how do you write a jungle book essay

“The Jungle Book” by Rudyard Kipling Essay (Critical Writing)

There is a great number of different masterpieces of literature in the world. Each of them describes some peculiar phenomenon or event. The majority of books are devoted to human beings and their feelings and emotions. There are, however, some works which are devoted to animals and their touching allegiance to people. Being very popular, this issue has always interested people. However, there are not many works which manage to combine description of the life of human beings, animals behaviour and visions of nature, trying to show the authors way of to reflect the real world. One of these works is called The Jungle Book and is written by Rudyard Kipling.

Devoted to the description of the life of a human being, the book, though, manages to combine this description with the visions of nature of the jungle and the laws according to which animals live there.

The main character of the story is a boy called Mowgli. The main peculiarity of this boy is the fact that he was raised by wolves and acts according to their code. In certain period of time this fact was taken as ridiculous and impossible. However, boys like Mowgli were found. That is why, it is possible to say that Kipling created a very interesting story which could be based on some real facts. Mowgli is able to understand animals and communicate with them, following the rules accepted in the jungle. All these facts make him a unique character who is very interesting for people.

Having created his story in the form of a tale, Kipling romanticized the life of animals and human beings in the jungle. However, there is one very important aspect of the jungle which the author describes. It is the law according to which animals live. Kipling uses the term the law of the jungle to describe existing set of codes according to which the community of wolves and other animals is structured. They all should follow it or they will not be able to survive.

All rules which are described by this law are wise and created by generations of animals in order to guarantee their survival. The law of the jungle outlines the main activity of animals, their main food and relations with other species. However, the Bandar-log do not accept these rules. They can be taken as rebels, who do not want to follow the majority. However, Kipling describes them as primitive and disorganised tribe which is not able to guarantee its prosperity. Outlining this fact, the author wants to show great importance of the law and norms which regulate behaviour in society.

Being created by Rudyard Kipling, the term the law of the jungle became very popular, though having changed its main meaning. Nowadays, it is widely used in order not to describe some set of codes accepted in society, but to show special kind of human attitude to the rest of people and his/her role in society. Everyone should take care only of himself/herself and be the strongest to survive in coherent society. This is the meaning of the term which prevails nowadays.

Besides, having read the book, it is impossible to remain indifferent. Having created interesting and fascinating world, Kipling also introduced the new term which described existence of animals in the jungle. The term the law of the jungle became the metaphor which is widely used nowadays.

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The Jungle Book Rudyard Kipling

The Jungle Book essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling.

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The Jungle Book

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A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

“Mowgli’s Brothers”

“Kaa’s Hunting”

“Tiger! Tiger!”

“The White Seal”

“Rikki-tikki-tavi”

“Toomai of the Elephants”

“Her Majesty’s Servants”

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Compare and contrast the “Law of the Jungle” with the rules Mowgli learns in the human village. How do their different values relate to the historical context of The Jungle Book ?

Analyze the songs and poems included at the end of each story. How do they relate to the themes of the overall stories? Why do you think Rudyard Kipling includes them?

What is the role of gender in The Jungle Book ? How are female characters portrayed? What is different about gender between human and animal characters?

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Predicting the Staying Power of ‘The Jungle Book’

By Mary Jo Murphy

• April 7, 2016
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117 Years Ago

You don’t have to agree with George Orwell to wonder about Hollywood’s long love affair with Rudyard Kipling. “A jingo imperialist,” “morally insensitive,” “aesthetically disgusting” and possessing “a definite strain of sadism” were among Orwell’s descriptions of him. On the other hand, “ The Jungle Book ,” whose stars are mostly animals, is at least somewhat inoculated against not only Kipling’s harshest critics but also the range of views about him that have emerged over the last century.

And so here we are with yet another adaptation of “ The Jungle Book ,” a live-action feature from Disney based on its 1967 animated classic, set to open next week, and Warner Bros. has its own version in the pipeline. It’s hard to keep track of all the film adaptations, but they date back to 1942, with one starring Sabu.

