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Tarzan: A Comparison of Two Worlds
Tarzan of the Apes is a wonderful novel by author Edgar Rice Burrough, that shows how a man raised by apes can continue to show human instinct and traits after years away from civilized society. A seemingly born leader, Tarzan has a manly protective instinct, and feels love, just as a person of a modernized society would. Regardless of background, the human species will always find a way.
Tarzan seems to be a born leader. He knows what to do, when to do it, and how to go about conquering his goals. This is a typical trait of modern human beings. For the most part, humans can easily recognize leadership, and take advantage of it as much as possible. With a strong leader comes benevolent decisions, which lead to pleased followers. Tarzan leads by example, like any good leader should. He makes wise decisions and extends a helping hand to others. This is a more common trait of humans than any other species. Unlike spiders or insects, when another creature is in trouble (perhaps not of the same species) a human and other mammals will “jump-in” and take actions to justify the situation. This is the natural protective instinct that takes effect.
Tarzan has a very protective instinct. Apes have a heightened alertness to danger, and human beings commonly show protectiveness when they feel that themself or another is threatened. The combination of Tarzan’s childhood environment, and his human instinct helped him to develop into a grown man with super-keen senses and the inclination to help others in need. For example, when Tarzan heard Esmeralda and Jane screaming, he sprang to attention and rushed to help them. By the time he reached them, though, Terkoz had already made off with Jane. His heart racing, Tarzan leapt to action and chased Terkoz down, like a lion after its prey. In this example, Tarzan’s protective instinct took hold of him, and helped him achieve his goal of finding his true love.
This is another trait that Tarzan could not help but adapt to...love. Love is defined as an intense feeling of deep affection. Until Jane came along, Tarzan was used to the fact that he was different, and that he would not find anybody. It was an idea that he was accustomed to at this point in his life. From the first time he saw Jane, he knew that she was the one that he had wanted, and he knew that he would have her. The end is like a typical romance: guy finds girl, guy saves girl, guy carries girl into jungle to a safe haven(?). Anyway, that’s the point. The end of Tarzan quotes, “...He took his woman into his arms and carried her into the jungle.” Love is a very old-fashioned, humanistic idea. Sure, apes are mammals also, and are more closely related to the human species than any other, but even they do not have the same [next page]