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The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book

Overview
The Jungle Book is a collection of stories by British Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...

. The stories were first published in magazines in 1893–4. The original publications contain illustrations, some by Rudyard's father, John Lockwood Kipling
John Lockwood Kipling
John Lockwood Kipling, C.I.E. was an English art teacher, illustrator, museum curator, and father of author Rudyard Kipling.-Biography:...

. Kipling was born in India and spent the first six years of his childhood there. After about ten years in England, he went back to India and worked there for about six-and-half years. These stories were written when Kipling lived in Vermont.
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Encyclopedia
The Jungle Book is a collection of stories by British Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...

. The stories were first published in magazines in 1893–4. The original publications contain illustrations, some by Rudyard's father, John Lockwood Kipling
John Lockwood Kipling
John Lockwood Kipling, C.I.E. was an English art teacher, illustrator, museum curator, and father of author Rudyard Kipling.-Biography:...

. Kipling was born in India and spent the first six years of his childhood there. After about ten years in England, he went back to India and worked there for about six-and-half years. These stories were written when Kipling lived in Vermont.

The tales in the book (and also those in The Second Jungle Book
The Second Jungle Book
The Second Jungle Book is a sequel to The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. First published in 1895, it features five stories about Mowgli and three unrelated stories, all but one set in India, most of which Kipling wrote while living in Vermont...

which followed in 1895, and which includes five further stories about Mowgli) are fables, using animals in an anthropomorphic
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...

 manner to give moral lessons. The verses of The Law of the Jungle, for example, lay down rules for the safety of individuals, families and communities. Kipling put in them nearly everything he knew or "heard or dreamed about the Indian jungle." Other readers have interpreted the work as allegories of the politics and society of the time. The best-known of them are the three stories revolving around the adventures of an abandoned "man cub" Mowgli
Mowgli
Mowgli is a fictional character from India who originally appeared in Rudyard Kipling's short story "In the Rukh" and then went on to become the most prominent and memorable character in his fantasies, The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book , which also featured stories about other...

 who is raised by wolves in the Indian jungle. The most famous of the other stories are probably "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a short story in The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling about the adventures of a valiant young mongoose.The story is notable for its frightening and serious tone. It has often been anthologised and has also been published more than once as a short book in its own right...

", the story of a heroic mongoose
Mongoose
Mongoose are a family of 33 living species of small carnivorans from southern Eurasia and mainland Africa. Four additional species from Madagascar in the subfamily Galidiinae, which were previously classified in this family, are also referred to as "mongooses" or "mongoose-like"...

, and "Toomai of the Elephants
Toomai of the Elephants
"Toomai of the Elephants" is a short story by Rudyard Kipling from The Jungle Book about a young elephant-handler.The story was filmed in 1937 as Elephant Boy directed by Robert J. Flaherty and Zoltan Korda starring Sabu Dastagir....

", the tale of a young elephant-handler. "The White Seal", in which the main character seeks a haven for his people where they would be safe from hunters, has been considered a metaphor for Zionism
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...

, then in its beginning. As with much of Kipling's work, each of the stories is preceded by a piece of verse, and succeeded by another.

The Jungle Book, because of its moral tone, came to be used as a motivational book by the Cub Scouts, a junior element of the Scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....

 movement. This use of the book's universe was approved by Kipling after a direct petition of Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Scouting movement, who had originally asked for the author's permission for the use of the Memory Game
Kim's Game
Kim's Game is a game or exercise played by Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Girl Guides, and other children's groups. The game develops a person's capacity to observe and remember details...

from Kim
Kim (novel)
Kim is a picaresque novel by Rudyard Kipling. It was first published serially in McClure's Magazine from December 1900 to October 1901 as well as in Cassell's Magazine from January to November 1901, and first published in book form by Macmillan & Co. Ltd in October 1901...

in his scheme to develop the morale and fitness of working-class youths in cities. Akela
Akela (Jungle Book)
Akela is a character in Rudyard Kipling's stories, The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book. He is the leader of the Seeonee pack of Indian wolves and presides over the pack's council meetings...

, the head wolf in The Jungle Book, has become a senior figure in the movement, the name being traditionally adopted by the leader of each Cub Scout pack.

Chapters


The complete book, having passed into the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...

, is on-line at Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...