An essay in The New York Times in 1899, when Kipling was still in his prime, predicted his sticking power, and seemed in particular to get to the heart of how he would secure his place in the firmament of childhood. The essay, in what was The Saturday Review of Books and Art, was headlined “ Kipling’s Claim on Posterity ” and began like this:

“At the age of thirty-three Rudyard Kipling has attained the dignity of being a classic. In other words, he has achieved immortality.”

The essay went on to examine all aspects of Kipling’s work to see how they might be remembered, if it all. “The work of Kipling is, as a whole, of such high order that one hesitates to pronounce any of it ephemeral,” the article said.

On the other hand: “In the nature of things he cannot be to our descendants what he is to us; they will demand a fresh message adapted to their needs, and, despite all we may say, will judge him by the dispassionate, impersonal standards of ‘mere’ literature, unmoved by contemporaneous thrills of sympathy and interest.”

But then the essay found its answer, among not the humans but the animals:

“Were his work at an end, upon what would his claim to the consideration of posterity be founded? What has he produced thus far that entitles him to immunity from oblivion? Of all his prose works the ‘Jungle Books’ possess most indubitably the elements of immortality; in regard to the longevity of his fiction there may fairly be a difference of opinion, but hardly so as to these animal stories.

This is by no means tantamount to saying that they are pre-eminently superior to his other tales or more interesting to present-day readers; it is simply a statement based upon historical teaching; the perpetrator or creator of the animal epos is sure of a permanently sympathetic audience. The reason for this is not far to seek. The brute creation is the incarnation of the basic elements of humanity, which are eternal, changeless despite modifications in the forms of civilization. It is, therefore, hardly cause for wonder that mankind everywhere and at all times feel an interest in the avatars of their own constant passions and instincts. There is, indeed, a great deal of humanity in a dog.”

Dr. Dolittle could not have said it better. Certainly the essay went to greater lengths to examine the work than the brief review that appeared in The Times five years earlier, when the work was first published. “Perhaps Anglo-Indian children would understand ‘The Jungle Book’ better than American ones,” that review concluded.

The essay concluded differently: “We may rest assured that our children’s children will buy the ‘Jungle Books’ for their children and will read them aloud with the same enjoyment for big folks and little folks as that experienced by reader and listener to-day.”

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The Jungle Book Essay Topics & Writing Assignments

Essay Topic 1

Foreshadowing is used by Kipling throughout The Jungle Book. Give three examples of foreshadowing and how it is used to tell events yet to come.

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the wolf pack's mistrust of Mowgli and the loyalty of Mowgli's friends, Baloo and Bagheera.

Essay Topic 3

Describe Shere Khan as an antagonist.

Essay Topic 4

Compare and contrast the monkey people and Kaa. How are they the same? How are they different?

Essay Topic 5

Describe the theme of friendship and what it means, focusing on Chapter two. Give examples of its value to Mowgli.

Essay Topic 6

How does Kipling illustrate the carelessness of youth in Chapter two? In what ways does Mowgli's behavior exhibit that?

Essay Topic 7

Compare and contrast Mowgli's life in the village compared to life in the jungle.

Essay Topic 8

Describe Mowgli as the protagonist of the stories. Define protagonist, and compare/contrast...

(read more Essay Topics)

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Jungle — The Themes Raised and Lessons Learned in the Jungle Book

The Themes Raised and Lessons Learned in The Jungle Book

• Categories: The Jungle The Jungle Book

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Published: Jan 29, 2019

Words: 974 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Assignment #3 Insight

‘we have nothing to fear but fear itself’. – franklin d. roosevelt.

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• Instructions Followed To The Letter
• Deadlines Met At Every Stage
• Unique And Plagiarism Free

The Emotion Amplifier Thesaurus , a companion to The Emotion Thesaurus , releases May 13th.

