Anthony Alkins

ENGL 1042
B00657569
Essay #3

In the novel, Tarzan of the Apes, Edgar Rice Burroughs presents a biased
representation of Africans and African culture, through racial prejudice and
imperialistic idealism of white superiority. It is through these channels that
Burroughs depicts Africa as a country overgrown with jungle and with little
development in the way of infrastructure; a country whose worth to Europeans lies in
its abundance of ivory and rubber, with no regard for its people. He portrays Africans
as savage and uncivilized, as well as being of lower intellect and hindered by highly
superstitious beliefs. Throughout the novel, Burroughs draws a clear line between
the proper civilization of the white man, and the lack of civilization of Africans,
while alluding to similarities between the Africans and the apes. It is this distinction
that provides insight into the authors racial and imperialistic attitude toward Africa
as a whole.
Racism, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is the belief that
race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial
differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race (Merriam-Webster,
2014). Burroughs racial bias of white superiority is strong throughout the novel, and
most readily observed during Tarzans interactions with the Mbonga tribe. On
following Kulonga to the village, Tarzan never had a moment of doubt that these
Africans should be regarded as anything more than enemies, as these men, the first of
his own kind that he met, would be just like any other beast in the jungle (Burroughs,

p.99). In stark contrast, Tarzans initial feelings towards the first white men that he
sees is that of protection, and he prevents their harm by wounding another
(Burroughs, p.144). This shows the authors racial prejudice towards Africans, as
Tarzan, having been raised by apes, and thus without any preconceived notions of
race, impulsively wants to greet these white men as brothers upon seeing them
(Burroughs, p.138). Burroughs segregates the characters in the novel by colour,
continuously referring to the Africans as savage blacks, black warriors, and the
blacks head, while conversely referring to Tarzan as Lord Greystroke, English
lordling, and young Englishman (Burroughs, p.88, 87, 96, 94, 86,125). This
draws a parallel to the white man as civilized and superior, and the black man as
uncivilized and inferior. In addition, the name Tarzan, which translates to whiteskin, further highlights Burroughs need to define the main character as a white
man, separating him from the native Africans. Burroughs further describes the
warriors of the tribe as having yellow teeth filed to sharp points with protruding
lips, which added to the bestial brutishness of their appearance (Burroughs, p.87).
It is with this description that he first alludes to similarities of the members of the
Mbonga tribe and the apes. One of the only other black characters in the book is
that of Esmeralda, the Porters maid, who spoke English poorly despite having been
with them for a while. Tarzan, on the other hand, was able to teach himself to read
and write English, later learning to speak both French and English, like a true
gentleman. This emphasizes the racial undertone of the novel as Tarzan is used to
show that white men living under the same circumstances as black men - with a
lack of formal education and in a harsh environment - will still become superior in

both intellect and moral values. This highlights the essence of the definition of
racism, that one race is inherently superior.
The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines imperialism as, the extension or
imposition of power, authority or influence (Merriam-Webster, 2014). Burroughs
bias view of white superiority can be clearly seen in the analysis of Tarzans
interaction with the Mbonga tribe. Tarzan takes advantage of their superstitious
beliefs and lower intellect, instilling fear in the tribe, in order to take arrows to
continue his archery training. A direct comparison can be made between Tarzans
actions and the colonists forcing the Africans to give them ivory and rubber.
Burroughs clearly states the reason for the tribes initial migration into Tarzans
jungle is to escape the Europeans imposed authority and exploitation. Yet, on arrival
into the jungle, the Mbonga tribe is again facing the imposed exploitation of another
white man, inevitably leading to their demise, at the hands of French soldiers.
Essentially, Burroughs shows that in every interaction between the Africans and the
white man, the white man always comes out on top, and is able to exploit the
Africans. There is an air of superiority in the way that Tarzan takes advantage of the
Mbonga tribe. He sneaks into one of their huts and feels he has the right to take any
of their possessions or weapons for his own. He proceeds to exert his influence over
the tribe by playing a cruel joke, placing the dead Kulongas headdress on a grinning
skull within their camp, taking advantage of their superstitious beliefs (Burroughs,
p.103). It is in this that we again see the authors imperialistic attitude, where
whites are superior to blacks.

Burroughs has a strongly biased view of African culture. Given that he

himself had never been to Africa, he is conjuring a culture for the Africans based
solely on bits of stories and hearsay from explorers who have ventured to these parts
(Hillman, 2005). Burroughs associates the Mbongas sharpened teeth with being
savage, and draws the inference that the sharpened teeth are needed for ripping into
human flesh. This inevitably leads to misinformation and the characterization of
Africans as savage cannibals - the result of Europeans not fully understanding the
African culture - where these forms of body modification were seen as marks of
beauty, or rights of passage (Barnes, p.4). He further depicts the Mbonga tribe as
enjoying killing other humans, and the promise of a fresh human meal delights every
member of the village, man, woman and child. Burroughs continues saying that they
tortured their victim for some time before they would finally consume him. He makes
the comparison that not even the animals of the jungle, apart from the leopard,
tortured their prey, but rather gave them a quick and merciful death; noting that the
animals had better ethics than the Mbonga Tribe. Burroughs again draws comparison
between the Mbonga tribe and that of the apes in the way they danced around their
victim, like the apes did in the Dum-Dum ceremony, and that they would eventually
eat him like the apes did their victim (Burroughs, p.109-110). This again shows that
he depicts African culture as similar to beasts in the jungle, savage and unlike the
sophistication of the white man. Furthermore, Burroughs paints the Mbonga tribe
as less capable of objective reasoning, since they believe the mysterious occurrences
like that of the skull falling from the sky, coupled with Kulongas death, are in some

way miraculous, and the actions of Gods. This indirectly shows that the white man
is able to exert his will over these people, and that white men are again superior.
In concluding, we see a clear bias in the writings of Burroughs, with a heavy
prejudice towards the notion that Africans are no better than beasts, in some cases,
suggesting beasts may even have more ethics than the Africans. It is easy to see that
his writing was influenced by a lack of knowledge of Africa at the time, as well as
societys notions of Africa as a somewhat mysterious and barbaric place, where the
civility of modern humans was never developed, and men lived as beasts.
Burroughs lack of knowledge of Africa can be seen where he references Tarzan
eating wild pineapples, a fruit that is not native to Africa, but that he associates with
growing in such a climate (Burroughs, p.77). It is worth noting that in the first
publication of Tarzan of the Apes, Sabor was a tigress, which he later changed to a
lioness in subsequent publications, after realizing that there were no tigers in Africa.
It is this ignorance of Africa, molded by his racial and imperialistic ideals, that leads
to Burroughs simplistic and barbaric representation of Africans and their culture.

References

Barnes, D. M. (2010). Dental Modification: An Anthropological Perspective

(Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation). University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
Tennessee. Retrieved from http://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_chanhonoproj/1345
Burroughs, E. R. (1914). Tarzan of the Apes. Retrieved from
http://www.planetebook.com/Tarzan-of-the-Apes.asp
Hillman, B. (2005). Edgar Rice Burroughs Biographical Sketches. Retrieved from
http://www.tarzan.org/bio/
Imperialism. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online. Retrieved from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/imperialism
Racism. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online. Retrieved from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/racism