's official website and elsewhere.
  1. "Mowgli's Brothers
    Mowgli's Brothers
    "Mowgli's Brothers" is a short story by Rudyard Kipling. Chronologically it is the first story about Mowgli although it was written after "In the Rukh" in which Mowgli appears as an adult.The story first appeared in the January 1894 issue of St...

    ": A boy is raised by wolves in the India
    India
    India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

    n Jungle with the help of Baloo
    Baloo
    Baloo is the fictional bear featured in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book from 1894 and The Second Jungle Book from 1895.-Name and species:He is described in Kipling's work as "the sleepy brown bear"...

     the bear and Bagheera
    Bagheera
    Bagheera the black-toned Indian Leopard is an animal fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories in The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book...

     the black panther
    Black panther
    A black panther is typically a melanistic color variant of any of several species of larger cat. Wild black panthers in Latin America are black jaguars , in Asia and Africa they are black leopards , and in North America they may be black jaguars or possibly black cougars A black panther is...

    , and then has to fight the tiger Shere Khan
    Shere Khan
    Shere Khan is a fictional tiger of the Indian jungle. He is the chief antagonist in two of Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book stories featuring Mowgli. Shere Khan is named after an Afghan Prince Kipling encountered on his trips to Afghanistan...

    . This story has also been published as a short book in its own right: Night-Song in the Jungle
  2. "Hunting-Song of the Seeonee Pack"
  3. "Kaa's Hunting
    Kaa's Hunting
    "Kaa's Hunting" is an 1893 short story by Rudyard Kipling featuring Mowgli. Chronologically the story falls between the first and second halves of Mowgli's Brothers, and is the second story in The Jungle Book where it is accompanied by the poem "Road Song of the Bandar-log".-Story:The...

    ": This story takes place before Mowgli fights Shere Khan. When Mowgli is abducted by monkey
    Monkey
    A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...

    s, Baloo and Bagheera set out to rescue him with the aid of Chil the Kite and Kaa
    Kaa
    Kaa is a fictional and exceptionally long Python molurus from the Mowgli stories written by Rudyard Kipling. Kaa is one of Mowgli's mentors and friends. He, Baloo and Bagheera sing for Mowgli "The Outsong" of the jungle. First introduced in the story "Kaa's Hunting" in The Jungle Book, Kaa is a...

     the python. Maxims of Baloo.
  4. "Road Song of the Bandar-Log"
  5. "Tiger! Tiger!
    Tiger! Tiger! (Rudyard Kipling)
    "Tiger! Tiger!" is a short story by Rudyard Kipling. A direct sequel to "Mowgli's Brothers", it was published in magazines in 1893–94 before appearing as the third story in The Jungle Book , following "Kaa's Hunting"...

    ": Mowgli returns to the human village and is adopted by Messua and her husband who believe him to be their long-lost son Nathoo. But he has trouble adjusting to human life, and Shere Khan still wants to kill him. The story's title is taken from the poem "The Tyger
    The Tyger
    "The Tyger" is a poem by the English poet William Blake. It was published as part of his collection Songs of Experience in 1794 . It is one of Blake's best-known and most analyzed poems...

    " by William Blake
    William Blake
    William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...

    .
  6. "Mowgli's Song"
  7. "The White Seal": Kotick, a rare white-furred Northern fur seal
    Northern Fur Seal
    The Northern fur seal is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily and the only species in the genus Callorhinus.-Physical description:Northern fur seals have extreme sexual dimorphism, with males...

    , searches for a new home for his people, where they will not be hunted by humans. The "animal language" words and names in this story are a phonetic spelling of Russian spoken with an Aleut accent, for example "Stareek!" (= Старик!) = "old man!", "Ochen scoochnie" (said by Kotick) = "I am very lonesome" = Очень скучный (correctly means "very boring"), holluschick (plural -i.e.) "bachelor male seal" (холощик) from холостой = "unmarried".
  8. "Lukannon"
  9. "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a short story in The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling about the adventures of a valiant young mongoose.The story is notable for its frightening and serious tone. It has often been anthologised and has also been published more than once as a short book in its own right...

