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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
Wow, this book was so much better than I expected. Usually I have a lot of trouble reading older books because I find them too dry and too much tell rather than show. But Burroughs wrote very well, with great flow and a moving storyline. There was of course the very outdated/offensive prejudices and misogyny, but I expected nothing less. I would love to see what Burroughs would write if he lived in modern times. Overall a very exciting adventure story.
So racist. So sexist, too, but really, SO RACIST. The material is not compelling enough to get over the problematic aspects, so I would not recommend this to a casual reader. I could see including it in a class, maybe Racist Old Books We Used to Find Acceptable.
Before I began the book I read the reviews and read, as many others have, the very negative reviews of other readers, so it was with a critical ear that I listened to this audiobook.
First off: this book is racist and sexist. There is absolutely no doubt about that. Although the women show glimpses of being brave and strong, in general they swoon under the weight of the terrors they see (including the - and I quote - "negress" Esmeralda, who literally faints at every moment). There is absolutely no way to avoid the blatant racism of the black "savages" and the implied superiority of the white man.
But - and I don't say this as a defense of this - it is simply a reflection of its times, and as such really is just fascinating. I felt the same way reading this as I did reading a book about the civil war and the things that even Abraham Lincoln said about the African-American slaves. It evokes the thought, 'wow, people really did think this.'
Burroughs is absolutely a product of his time, a time where the evolutionary theories of Darwin had taken full root. Tarzan is the archetypal "competent man", because that was the ideal of the times.
The last thing I'll say in response to the reviews of critique - this is a pulp fiction novel. It is not meant to be a literary masterpiece. The types of critiques other readers give are almost absurd to me - it is like criticizing a Nicholas Sparks novel for being unrealistic in its portrayal of romance. Of course it is unrealistic. That is the point.
Tarzan is meant to be wild and ultra strong, with supernatural abilities. Jane is meant to swoon at his strength and savagery. It is meant to be ultra violent, with gratuitous killings. That. Is. The. Genre. Realism is not the name of the game.
With that being said, the logical and rational side of me can't help but be disappointed that
What Burroughs does well (because he royally stinks at characterizing Tarzan as a wild beast or as a logical man or as a savage hunter or a rational animal) is tie up the loose ends of plot. That was what made this book enjoyable.
Okay one last INCREDIBLE annoyance.
I don't think I'll read any more of the Tarzan series, but I did find this one enjoyable.
First off: this book is racist and sexist. There is absolutely no doubt about that. Although the women show glimpses of being brave and strong, in general they swoon under the weight of the terrors they see (including the - and I quote - "negress" Esmeralda, who literally faints at every moment). There is absolutely no way to avoid the blatant racism of the black "savages" and the implied superiority of the white man.
But - and I don't say this as a defense of this - it is simply a reflection of its times, and as such really is just fascinating. I felt the same way reading this as I did reading a book about the civil war and the things that even Abraham Lincoln said about the African-American slaves. It evokes the thought, 'wow, people really did think this.'
Burroughs is absolutely a product of his time, a time where the evolutionary theories of Darwin had taken full root. Tarzan is the archetypal "competent man", because that was the ideal of the times.
The last thing I'll say in response to the reviews of critique - this is a pulp fiction novel. It is not meant to be a literary masterpiece. The types of critiques other readers give are almost absurd to me - it is like criticizing a Nicholas Sparks novel for being unrealistic in its portrayal of romance. Of course it is unrealistic. That is the point.
Tarzan is meant to be wild and ultra strong, with supernatural abilities. Jane is meant to swoon at his strength and savagery. It is meant to be ultra violent, with gratuitous killings. That. Is. The. Genre. Realism is not the name of the game.
With that being said, the logical and rational side of me can't help but be disappointed that
Spoiler
Jane doesn't pick William Clayton. He is CLEARLY an honorable and strong and fun man, and would absolutely make the better spouse. She does, of course, in this book, but later on chooses Tarzan.What Burroughs does well (because he royally stinks at characterizing Tarzan as a wild beast or as a logical man or as a savage hunter or a rational animal) is tie up the loose ends of plot. That was what made this book enjoyable.
Okay one last INCREDIBLE annoyance.
Spoiler
Why in hades did D'Arnot teach Tarzan, who could READ AND WRITE IN ENGLISH, to speak in French? WHY DID HE TEACH HIM TO SAY THE FRENCH TERM AS HE READ THE ENGLISH TERM? Oh it made me so mad I had to pause the book for a few minutes in rage. That was the dumbest thing I've ever heard and made me want to stop listening right then. Ugh.I don't think I'll read any more of the Tarzan series, but I did find this one enjoyable.
Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Signet,
Originally published 1914
294 pages
Classic; Adventure
4/5 stars
Source: Bought
Summary: The classic adventure of Tarzan, the child of English gentry raised by apes who combines the best of both worlds.
Thoughts: I read this for school and I was really interested to a. see how it related to our topics of imperialism and social Darwinism and b. compare it to the Disney film Tarzan.