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WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®

Helping writers become bestselling authors

Setting Thesaurus: Jungle/Rainforest

January 10, 2009 by BECCA PUGLISI

Vines, ferns, lush foliage, tall trees (traveller’s fan, Heliconia, trumpet trees, cahoon), dense undergrowth, fronds, lagoons, cliffs, rocky outcropping, downed trees, canopy blocking the sun, mosses, creepers, water vines, brown dead fall, mud, lizards, snakes…

bird calls, wings fluttering, monkey hoots/shrieks, animal movements (growls, grunts, snorts, paws hitting the ground, slithering, hissing, animal cries), running water (rushing creaks, waterfalls, rivers, streams or rain clattering off the leaves), one’s own heavy…

stuffy & warm air, rotting vegetation, body odor, natural plant smells (sweet to attract insects/pollinators, bitter to ward them off), animal musk, flowers (few in the jungle–more in the rainforest)

Water, air thick on the tongue, edible leaves and root or fruits, prey caught and cooked over a fire (gamy, stringy, chewy, rubbery), stale breath, fresh rain

Slippery leaves, rough vines, crumbly wet ground underfoot in places, branches crackling, holding branches back, squeezing through a stand of bamboo & feeling the smooth wood against the chest and back, sweat running down the neck and face, slurping dew off a leaf…

Helpful hints:

–The words you choose can convey atmosphere and mood.

Example 1: Dusk stained the glistening foliage with shadow and murk. As nightfall descended, the sounds of the jungle began to ebb. Uncertainty hung in the warm, wet air as the creatures began to prepare for the long stretch of darkness. Soon new sounds emerged: footfalls and the rumbling growls of predators walking their hunting ground.

–Similes and metaphors create strong imagery when used sparingly.

Example 1: (Simile)  Vines slithered down the cliff face like snakes, seeking the pool of tepid water below.

Think beyond what a character sees, and provide a sensory feast for readers

Setting is much more than just a backdrop, which is why choosing the right one and describing it well is so important. To help with this, we have expanded and integrated this thesaurus into our online library at One Stop For Writers . Each entry has been enhanced to include possible sources of conflict , people commonly found in these locales , and setting-specific notes and tips , and the collection itself has been augmented to include a whopping 230 entries—all of which have been cross-referenced with our other thesauruses for easy searchability. So if you’re interested in seeing a free sample of this powerful Setting Thesaurus, head on over and register at One Stop.

On the other hand, if you prefer your references in book form, we’ve got you covered, too, because both books are now available for purchase in digital and print copies . In addition to the entries, each book contains instructional front matter to help you maximize your settings. With advice on topics like making your setting do double duty and using figurative language to bring them to life, these books offer ample information to help you maximize your settings and write them effectively.

Becca Puglisi is an international speaker, writing coach, and bestselling author of The Emotion Thesaurus and its sequels. Her books are available in five languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. She is passionate about learning and sharing her knowledge with others through her Writers Helping Writers blog and via One Stop For Writers —a powerhouse online library created to help writers elevate their storytelling.

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Reader Interactions

April 13, 2021 at 6:01 pm

Amazing, really helped me, especially the hints! Thank you

January 12, 2009 at 1:26 pm

Love these posts.. 🙂

January 11, 2009 at 2:30 pm

Glad we can help. Lady G!

Thanks PJ. I posted it a bit later than usual–maybe that messed you up, lol.

CR, I agree. I love tropical locals.

Thanks Bish. I’ve never tried it, but I’d love to.

April 14, 2020 at 10:14 am

Excellent piece of writing, I especially liked how descriptive you had made the little bits and phrases for other aspiring writers to use. I’m much more of a fantasy writer but I needed this in order to do something, so it came in really helpful! I can hardly wait to get on with my assignment!

With endless ‘Thank You’s’, TheRandomizer

January 11, 2009 at 7:46 am

Great stuff! (As an aside…I saw breadfruit listed. I absolutely LOVE breadfruit. I wish I could get it here where I live.)

January 10, 2009 at 10:03 pm

hmmmm . . . makes me want to go on a rain forest adventure!

January 10, 2009 at 9:39 pm

Nice! I was about to say “wait, don’t these come on Saturdays” but then I realized it was Saturday 🙂

January 10, 2009 at 9:09 pm

YES! This is exactly what I need right now for my Amazon jungle scenes. 🙂 Thanks!