    ": Rikki-Tikki the mongoose
    Mongoose
    Mongoose are a family of 33 living species of small carnivorans from southern Eurasia and mainland Africa. Four additional species from Madagascar in the subfamily Galidiinae, which were previously classified in this family, are also referred to as "mongooses" or "mongoose-like"...

     defends a human family living in India against a pair of cobra
    Cobra
    Cobra is a venomous snake belonging to the family Elapidae. However, not all snakes commonly referred to as cobras are of the same genus, or even of the same family. The name is short for cobra capo or capa Snake, which is Portuguese for "snake with hood", or "hood-snake"...

    s. This story has also been published as a short book.
  10. "Darzee's Chant"
  11. "Toomai of the Elephants
    Toomai of the Elephants
    "Toomai of the Elephants" is a short story by Rudyard Kipling from The Jungle Book about a young elephant-handler.The story was filmed in 1937 as Elephant Boy directed by Robert J. Flaherty and Zoltan Korda starring Sabu Dastagir....

    ": Toomai, a ten-year old boy who helps to tend working elephants, is told that he will never be a full-fledged elephant-handler until he has seen the elephants dance. This story has also been published as a short book.
  12. "Shiv and the Grasshopper"
  13. "Her Majesty's Servants" (originally titled "Servants of the Queen"): On the night before a military parade a British soldier eavesdrops on a conversation between the camp animals.
  14. "Parade-Song of the Camp Animals" parodies several well-known songs and poems, including Bonnie Dundee
    Bonnie Dundee
    Bonnie Dundee is a poem and a song about John Graham, 7th Laird of Claverhouse, 1st Viscount Dundee who was known by this nickname. The song has been used as a regimental march by several Scottish regiments in the British Army and was adapted by Confederate troops in the American Civil...

    .

Characters


In alphabetical order:
  • Akela
    Akela (Jungle Book)
    Akela is a character in Rudyard Kipling's stories, The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book. He is the leader of the Seeonee pack of Indian wolves and presides over the pack's council meetings...

     – An Indian Wolf
    Indian Wolf
    Indian wolf and Iranian Wolf are two common names for Canis lupus pallipes, a subspecies of grey wolf which inhabits western India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and southern Israel. Some experts have suggested at least some C. lupus pallipes populations be re-classified a canid species...

  • Bagheera
    Bagheera
    Bagheera the black-toned Indian Leopard is an animal fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories in The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book...

     – A melanistic (black) panther
    Black panther
    A black panther is typically a melanistic color variant of any of several species of larger cat. Wild black panthers in Latin America are black jaguars , in Asia and Africa they are black leopards , and in North America they may be black jaguars or possibly black cougars A black panther is...

  • Baloo
    Baloo
    Baloo is the fictional bear featured in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book from 1894 and The Second Jungle Book from 1895.-Name and species:He is described in Kipling's work as "the sleepy brown bear"...

    — A Sloth Bear
    Sloth Bear
    The sloth bear , also known as the labiated bear, is a nocturnal insectivorous species of bear found wild within the Indian subcontinent. The sloth bear evolved from ancestral brown bears during the Pleistocene and shares features found in insect-eating mammals through convergent evolution...

  • Bandar-log – A tribe of monkeys
  • Chil – A kite
    Kite (bird)
    Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mainly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey.They are birds of prey which, along with hawks and eagles, are from the family Accipitridae....

     (renamed "Rann" in US editions)
  • Chuchundra – A Muskrat
    Muskrat
    The muskrat , the only species in genus Ondatra, is a medium-sized semi-aquatic rodent native to North America, and introduced in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands and is a very successful animal over a wide range of climates and habitats...

  • Darzee – A tailorbird
    Tailorbird
    Tailorbirds are small birds belonging to the genus Orthotomus often placed in the Old World warbler family Sylviidae. However, recent research suggests they more likely belong in the Cisticolidae and they are treated as such in Del Hoyo et al....

  • Father Wolf – The Father Wolf who raised Mowgli as his own cub
  • Grey brother – One of Mother and Father Wolf's cubs
  • Hathi
    Hathi
    Hathi is a fictional animal character created by Rudyard Kipling for the Mowgli stories collected in The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book . Hathi is a bull elephant that lives in the jungle. Kipling named him after hāthī , the Hindi word for "elephant".-Kipling's character:Hathi is head of...

     – An Indian Elephant
    Indian Elephant
    The Indian Elephant is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to mainland Asia. Since 1986, Elephas maximus has been listed as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 50% over the last three generations, estimated to be 60–75 years...