Let's start with the second part; Disney definitely made good changes in my book. First they made Tarzan's mother a bit stronger. In the book she basically dies of weakness; that's all. There are not as many scenes of Tarzan fighting in the movie which would have been brutal for the young audience at which it is aimed. And the humans arrive much earlier in the film; additionally they cut out the unnecessary Mr Philander and the horrifically stereotyped Esmeralda. Clayton, the villain in the film, is an okay guy here although obviously not as heroic as Tarzan. The ending is also very different because this has twenty-two sequels!
As to the topics of my course, both can be seen here. The main thread is that Burroughs constantly (or at least it feels like) praises Tarzan's white male brain as being so superior to everyone else. He combines brutal strength with that magnificent brain in order to be king of the jungle and defeat all of his opponents. The African tribal people we see are cannibals, superstitious, and they don't wear many (or any?) clothes. Tarzan is shown as very obviously superior in his ability to manipulate them; this ability is his because he is white. There are other moments to mention but I don't want this to be a long academic review so I will end there.
Overall: It's an interesting adventure story with a suspenseful style but I don't love it. Worth a read if you see it in your library but not a must.
Cover: I like the green and the tree as representative of the jungle.
Signet,
Originally published 1914
294 pages
Classic; Adventure
4/5 stars
Source: Bought
Summary: The classic adventure of Tarzan, the child of English gentry raised by apes who combines the best of both worlds.
Thoughts: I read this for school and I was really interested to a. see how it related to our topics of imperialism and social Darwinism and b. compare it to the Disney film Tarzan.
Let's start with the second part; Disney definitely made good changes in my book. First they made Tarzan's mother a bit stronger. In the book she basically dies of weakness; that's all. There are not as many scenes of Tarzan fighting in the movie which would have been brutal for the young audience at which it is aimed. And the humans arrive much earlier in the film; additionally they cut out the unnecessary Mr Philander and the horrifically stereotyped Esmeralda. Clayton, the villain in the film, is an okay guy here although obviously not as heroic as Tarzan. The ending is also very different because this has twenty-two sequels!
As to the topics of my course, both can be seen here. The main thread is that Burroughs constantly (or at least it feels like) praises Tarzan's white male brain as being so superior to everyone else. He combines brutal strength with that magnificent brain in order to be king of the jungle and defeat all of his opponents. The African tribal people we see are cannibals, superstitious, and they don't wear many (or any?) clothes. Tarzan is shown as very obviously superior in his ability to manipulate them; this ability is his because he is white. There are other moments to mention but I don't want this to be a long academic review so I will end there.
Overall: It's an interesting adventure story with a suspenseful style but I don't love it. Worth a read if you see it in your library but not a must.
Cover: I like the green and the tree as representative of the jungle.
3.5
Why is this a 20 book long series? Like I really don't get it. Anyways about the book. I feel like I have a lot to say but I'll probably forget most of it so let's just get into this.
I've started this book in the past couple of years 3 times but back then I did not like reading so after 50-70 pages I just gave up on it. My goal for this year was basically just to start reading the series and finally I had the chance to do it.
I think we all know the original story about the ape-man or something and the girl he fell in love with in the jungle. It's a cute Disney movie indeed it's one of my favorites so I went into the book like ,,oh this I gonna be such a fun and cute story". Yeah hmm...not quite.
In the beginning of the book we get to know the origins, like how the heck did Tarzan turned up in bloody Afrika. And obviously the parents get killed (actually not, the mom she just went kinda crazy but anyways). And then we have like a 10 year jump and Edgar R.B. introduces us to how he lives with the apes and also some a bit exciting stories about his childhood and the struggles of being different then everyone else he knows. I think this was beautiful and it really moved something inside of me. Again a bunch of years pass, Tarzan is an adult now, and that's when a whole lot of things just went wrong for me. So the guy just straight up starts to kill off everyone. While writing this down I actually find it a bit funny sorry. But how did we get to such a cute Disney movie after this book. Basically every main ape character from the movie straight up dies before the half point mark in the book. And I think except one of them, who is actually his mother, he kills every one of them. Now comes in I think most peoples problem. The Africans/native Americans you know what I'm trying to say. I didn't get mad about it because at that time racism was not a big problem or topic If I'm correct like nowadays. So I looked at the story like this was normal back then. And I mean do kinda get one point of Tarzan hating on them and killing some of them because the king's son killed his mother and he only avenged his mother's death. Until this it was not that bad I was obviously like a bit confused and like what? about the whole killing spree thing but whatever. Then came in the (not to be racist but that's how I can call them) white people. I was again confused like Clayton is a good guy??? And who on earth is Esmeralda and Mr. Philander??? So our humans get into some trouble, like every living thing in the jungle attacks them, and our big boy (they call him the giant or something) saves everyone and also let's them live in his house. That's fine and all but like THE LOVE TRIANGLE/PLOT? What on earth even is that? It was very stupidly written like at one point she was scared of him and the other second she was in love kissing him and admitting that she loves him. Girl...please just NO. Then we have some fight scenes with humans and the natives and Tarzan and etc. Troughout the whole book....BORING. I really needed some spice in the book but it was just not coming. The ending tho...NO! Not for me...Our giant Tarzan becomes a normal human you know fancy-pancy and all because a French guy who they leave him accidentally in Afrika with teaches him everything and he has this plan in his head of finding Jane the gurl. And yes the ending I'm just not even commenting you should just read the book and decide what you think for yourself because I have way too many mixed feeling about it.
