# VI: Vengeance and Mercy explained — Tarzan the Untamed

> Chapter companion for Tarzan the Untamed by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

## What happens

Tarzan tracks Bertha Kircher to Wilhelmstal after she steals his locket and boards a train. He confronts Hauptmann Fritz Schneider, the man who killed his mate, and engages in a brutal fight. Despite his desire for vengeance, Tarzan ultimately kills Schneider with a knife but spares Bertha, recognizing her courage and refusing to stoop to the level of a 'beast.' He retrieves his locket and the papers, then disappears into the night.

## Themes in this chapter

### Revenge and Justice

Tarzan's quest for vengeance against Schneider for the murder of his mate culminates in a brutal fight, but he ultimately shows mercy to Bertha, blurring the line between revenge and justice.

### War and Its Atrocities

The chapter highlights the brutality of war through Schneider's attempted assault on Bertha and Tarzan's violent confrontation, reflecting the dehumanizing effects of conflict.

### Gender and Heroism

Bertha Kircher's resourcefulness and courage in stealing the locket and escaping challenge traditional gender roles, while Tarzan's mercy toward her redefines heroism beyond mere strength.

## Character check-ins

### Tarzan

Tracks Bertha to Wilhelmstal, confronts and kills Hauptmann Schneider in vengeance for his mate, but shows mercy to Bertha Kircher.

### Fräulein Bertha Kircher

Steals Tarzan's locket, escapes by train to Wilhelmstal, witnesses the fight between Tarzan and Schneider, and later retrieves hidden papers from Schneider's body.

### Hauptmann Fritz Schneider

The German officer who killed Tarzan's mate; is confronted and killed by Tarzan in Wilhelmstal after a fierce struggle.

## Key lines

> Thus you slew my mate. Thus shall you die!

Tarzan declares that Schneider will die in the same manner he killed Tarzan's mate.

_Tarzan's vow of vengeance before delivering the fatal blow._

> I am no German

Tarzan asserts his moral superiority by refusing to kill Bertha as a German would.

_Tarzan's decision to spare Bertha, contrasting his actions with German brutality._

> I could not slay him as he slew mine, nor can I slay you, who are a woman.

Tarzan explains that he cannot kill Bertha because she is a woman, just as he could not kill Schneider in the same brutal way.

_Tarzan's mercy reflects his code of honor and rejection of indiscriminate violence._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tarzan_the_untamed_se/chapters/vi-vengeance-and-mercy
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tarzan_the_untamed_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tarzan_the_untamed_se/chapters