  • Ikki – An Asiatic Brush-tailed Porcupine
    Asiatic Brush-tailed Porcupine
    The Asiatic Brush-tailed Porcupine, Atherurus macrourus, is a species of rodent in the Hystricidae family.It is found in China, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam....

     (mentioned only)
  • Kaa
    Kaa
    Kaa is a fictional and exceptionally long Python molurus from the Mowgli stories written by Rudyard Kipling. Kaa is one of Mowgli's mentors and friends. He, Baloo and Bagheera sing for Mowgli "The Outsong" of the jungle. First introduced in the story "Kaa's Hunting" in The Jungle Book, Kaa is a...

     – Indian Python
  • Karait – Common Krait
    Common Krait
    The common krait is a species of genus Bungarus found in the jungles of the Indian subcontinent. It is a member of the "big four", species inflicting the most snakebites in India....

  • Kotick – A White Seal
    Fur seal
    Fur seals are any of nine species of pinnipeds in the Otariidae family. One species, the northern fur seal inhabits the North Pacific, while seven species in the Arctocephalus genus are found primarily in the Southern hemisphere...

  • Mang – A Bat
    Bat
    Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

  • Mor – An Indian Peafowl
    Indian Peafowl
    The Indian Peafowl or Blue Peafowl is a large and brightly coloured bird of the pheasant family native to South Asia, but introduced and semi-feral in many other parts of the world...

  • Mowgli
    Mowgli
    Mowgli is a fictional character from India who originally appeared in Rudyard Kipling's short story "In the Rukh" and then went on to become the most prominent and memorable character in his fantasies, The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book , which also featured stories about other...

     – Main character, the young jungle boy
  • Nag – A male Black cobra
    Black Cobra
    Black Cobra is a doom and sludge metal band from San Francisco, California. The band was formed in 2002 by Jason Landrian and Rafael Martinez .-Band members:* Jason Landrian - Guitar, Vocals, formerly in Cavity...

  • Nagaina – A female King cobra
    King Cobra
    The king cobra is the world's longest venomous snake, with a length up to 5.6 m . This species, which preys chiefly on other snakes, is found predominantly in forests from India through Southeast Asia to the Philippines and Indonesia...

    , Nag's mate
  • Raksha
    Raksha (Jungle Books)
    Raksha the Demon is a fictional character featured in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories, collected in The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book...

     – The Mother wolf who raised Mowgli as her own cub
  • Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a short story in The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling about the adventures of a valiant young mongoose.The story is notable for its frightening and serious tone. It has often been anthologised and has also been published more than once as a short book in its own right...

     – An Indian Mongoose
    Indian Mongoose
    The Small Asian Mongoose , also known as the Indian Mongoose, Small Indian Mongoose, or the Javan Mongoose, is a species of mongoose found in the wild in South and Southeast Asia...

  • Sea Catch – A Northern fur seal
    Northern Fur Seal
    The Northern fur seal is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily and the only species in the genus Callorhinus.-Physical description:Northern fur seals have extreme sexual dimorphism, with males...

     and Kotick's father
  • Sea Cow – A Steller's Sea Cow
    Steller's Sea Cow
    Steller's sea cow was a large herbivorous marine mammal. In historical times, it was the largest member of the order Sirenia, which includes its closest living relative, the dugong , and the manatees...

  • Sea Vitch – A Walrus
    Walrus
    The walrus is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and Odobenus genus. It is subdivided into three subspecies: the Atlantic...

  • Shere Khan
    Shere Khan
    Shere Khan is a fictional tiger of the Indian jungle. He is the chief antagonist in two of Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book stories featuring Mowgli. Shere Khan is named after an Afghan Prince Kipling encountered on his trips to Afghanistan...

    — A Royal Bengal Tiger
  • Tabaqui – An Indian Jackal
    Indian Jackal
    The Indian Jackal , also known as the Himalayan Jackal is a subspecies of golden jackal native to India, Bhutan, Burma and Nepal. Its karyotype is quite different from that of its Eurasian and African counterparts .-Description:Its fur is a mixture of black and white, with buff on the shoulders,...


Adaptations


The book's text has often been abridged or adapted for younger readers, and there have also been several comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 adaptations.

