The Son of Tarzan · Chapter
VIII explained
A year has passed.
What happens
A year has passed. Korak and Akut, rejected by both humans and apes, wander deeper into the jungle. Korak's strength and skills have grown. They encounter a tribe of great apes performing a ritual to choose a new king. Akut tries to negotiate peace, but the king ape rejects them. Korak, enraged, challenges the king but is rescued by Akut and carried to safety. Meanwhile, Meriem continues her lonely life under the cruel Sheik and Mabunu, playing with her doll Geeka, unaware that the Sheik is returning from a caravan journey.
Themes in this chapter
Identity and Belonging
Korak seeks companionship among apes after rejection by humans, declaring 'I am Korak! I am the Killer' in a desperate bid for belonging.
Civilization vs. Savagery
Korak reverts to savagery, wearing a leopard pelt and fighting like an ape, while Meriem's domestic play contrasts with the brutal jungle life.
Freedom vs. Confinement
Meriem dreams of escaping to a place with no Sheiks or Mabunu, highlighting her confinement within the village.
Characters to notice
- Korak
Now a year older, his muscles have turned to steel and his woodcraft is uncanny; he challenges the king ape but is dragged to safety by Akut.
- Akut
The wise old ape tries to integrate with a new tribe, speaks for peace, and rescues Korak from the enraged bulls.
- Meriem
Still living under the cruel Sheik and Mabunu, she plays with her doll Geeka and dreams of escape.
- Sheik Amor ben Khatour
Away for a long time leading a caravan; his return is imminent, and he is remembered as brutal and unjust to Meriem.
- Mabunu
The villainous old hag who pinches and beats Meriem when the Sheik is away.
Key passages
“I am Korak! I am the Killer. I came to live among you as a friend. You want to drive me away. Very well, then, I shall go; but before I go I shall show you that the son of Tarzan is your master, as his father was before him—that he is not afraid of your king or you.”
Korak defiantly announces his identity and challenges the king ape, asserting his lineage and courage.
Korak's declaration of identity and challenge to the ape king.
“What they think cannot harm you. You are alive. If I had not brought you away you would be dead now and so would I. Do you not know that even Numa slinks from the path of the great apes when there are many of them and they are mad?”
Akut explains to Korak that retreat was necessary for survival, as even lions avoid a mob of enraged apes.
Akut's pragmatic wisdom about survival and the danger of the ape mob.
“Little Meriem still played with Geeka, lavishing all her childish love upon the now almost hopeless ruin of what had never, even in its palmiest days, possessed even a slight degree of loveliness.”
Meriem continues to play with her battered doll Geeka, pouring all her affection into it despite its ugliness.
Meriem's innocent devotion to her doll Geeka.