Short Essay On Jungle Book

• Author Writer

Introduction

The jungle book is a story about an orphaned boy or man-cub named Mowgli who was abandoned in the jungle and was found by a panther named Bagheera who takes the boy to grow up with a pack of wolves where he was raised by Raksha. The stories are set in a forest in India. The book is one of the classic stories written by Rudyard Kipling. A major theme in the book is abandonment followed by fostering, as in the life of Mowgli, echoing Kipling's childhood.

A ten-year-old Mowgli becomes well acquainted with life in the jungle with the help of his wolf family. But being a human living in the jungle Mowgli was always in danger of some form. The wolf pack leader Akela tells Mowgli not to use his man tricks in front of the other animals when Mowgli uses the shell of fruit to grab water for himself during the drought that makes other animals look at him oddly (Akşehir 138). Then arrives the fearsome Sher Khan who is aware of Mowgli’s presence and considers Man to be forbidden in the jungle. Akela covers Mowgli and tells Sher Khan that he cannot have the boy. Sher Khan vows to come back for Mowgli once the river runs again. When the other wolves of the pack and Bagheera learned of the danger, they decided to take Mowgli back to the man-village. On their journey to the man village, Mowgli and Bagheera get separated once they come across a field of buffaloes where they are ambushed by Sher Khan. Bagheera holds the tiger off for Mowgli to run. The boy escapes and Sher Khan returns to the Peace Rock to confront the wolves where he throws Akela off the cliff and assumes leadership over the other animals and awaits for Mowgli to return. Now wandering alone in the jungle, Mowgli is met by yet another foe that tries to kill him. The snake called Kaa kept Mowgli under her spell with her hypnotic voice and eyes. Kaa told Mowgli of where he came from. She told him that he was an infant when his father came across a cave in the jungle and protected him from Sher Khan with the "red flower” (fire). Mowgli’s father blinded Sher Khan’s left eye and the tiger killed the man. As the boy was lost in her story, Kaa almost ate him by wrapping herself around Mowgli but a bear named Baloo saved him. Since he saved Mowgli’s life, he asked the boy to help him gather some honey. In the process of breaking off some honeycomb, Mowgli gets stung a few times but Baloo and Mowgli form a bond of friendship (Asghar and Muhammad 150). Baloo showed Mowgli that the human village is nearby and that he can go whenever he wanted, but Mowgli decided to stick with Baloo, who shows him all about the bare necessities of life.

As the story unfolds, we see Bagheera telling Baloo that he needed Mowgli to get to safety and away from Sher Khan.  Baloo reluctantly tells Mowgli he never thought of him as a friend and wanted him to go away. Heartbroken, Mowgli retreats to a tree and gets captured by a group of monkeys. Baloo and Bagheera see this and follow. The monkeys bring Mowgli to the temple of King Louie, a massive orangutan. Louie claims he can protect Mowgli, but he wants to learn the secret of the red flower (fire) and thinks Mowgli can solve it. Mowgli says he cannot, sending Louie into a fit of rage. Baloo and Bagheera arrive in the nick of time and fight the monkeys while Louie chases Mowgli, taunting him as he tells him that Akela, the pack leader has been killed by Sher Khan and Bagheera knew about it. As Louie tries to get Mowgli, he runs through his temple, causing it to crumble and crush him. Infuriated that  Bagheera didn’t tell him about Akela, Mowgli runs away and enters the man village undetected and takes a burning torch back into the jungle. As he runs back, the other animals see him with fire and follow (Park 228). A piece of ember falls from the torch and slowly starts a fire. Mowgli confronts Sher Khan as the other animals gather to watch. Sher Khan tries to turn the animals against Mowgli by stating that man has brought the red flower into the jungle. Mowgli tosses the torch right before Baloo and Bagheera show up. They along with the other animals, stand by Mowgli and against Sher Khan. Baloo battles Sher Khan. Bagheera tells Mowgli that he must fight like a man and not as a wolf. Sher Khan takes Baloo down, but before he can kill him, Raksha and other wolves attack Sher Khan. Mowgli sets a trap in the trees and waits for Sher Khan there (Mutiarani et al. 27). Escaping the wolves and Bagheera, the tiger climbs the tree and walks the branch where Mowgli is standing but Mowgli jumps to safety. Sher Khan ends up falling and is consumed by the fire. Mowgli returns to the other animals, and the river, aided by grateful elephants, turns its flow, putting out the fire. Mowgli finally reunites with his wolf brothers and Raksha. Baloo now lives close with Mowgli, Bagheera, and the other animals. The story of Mowgli later ends with Mowgli leaving the jungle bringing tears to the eyes of his friends in the jungle.