Comics

  • A comic book series Petit d'homme ("Man Cub") was published in Belgium
    Belgium
    Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

     between 1996 and 2003. Written by Crisse
    Crissé
    Crissé is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.-References:*...

     and drawn by Marc N'Guessan and Guy Michel, it resets the stories in a post-apocalyptic world in which Mowgli's friends are humans rather than animals: Baloo is an elderly doctor, Bagheera is a fierce African woman warrior and Kaa is a former army sniper
    Sniper
    A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....

    .
  • Marvel Comics
    Marvel Comics
    Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...

     published several Jungle Book adaptations by Mary Jo Duffy and Gil Kane
    Gil Kane
    Eli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in one instance Scott Edward, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...

     in the pages of Marvel Fanfare
    Marvel Fanfare
    Marvel Fanfare is the title of two comic book series published by Marvel Comics. Both versions of Marvel Fanfare were anthology, showcase titles featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe.-Volume One:...

    (vol. 1). These strips were collected in the 2007 one-shot Marvel Illustrated
    Marvel Illustrated
    Marvel Illustrated is an imprint from Marvel Comics for comic adaptations of classic literature. Each novel's story is told in the form of a limited series, the issues of which are later collected together as a trade paperback.-Titles:...

    : The Jungle Book
    .
  • The DC Comics
    DC Comics
    DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...

     Elseworlds
    Elseworlds
    Elseworlds is the publication imprint for a group of comic books produced by DC Comics that take place outside the company's canon. According to its tagline: "In Elseworlds, heroes are taken from their usual settings and put into strange times and places — some that have existed, and others...

    ' story, "Superman: The Feral Man of Steel
    Superman: The Feral Man of Steel
    Superman: The Feral Man of Steel is a DC Comics Elseworlds special published in 1994. Written by Darren Vincenzo, pencilled by Frank Fosco and inked by Stan Woch.In 19th century India Kal-El is raised by wolves...

    ", is based loosely on the Jungle Book stories, as well as the Edgar Rice Burroughs
    Edgar Rice Burroughs
    Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...

    ' Tarzan
    Tarzan
    Tarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungles by the Mangani "great apes"; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...

     stories. The infant Superman
    Superman
    Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...

    , like Mowgli, is raised by wolves, and takes the name K'l'l. Bagheera, Akela, and Shere Khan all make appearances. The character is later given the civilized name of 'Clark' by Lois Lane
    Lois Lane
    Lois Lane is a fictional character, the primary love interest of Superman in the comic books of DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in Action Comics #1 ....

    , and is captured along with his friends, and used for profit by Lex Luthor
    Lex Luthor
    Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...

    , who is also eventually slain.
  • Bill Willingham
    Bill Willingham
    Bill Willingham is an American writer and artist of comics.-Career:Willingham got his start in the late 1970s to early 1980s as a staff artist for TSR, Inc., where he illustrated a number of their role-playing game products...

    's Eisner Award
    Eisner Award
    The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...

    -winning comic book series Fables
    Fables (comics)
    Fables is a comic book series created by writer Bill Willingham, published by DC Comics's Vertigo imprint beginning in 2002. The series deals with various characters from fairy tales and folklore – referring to themselves as "Fables" – who have been forced out of their Homelands by "The...

    , published by Vertigo Comics, features the Jungle Book's Mowgli, Bagheera and Shere Khan; though their characterisation remains true to Kipling's stories, Willingham and artist Mark Buckingham
    Mark Buckingham
    Mark Buckingham is a British comic book artist. He is better known for his work on Marvelman and Fables.-Biography:Born as Mark John Buckingham May 23, 1966 in Clevedon, United Kingdom...

     also make oblique references to the 1967 Disney animation
    The Jungle Book (1967 film)
    The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Released on October 18, 1967, it is the 19th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was inspired by the stories about the feral child Mowgli from the book of the same name by...

     in dialogue and artwork. The series amalgamates characters from fairy tales and folklore, as well as children's literature; Shere Kahn, for instance, is shot dead by Snow White
    Snow White
    "Snow White" is a fairy tale known from many countries in Europe, the best known version being the German one collected by the Brothers Grimm...

    , whilst Mowgli is employed as a spy by Big Bad Wolf
    Bigby Wolf
    Bigby Wolf is a major character in the comic book series Fables. He is the Big Bad Wolf of legend and served as the sheriff of the exile community known as Fabletown for several hundred years...

    .

Books


Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...

