XV: The Forest God explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Survival and Strength

  Tarzan's physical prowess and bravery are central to the chapter, as he carries Clayton through the trees and kills Sabor with his bare hands to protect Jane.

• Civilization vs. Wilderness

  Clayton's awe and admiration of Tarzan's jungle skills contrast with his own helplessness, highlighting the divide between civilized man and the wild.

Characters to notice

• Tarzan

  Carries Clayton through the trees, drags Sabor from the cabin, and kills the lioness with a full nelson, then disappears into the jungle.

• Jane Porter

  Awakens to find Sabor entering the cabin, prepares to shoot herself and Esmeralda, but is saved by Tarzan and Clayton.

• John Clayton

  Follows Tarzan through the jungle, helps pull Sabor from the window, and comforts Jane after the attack.

• Esmeralda

  Lies unconscious during the attack, then wakes up confused, asking if she is dead.

• Sabor

  Attempts to enter the cabin to attack Jane and Esmeralda, but is pulled out and killed by Tarzan.

Key passages

• “For a naked man to drag a shrieking, clawing man-eater forth from a window by the tail to save a strange white girl, was indeed the last word in heroism.”

  Clayton thinks that Tarzan's act of pulling the lioness out of the cabin by its tail to save a woman he doesn't know is the ultimate heroic deed.

  Clayton's internal reflection on Tarzan's selfless bravery.

• “Higher crept the steel forearms of the ape-man about the back of Sabor's neck. Weaker and weaker became the lioness's efforts. At last Clayton saw the immense muscles of Tarzan's shoulders and biceps leap into corded knots beneath the silver moonlight.”

  Tarzan's arms tighten around Sabor's neck, and as the lioness weakens, Clayton watches Tarzan's muscles bulge in the moonlight as he breaks her neck.

  Climactic description of Tarzan's physical strength overcoming the lioness.