes get killed pretty quickly and all the animals are underutilized here with the entire emphasis almost being on humans which is a shame. For a book that happens in the jungle, it sorely lacks the animal/jungle action elements.
But, those human elements are nonetheless powerful. Tarzan’s romance with Jane is fantastic, unforgettable and very heartwarming. The bond that develops between them is powerful and so well written. His relationship with the French officer is also wonderful and so sweet. The highlight of the novel is him teaching the languages and habits of the people as well as the mystery of his heritage. And I also really liked the more sad ending where the two do not end up together.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
Tarzan is an excellent protagonist, he’s so well developed and very complex. He remains an ingenious creation in our pop culture. Jane is also pretty solid and highly likable. Clayton is actually a good guy here unlike in Disney’s version and I liked him quite a bit. Again Kerchak, Kala and others are underdeveloped, but Sabor truly is a memorable animal foe. Paul D’Arnot is so endearing and one highly underrated character from this lore and naturally Professor Porter is such an amusing old man with a funny speech pattern.
Tarzan of the Apes is very well written. Edgar Rice Burroughs is an excellent author who describes situations and plot points so well. The descriptions are mostly excellent, some of the imagery is quite memorable and also his dialogue is fantastic and actually very realistic as those uneducated speak roughly and those scientists speak like gentlemen. The overall historical context here is pretty grounded in reality.
Many fault the book for its dated elements and yes, it has some of those, but the book came out a century ago so the author should not be blamed for the prevalent sexism and racism employed here. Those remarks were more funny to me than truly offensive.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
The book explores the theme of heredity phenomenally and it might be considered anti-‘Lord of the Flies’ which is quite interesting. That book portrays the savage nature in humans when isolated, but Tarzan showcases how even when isolated, we still retain our humanly nature. The role of civilization is so well explored as well as race relations of the time.
The novel is quite serious, but also playful in tone at times with amusing lines of dialogue and situations. It works so well as a romance, but above all else it’s a spirited adventure and also a strong drama about civilization and heredity. It was highly engaging to me from start to finish as this fun, timeless story.
Tarzan of the Apes remains an adventure classic filled with memorable imagery, very well developed human characters and terrific writing from the author. Although the animals are underutilized, the themes of heredity and civilization are so well explored, the romance is quite effective and the book is a consistently involving, charming read.