's The Graveyard Book
The Graveyard Book
The Graveyard Book is a children's fantasy novel by English author Neil Gaiman. The story is about a boy named Nobody Owens, who after his family is murdered is adopted and raised by the occupants of a graveyard...

is inspired by The Jungle Book. It follows a baby boy who is found and brought up by the dead in a cemetery. It has many scenes that can be directly linked back to Kipling, but with Gaiman's dark twist. Mr. Gaiman has spoken in some detail about this on his website.

Live-action film

  • "Toomai of the Elephants" was filmed as Elephant Boy
    Elephant Boy (film)
    Elephant Boy is a 1937 British adventure film starring Sabu in his film debut. Documentary filmmaker Robert J. Flaherty and Zoltan Korda won the Best Director Award at the Venice Film Festival...

    (1937), starring Sabu Dastagir
    Sabu Dastagir
    Sabu Dastagir was a film actor of Indian origin—although he later took American citizenship. He was normally credited only by his first name, Sabu, and is primarily known for his work in film during the 1930s-40s in Britain and America.-Early life:Born in 1924 in Karapur, Mysore, Kingdom of...

    . In the 1960s there was a television series of the same name, loosely based on the story and film.
  • Jungle Book
    Jungle Book (1942 film)
    Jungle Book is a 1942 American color action-adventure film based on the Rudyard Kipling book, The Jungle Book. The film was directed by Zoltán Korda based on a screenplay adaptation by Laurence Stallings. The cinematography was by Lee Garmes and W. Howard Greene and music by Miklós Rózsa...

    (1942) – directed by Zoltán Korda
    Zoltán Korda
    Zoltan Korda was a Hungarian-born motion picture screenwriter, director and producer.Born Zoltán Kellner, Kellner Zoltán in Hungarian name order, of Jewish heritage in Pusztatúrpásztó, Túrkeve in Hungary , he was the middle brother of filmmakers Alexander and Vincent Korda.Zoltan Korda went to...

    , starring Sabu Dastagir
    Sabu Dastagir
    Sabu Dastagir was a film actor of Indian origin—although he later took American citizenship. He was normally credited only by his first name, Sabu, and is primarily known for his work in film during the 1930s-40s in Britain and America.-Early life:Born in 1924 in Karapur, Mysore, Kingdom of...

     as Mowgli.
  • Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book (1994) – starring Jason Scott Lee as Mowgli.
  • The Second Jungle Book: Mowgli and Baloo (1997) – starring Jamie Williams as Mowgli.
  • The Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story
    Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story
    The Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story is a direct-to-video release from Walt Disney Home Entertainment. The film follows the adventures of Mowgli from the time he was 5 living among humans to when he was 12 and rediscovering humans again.-Plot:Mowgli's village is attacked by Shere Khan the tiger and he...

    (1998) – starring Brandon Baker
    Brandon Baker
    Brandon Baker is an American actor. He is known for the made-for-TV movies, such as Disney movies Johnny Tsunami and its sequel Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board as well as for his role on the short lived NBC sitcom One World. In 2002, he appeared in episodes of the Disney Channel original series...

     as Mowgli.
  • The Jungle Book, an upcoming adaptation that will begin production in September 2007 and continue for two years.

Animation


Disney's 1967 animated film version
The Jungle Book (1967 film)
The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Released on October 18, 1967, it is the 19th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was inspired by the stories about the feral child Mowgli from the book of the same name by...

, inspired by the Mowgli stories, was extremely popular, though it took great liberties with the plot, characters and the pronunciation of the characters' names. These characterizations were further used in the 1990 animated series TaleSpin
TaleSpin
TaleSpin is a half-hour American animated television series based in the fictional city of Cape Suzette, that first aired in 1990 as part of The Disney Afternoon, with characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature The Jungle Book. The name of the show is a play on "tailspin", the rapid,...

, which featured several anthropomorphic characters loosely based on those from the film in a comic aviation-industry setting.
  • In 1967, another animated adaptation was released in the Soviet Union
    Soviet Union
    The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

     called Mowgli , also known as the 'heroic' version of the story. Five animated shorts of about 20 minutes each were released between 1967 and 1971, and combined into a single 96-minute feature film in 1973. It's also very close to the book's storyline, and one of the few adaptations which has Bagheera as a female panther. It also features stories from The Second Jungle Book
    The Second Jungle Book
    The Second Jungle Book is a sequel to The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. First published in 1895, it features five stories about Mowgli and three unrelated stories, all but one set in India, most of which Kipling wrote while living in Vermont...

