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Claudia Cota
Dr. Lynda Haas
Writing 37
2/23/15
Anthropomorphism in Kiplings Stories
Anthropomorphism can be used in stories, the Greeks used it in mythology to explain
various natural phenomenon or in tales about their gods. Rudyard Kipling is an English writer
whose works include The Jungle Book, and many other short stories as well as novels and
poems. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907 (Rudyard Kipling Biography). In
The Jungle Book, Kipling uses anthropomorphism as a rhetorical device in the Mowgli stories
and "Rikki Tikki Tavi" in order to focus readers on the overarching theme of good vs. evil, with
both a human and an animal hero. As a critic wrote in his novel Rudyard Kipling, Craftsman,
"Love of animals, imagination about animals, the placing of anthropomorphic words in their
mouths, is the prevailing whim of the English, and The Jungle Books, for that reason, have
brought joy and enthusiasm to many a heart.(MacMunn 202). In the Mowgli stories, Mowgli is
a human saved from Shere Khan, a tiger, by wolves and raised by them. He ends up defeating
Shere Khan and gaining respect from the pack after being excommunicated. Rikki Tikki Tavi
has a similar story but instead of the hero being a human, it is a mongoose who is taken in by a
human family. Rikki-tikki, the mongoose, saves them and is loved by the family. Both stories use
anthropomorphism, giving animals human characteristics, to portray the theme of the heroes
winning over evil to the readers. Taken into account that the story is for children, the use of this

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rhetorical device makes sense since it makes it easier to understand the message the author is
giving.
In the first Mowgli story Mowglis Brothers, the characters are introduced and it is
when we first see anthropomorphism used with all the animal characters. Anthropomorphism is
Giving human characteristics to animals, inanimate objects or natural phenomena is a human
trait called to anthropomorphize (Nauert). The characters can communicate with each other, and
even have a society where even with other species they share laws and a common language,
since they can all understand each other. We learn about Baloo who is a bear and teaches Mowgli
about the law of the jungle and how to treat other animals and be able to communicate with
them. Bagheera, a black panther, also takes care of Mowgli and becomes his mentor along with
Baloo. In Rikki Tikki Tavi, the animals can also communicate with each other. Although they
do not explain any laws or rules, they do show relationships such as families and marriages as
shown with Nag and Nagaina, and Darzee and his wife. That the animals have laws,
relationships, families, a society, and are able to communicate, are all aspects of
anthropomorphism.
The animals are also shown to have a sense of morality which is also a human
characteristic, they believe that there are certain things that are good and bad, which is illustrated
by the repetitive reference to the law of the jungle. An example of the law is the scene where
Bagheera says, thou canst kill everything that thou art strong enough to kill: but for the sake of
the bull that bought thee thou must never kill or eat any cattle young or old. That is the Law of
the Jungle (Kipling 8). This shows that they have rules like humans and contracts that although
might be different from our current contracts, before it wasnt uncommon for contracts to be
made by trade or exchange of goods. This particular law is teaching the audience, or the children,

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to not take more than you need, or to not take others belongings, in the novel the cattle is owned
by the humans and therefor it is not the animals right to take and eat. Another instance of this is
shown in the event where Mowgli is being exiled by the pack and the pledge of the bull is
brought up again. In Rikki Tikki Tavi, this is shown when Darzee and his wife are mourning
for the loss of their egg. Rikki-tikki says, Do you think it is right for you to eat fledglings out of
a nest? (Kipling 59). Rikki-tikki even tells Nag that what he did was wrong and he shouldnt
have done it. The anthropomorphism used in this scenes gives the children a way to relate to the
characters and the story, it also sets a moral tone needed for the theme of good vs. evil.
Even though the animals share a society together with various species, the animals still
hate humans and discriminate against them. We can see this when Bagheera explains why the
other animals hate Mowgli and want to kill him. Bagheera says, The others they hate thee
because their eyes cannot meet thine; because thou art wise; because thou hast pulled out thorns
from their feet, because thou art a man (Kippling 10). This is teaching the audience, children,
that the animals hatred towards human is based on fear of their dominance. The animals see
humans as more intelligent and able to use and make tools; use their hands more precise. This is
shown by Mowgli taking the splinters of the other wolves paws and staring into other animals
eyes without looking away. The look of humans alone makes them nervous and be intimidated.
Discrimination is a human action, the fact that the animals hold a grudge against the humans and
see them differently but accept other species is anthropomorphism. This use of
anthropomorphism adds to the readers understanding and empathy. Although these stories are
about animals, they are really not about animals, but just using them through
anthropomorphism in order to teach a human audience, more specifically children, something
about humans. This can also be seen in Kaas Hunting, where the event with the Bandar-log

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shows the animals hatred for the monkeys. The monkeys are shown trying to imitate humans and
think of themselves as better than the other animals. This arrogance is was lead them to be hated
by all the other animals but the resemblance to humans further shows the discrimination of the
animals towards the humans. Scientist have found, humans are 96 percent (DNA) similar to the
great ape species (Lovgren 1). By putting human emotions and actions to the animals, the
children can better understand the characters in a way that is relatable.
Both Mowgli and Rikki-tikki are heroes in their stories, but aside from one being an
animal and the other a human, how they are treated and their endings are different. Although in
the Mowgli stories the animals and the humans do not like each other, in Rikki Tikki Tavi the
humans and Rikki-Tikki have a great relationship. Where with Mowgli, he was not accepted
neither by the wolves or the humans, Rikki-tikki is loved by the human family and is taken in as
a pet. The anthropomorphism used in Rikki Tikki Tavi is more subtle than the one used in the
Mowgli stories. The anthropomorphism in the Mowgli stories is more intricate and complicated,
the animals personalities are shown more and they also have a complex society with rules and
laws. This difference in the level of anthropomorphism allows the reader to focus more on what
is important in the message of the story. In the Mowgli stories there needed to be more
anthropomorphism because the message would have not have such a great impact to the reader
and the good vs. evil theme was also stronger. You got to see the whole story unfold from
begging to end, the story was longer as well as more complicated. The moral of the story wasnt
just the triumph of good over evil but also the relationship between humans and animals. It
showed the struggle of Mowgli trying to find a place he belonged to and in the end he did not
have such a happy ending as Rikki-tikki. In Rikki Tikki Tavi, the message of the story was
simpler and the theme of good vs. evil was straightforward. The more subtle use of

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anthropomorphism allows the message to be more easily understandable and easier to grasp
since it is more simple and direct.
Overall the use of anthropomorphism is used in the Mowgli stories and in Rikki Tikki
Tavi to help the reader understand the message by being able to relate to the characters. The
anthropomorphism is used in the animal characters personality, moral sense, emotions, actions,
and in their society and relationships with others. All of this are human traits or characteristics
that help the reader better understand the theme of good vs. evil in a human-like description but
by using the relationship between humans and animals to convey the message. In the end, both
Mowgli and Rikki-tikki are able to triumph over evil even though they are different but they are
both heroes nonetheless.

Works Cited
Kipling, Rudyard. The Jungle Book. ICU, 2011. Print.
Lovgren, Stefan . "Chimps, Humans 96 Percent the Same, Gene Study Finds."
National Geographic. 31 Aug. 2005. 18 Feb. 2015.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0831_050831_chimp_genes_2.html.
MacMunn, George Fletcher. Rudyard Kipling, Craftsman. London: R. Hale, 1937. Print.
Nauert, Rick . "Why Do We Anthropomorphize?." Psych Central. 1 Mar. 2010. 18 Feb. 2015.
http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/03/01/why-do-we-anthropomorphize/11766.html.
"Rudyard Kipling." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.