I
finished reading Rudyard Kipling's, "The Jungle Book", a
while back. Before this I'd only read the illustrated versions of the book,
specifically the first one with Mowgli, as a child so stumbling upon those
extra stories came as a pleasant surprise.
Two
stories really put me ill at ease though, "The White Seal" and
"Toomai of the Elephants". The former primarily because of the
premise set by Kipling where a first of its kind White seal named
"Kotick" leads all the other Black ones to everlasting peace,
and showing them a better way to live without constant infighting which is
prevalent among its species. Kotick doesn't achieve this through peaceful means
though; the Black seals acquiesce under duress after being put in their place
by the White one.
I
don't think I would've realized the inherent grimness of what I'd read at the
time save for last night when I happened upon a reference to Kipling in
the most unlikely of literature. This in the following words:
"With
that change began the period the world would most often associate with the
British Indian experience, the Victorian-era. Its predominant philosophy was a
concept frequently enunciated by the man who was its self-appointed poet
laureate - Rudyard Kipling - that white Englishman were uniquely
fitted to rule 'lesser breeds without the law'. The responsibility for
governing India, Kipling proclaimed, had been 'placed by the
inscrutable decree of providence upon the shoulders of the British race'."
Freedom
at Midnight - Larry Collins, Dominique Lapierre
No
matter what the avenue or how subtle might it be, I deplore the White
supremacist agenda and find this theme so prevalent in history disgusting. All
the more reason for me to revisit these childhood stories before my son is old
enough to read them; maybe I'll be able to guide him a bit more knowingly
reserving insurmountable praise or otherwise.