    , such as Red Dog and a simplified version of The King's Ankus. "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
    Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a short story in The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling about the adventures of a valiant young mongoose.The story is notable for its frightening and serious tone. It has often been anthologised and has also been published more than once as a short book in its own right...

    " has also been released in 1965 as a cartoon (http://animator.ru/db/?ver=eng&p=show_film&fid=2178) and in 1976 as a feature film. The former made its way into the hearts of viewers and is even now sometimes aired by TV stations of the Former Soviet Union countries as a classic of Soviet animation. Interestingly, in keeping with Soviet ideology, the Colonial English family in Rikki-Tikki-Tavi has been replaced with an Indian family.

  • Chuck Jones
    Chuck Jones
    Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...

    's made for-TV cartoons Mowgli's Brothers, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi and The White Seal stick to the original storylines more closely than most adaptations.

  • There was a Japanese anime
    Anime
    is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

     television series called Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli
    Jungle Book Shonen Mowgli
    is an anime adaption of Rudyard Kipling's original collection of stories, The Jungle Book. It aired in 1989, and consists of a total of 52 episodes.-Music:...

    broadcast in 1989. Its adaptation represents a compromise between the original stories and the Walt Disney version. Many of Kipling's stories are adapted into the series, but many elements are combined and changed to suit more modern sensibilities. For instance, Akela, the wolf pack alpha eventually steps aside, but instead of being threatened with death, he stays on as the new leader's advisor. Also, there is an Indian family in the series which includes Rikki-Tikki-Tavi as a pet mongoose
    Mongoose
    Mongoose are a family of 33 living species of small carnivorans from southern Eurasia and mainland Africa. Four additional species from Madagascar in the subfamily Galidiinae, which were previously classified in this family, are also referred to as "mongooses" or "mongoose-like"...

    . Finally at the series' conclusion, Mowgli leaves the jungle for human civilization, but still keeps strong ties with his animal friends.
    • The Japanese anime was dubbed in Hindi
      Hindi
      Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

       and telecast as Jungle Book by Doordarshan
      DoorDarshan
      Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...

       in India during the early 1990s. The Indian version featured original music by Vishal Bharadwaj (with words by noted lyricist Gulzar
      Gulzar (lyricist)
      Sampooran Singh Kalra , known popularly by his pen name Gulzar , is an Indian poet, lyricist and director. He primarily writes in Hindi-Urdu and has also written in Punjabi and several dialects of Hindi such as Braj Bhasha, Khariboli, Haryanvi and Marwari.Gulzar was awarded the Padma Bhushan in...

       and Nana Patekar
      Nana Patekar
      Vishwanath "Nana" Patekar is an Indian actor and filmmaker.-Biography:Born Vishwanath Patekar in Murud-Janjira, Maharashtra, to Dinkar Patekar and his wife Sanjanabai Patekar. He is an alumnus of the Sir J.J...

       doing the voice over for Sher Khan), which made it quite popular among television viewers of that time.
    • The anime was also dubbed in Arabic under the title "فتى الأدغال " (Fatā al Adghāl: Boy Of The Jungle) and became a hit with Arab viewers in the 1990s.

Stage

  • A Hungarian
    Hungary
    Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

     musical was composed by László Dés, lyrics by Péter Geszti and Pál Békés. The musical was first performed in 1996 in Budapest and is still running today in many Hungarian theatres. It won the prize of the Hungarian Theatre Critics as the musical of the year in 1996.
  • Stuart Paterson wrote a stage adaptation in 2004, first produced by the Birmingham
    Birmingham
    Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

     Old Rep
    Old Rep
    The Old Rep is a theatre located in Station Street in Birmingham, England, managed by Birmingham City Council.Construction began in October 1912 and it was opened on February 15, 1913 with a performance of Twelfth Night and then a reading by its founder, Barry Jackson, of a poem written by John...

     in 2004 and published in 2007 by Nick Hern Books
    Nick Hern Books
    Nick Hern Books is a London-based independent specialist publisher of plays, theatre books and screenplays. The company was founded by the former Methuen drama editor Nick Hern in 1988.-History:...