One more thing...Why did I randomly start crying at the last half page. I don't get it, like yes it made me a bit sad of how it ended but boy there's like 19 more books so everything will change, I really don't understand myself sometimes.
In the end this accidentally became my longest review but even tough this book had way too many useless parts and fighting scenes it was a good book and I find the story unique because I've never read anything like this.
But If you don't really want to ruin your childhood please don't read it because this did change some of my perspectives.
Why is this a 20 book long series? Like I really don't get it. Anyways about the book. I feel like I have a lot to say but I'll probably forget most of it so let's just get into this.
I've started this book in the past couple of years 3 times but back then I did not like reading so after 50-70 pages I just gave up on it. My goal for this year was basically just to start reading the series and finally I had the chance to do it.
I think we all know the original story about the ape-man or something and the girl he fell in love with in the jungle. It's a cute Disney movie indeed it's one of my favorites so I went into the book like ,,oh this I gonna be such a fun and cute story". Yeah hmm...not quite.
In the beginning of the book we get to know the origins, like how the heck did Tarzan turned up in bloody Afrika. And obviously the parents get killed (actually not, the mom she just went kinda crazy but anyways). And then we have like a 10 year jump and Edgar R.B. introduces us to how he lives with the apes and also some a bit exciting stories about his childhood and the struggles of being different then everyone else he knows. I think this was beautiful and it really moved something inside of me. Again a bunch of years pass, Tarzan is an adult now, and that's when a whole lot of things just went wrong for me. So the guy just straight up starts to kill off everyone. While writing this down I actually find it a bit funny sorry. But how did we get to such a cute Disney movie after this book. Basically every main ape character from the movie straight up dies before the half point mark in the book. And I think except one of them, who is actually his mother, he kills every one of them. Now comes in I think most peoples problem. The Africans/native Americans you know what I'm trying to say. I didn't get mad about it because at that time racism was not a big problem or topic If I'm correct like nowadays. So I looked at the story like this was normal back then. And I mean do kinda get one point of Tarzan hating on them and killing some of them because the king's son killed his mother and he only avenged his mother's death. Until this it was not that bad I was obviously like a bit confused and like what? about the whole killing spree thing but whatever. Then came in the (not to be racist but that's how I can call them) white people. I was again confused like Clayton is a good guy??? And who on earth is Esmeralda and Mr. Philander??? So our humans get into some trouble, like every living thing in the jungle attacks them, and our big boy (they call him the giant or something) saves everyone and also let's them live in his house. That's fine and all but like THE LOVE TRIANGLE/PLOT? What on earth even is that? It was very stupidly written like at one point she was scared of him and the other second she was in love kissing him and admitting that she loves him. Girl...please just NO. Then we have some fight scenes with humans and the natives and Tarzan and etc. Troughout the whole book....BORING. I really needed some spice in the book but it was just not coming. The ending tho...NO! Not for me...Our giant Tarzan becomes a normal human you know fancy-pancy and all because a French guy who they leave him accidentally in Afrika with teaches him everything and he has this plan in his head of finding Jane the gurl. And yes the ending I'm just not even commenting you should just read the book and decide what you think for yourself because I have way too many mixed feeling about it.
One more thing...Why did I randomly start crying at the last half page. I don't get it, like yes it made me a bit sad of how it ended but boy there's like 19 more books so everything will change, I really don't understand myself sometimes.
In the end this accidentally became my longest review but even tough this book had way too many useless parts and fighting scenes it was a good book and I find the story unique because I've never read anything like this.
But If you don't really want to ruin your childhood please don't read it because this did change some of my perspectives.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The general trend of "classic" science fiction is as Michael Moorcock rightly pointed out crypto-fascists dictating their own perverted utopias, whether through Heinlein's fetishistic militarism, or Rand's sociopathic heroes. Burroughs is the progenitor of them all, and Tarzan of the Apes is a love song to phrenology and eugenics-a poor man's Mein Kampf. The hero is an Englishman, Nordic and blonde he holds sway over Africa's jungles with his "superior brain," killing both Africans and Apes with hardly any distinction between the two, and even less remorse. The novel is one that has long outlived its time, and acceptability.
So the imperialism, colonialism, sexism, and racism of this book didn’t age very well.
A fantastic read and nothing like the Disney movie. It ends on a big cliff hanger.