This story teaches us valuable life lessons as Mowgli undergoes an epic journey of self-discovery guided by a no-nonsense panther and a free-spirited bear.  It is entertaining as the adventures described are so exciting. This story teaches us about the bond of friendship and unconditional love. It also explains to us the laws of nature and to face our fear. Mowgli was afraid of Sher Khan, but he faced his fear and so could defeat it. The stories also illustrate the freedom to move between different worlds, such as when Mowgli moves between the jungle and the village. The book describes the amazing bond between man and animals. The Jungle Book is the perfect book for a person who loves fun and adventure like me.

Akşehir Uygur, Mahinur. "PERCEPTION OF NATURE AND THE LANGUAGE OF IMPERIALISM IN RUDYARD KIPLING’S THE JUNGLE BOOK." Celal Bayar Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 16.1/2 (2018): 129-140.

Asghar, Jamil, and Muhammad Iqbal Butt. "Contrapuntal Reading of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book: Theorizing the Raj through Narrativity." NUML Journal of Critical Inquiry 15.1 (2017): 144-160.

Mutiarani, Mutiarani, Hasanul Misbah, and Aliya Nafisa Karyadi. "Rudyard Kipling’s Novel the Jungle Book as Moral Literacy Material on EFL Learning." English Language in Focus (ELIF) 3.1 (2021): 23-30.

Park, Minjin. "A Cognitive Approach to the Formal Aspects of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book." Children's Literature Association Quarterly 45.3 (2020): 224-243.

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How To Write Book Titles The Proper Way: A Complete Guide For Writers

• February 10, 2022

Book titles within essays or papers can be tricky. There are specific rules that are given for how to include a book title in a way that sets it apart from the content of your writing given by the Modern Language Association. However, as with many other things in life, there are exceptions to the rules. This article will guide you through the rules of the writing style guides so that you can include a book’s title in your paper or essay correctly.

How to write book titles:

Style guides and book titles.

When it comes to book titles within text, there are a few different style guides that have rules you can follow, depending on your writing type. The three types that you will encounter most often are; MLA style, Chicago manual of style, and APA. A writing instructor will usually tell you what style guide you are expected to use for a particular essay or paper.

MLA Style Guide

The MLA handbook states that you should always italicize book titles when styling book titles within your text. The exception to this rule are religious texts. You would not italicize the Holy Bible or the sacred books or titles of other religions. Note the following example.

Pam had stayed most of the summer indoors, re-reading her favorite book series. She was already up to  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone , and she didn’t regret not being more active or going outside.

In the above example, the book title is italicized. Fiction titles and nonfiction titles alike must be in italics when within the text.

Series Titles in MLA

In the above example, a book from a series was used. But what if the text had not specified which book from the series Pam was reading? Would it still need to be in italics? The answer is: in this case, yes. In other cases, sometimes.

It’s really not as confusing as it seems. When you are talking about a book series but don’t want or need to include the complete series titles for the purposes of your work, you only have to put words in italics that also appear in the book titles. So, because  Harry Potter  is part of the title of all of the books in the series, you would italicize his name every time you mention the book.

However, if you were talking about Katniss Everdeen, you would not have to do this, as the book series she is featured in doesn’t use her name in the titles of  The Hunger Games  series. The same would be true of books like the Nancy Drew books.

Quotation Marks

There are instances in which titles should be placed inside of quotation marks within a paper or essay. This is done when you cite the titles of poems , a chapter title, short stories, articles, or blogs.

So, for example, if you were to write a paper that featured a poem from a book, you would put the book title in italics and the poems cited in quotation marks.

An example of an enduring love poem is “Annabel Lee” from  The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. 

Chapter Title

Another time that quotation marks should be used is when using the title of a chapter. If you are citing a specific chapter of a book, you would enclose the title of the chapter in quotation marks, and the title of the book should be in italics.