    .
  • In 2006 the Orlando Shakespeare Theater
    Orlando Shakespeare Theater
    The Orlando began its first season with two Shakespearean productions in 1989. Based in Florida in Orlando's Loch Haven Park, Orlando Shakes has performed 41 mainstage productions of Shakespeare's works...

     commissioned a unique adaptation for their Theater For Young Audiences series. With Book and Lyrics by April-Dawn Gladu and Music and Lyrics by Daniel Levy, this version explores the joy and pain felt by his two mothers, the human Messua and Raksha the wolf, and stresses the benefits of community and compassion. The music is distinctly Indian in nature with two of the seven songs sung in Hindi. It has since been produced by Imagination Stage in MD, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, Brigham Young University, and dozens of community and collegiate theaters. It is published by www.TYAscripts.com
  • A dance adaptation by the Boom Kat Dance Company premiered on 2 May 2008 at Miles Playhouse in Santa Monica, California. It was choreographed by the company with artistic direction by Lili Fuller, Marissa Goodhill, Emily Iscoff-Daigian and Adam North.
  • A new adaptation written by Leonard Joseph Dunham was premiered by the Hunger Artists Theatre Company
    Hunger Artists Theatre Company
    The Hunger Artists Theatre Company is an alternative theatre company located in a business park in Fullerton, California. They are known for presenting challenging, thought-provoking plays musicals, world premiere pieces, and re-imaginings of classic plays....

     in Fullerton, California, on 12 September 2008.
  • Art rock adaptation The Third Jungle Book from Progres 2. The Jungle story is extended about the jungle of civilization. English version 1981.
  • The Castle Theatre, Wellingborough is performing a brand new musical version of the much loved story for the 2009 Christmas season.

Music


Australian composer Percy Grainger
Percy Grainger
George Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...

, an avid Kipling reader wrote a Jungle Book cycle, which was published in 1958.

See also


  • Just So Stories
    Just So Stories
    The Just So Stories for Little Children were written by British author Rudyard Kipling. They are highly fantasised origin stories and are among Kipling's best known works.-Description:...

  • Works of Rudyard Kipling
    Works of Rudyard Kipling
    -Books:* The City of Dreadful Night * Departmental Ditties * Plain Tales from the Hills * Soldiers Three...

  • The Jungle Book characters
  • The Second Jungle Book
    The Second Jungle Book
    The Second Jungle Book is a sequel to The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. First published in 1895, it features five stories about Mowgli and three unrelated stories, all but one set in India, most of which Kipling wrote while living in Vermont...

  • The Third Jungle Book
    The Third Jungle Book
    The Third Jungle Book by Pamela Jekel , originally illustrated by Nancy Malick, is a collection of new stories about Mowgli, the feral child character, and his animal companions, created by Rudyard Kipling and featured in Kipling's The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book .The stories are...

  • Feral children
  • Feral children in mythology and fiction
    Feral children in mythology and fiction
    Feral children, children who have lived from a young age without human contact, appear in mythological and fictional works, usually as human characters who have been raised by animals...

  • Pench National Park
    Pench National Park, Madhya Pradesh
    Pench National Park is situated in Seoni and Chhindwara districts of Madhya Pradesh in India. It derives its name from the Pench River that flows through the National park from north to south dividing the park into almost equal western and eastern halves- the well forested areas of Chhindwara and...

    , near Seoni
    Seoni (Madhya Pradesh)
    Seoni redirects here, for a town in Shimla District see Seoni, Himachal Pradesh.Seoni is a city and a municipality in Seoni district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh....

     (Seeonee) is said to be the forest where the Seeonee wolf pack lives.
  • Wildlife of India
    Wildlife of India
    The wildlife of India is a mix of species of number of different types of organism. The region's rich and diverse wildlife is preserved in 89 national parks, 13 Bio reserves and 400+ wildlife sanctuaries across the country. Since India is home to a number of rare and threatened animal species,...

  • Panchatantra
    Panchatantra
    The Panchatantra is an ancient Indian inter-related collection of animal fables in verse and prose, in a frame story format. The original Sanskrit work, which some scholars believe was composed in the 3rd century BCE, is attributed to Vishnu Sharma...

  • Seal hunting
    Seal hunting
    Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. The hunt is currently practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, Namibia, the Danish region of Greenland, Norway and Russia...


External links



  • The Jungle Book Collection: a website demonstrating the variety of merchandise related to the book and film versions of The Jungle Book.
  • Boom Kat Dance: a website describing the dance adaptation of The Jungle Book by Boom Kat Dance Company.