The desperation and sadness of a man on death row can be seen in the “Wild Wind Blowing” chapter of Norman Mailer’s  The Executioner’s Song. 

Short Stories

Short stories are another case. Much like the title of a chapter or poem, in which the title is placed in quotation marks, while the title of the book or collection it is found in is italics. The same can be said for sections, stories, or chapters cited within a literary journal.

Stepping away from his norm of horror and gore, Stephen King writes of trust, love, and regret in his story “The Last Rung on the Ladder,” which can be found in his short story collection  Night Shift. 

Punctuation Marks

If you are citing a story or title that includes question marks, you need to make sure to italicize the question mark when citing. Keep all punctuation, such as a question mark, comma, ellipses, colon, or exclamation mark, as it is in the original individual books.

If you want a funny and irreverent read, you’ve got to try  Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea.  Chelsea Handler has done a phenomenal job of being vulgar, relatable, and explaining life from her viewpoint in this hilarious and memorable book.

The Digital Age: Are Book Titles Underlined Anymore?

MLA style used to dictate that a book title should either be in italics or underlined. However, that is no longer the case. As computers started to take over as the major tool used in writing, it became unpopular to underline book titles. Therefore, this rule was dropped from the style guides.

However, it should be mentioned that when handwriting an essay or research paper, many instructors prefer that you underline book titles, as it’s relatively difficult to handwrite italics. If you are in a writing course or a class that is heavy on handwritten work, be sure to ask your instructor or teacher which method they prefer for citing a book title.

How to Come Up with Book Title Ideas

Now that quotation marks, italics, and style guides have been discussed, let’s move on to how you can come up with your own book title. If you’d like a title for your book that sounds interesting and will get a reader’s attention, you may find this article helpful.

Coming up with a good title for your book is a challenging yet essential marketing decision . The right title can make your target audience choose your new book off of the shelf instead of another writer’s work. Your book cover and your book title are quite possibly the most important marketing decisions you will make.

How to Choose a Good Book Title

Certain criteria should be met if you want to have a good book title , and there are specific steps involved in getting there. You may have assumed up until now that titles of books were just spur of the moment decisions made by authors or publishers, but a lot of work goes into writing good titles.

Grab the Reader’s Attention

As a general rule, you want your reader to remember your title and to sound interesting, even without the reader having seen the cover. There are several ways to do this. You can be a little dark with your title, be controversial, provoke the reader, or even be funny.

There are many examples of such works that use memorable and attention-seeking titles. The following are some different titles that are effective and would most likely provoke a reader to grab them from a shelf for closer inspection.

• Burn After Writing (Sharon Jones)
• Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
• Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (Mindy Kaling)
• Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea (Chelsea Handler)
• The Devil Wears Prada (Lauren Weisberger)
• Chicken Soup for the Soul (various authors)
• God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian (Kurt Vonnegut)

Shorter Titles

If your full title for your book is long, you may end up boring a reader or creating a situation where a reader tries to remember the title of your book, but it’s too long and ends up getting it confused with another book. Although you should always do your best to make sure that there aren’t books by other authors that share a title or have a title similar to your book (more on that in a minute), you don’t want a person to get confused and get the wrong book instead.

Research Your Title Ideas

It’s a good idea to take the titles you have considered for your book and make a list. Then, do your homework. You can use tools like Google Adwords to test out your title to see if there are others like it, or you can simply use any search engine and plug your title ideas into the search bar and see what similar or exact titles of the same words pop up.

Readers are generally busy people. They don’t have the time or the energy to ensure that writers get a title right. They’ll look for the book they are interested in, and if it proves to be too difficult, or if there are other books written that have the same title, they’ll move on to something else.

A writer really has to make sure that they have a title that isn’t going to be ignored, is interesting, isn’t too long, and isn’t too similar to other works.

The same goes for titles of short works within a larger body of work. Short works, like poems or stories, need to have unique titles as well when included in a larger body of work, such as a collection. If stories are similar in nature, be sure to title them differently so that readers will be able to tell them apart, as well.

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