Our lives are stories. That’s kind of the whole concept of “WYSB,” to determine what our stories are or what our stories are most like. We learn about ourselves by watching how we and others act. From there, what we observe is transmitted into various pieces of art, whether it be a painting, film, plays, music, or literature. Movies seem to be the genre of art that conveys the most information to us about ourselves as they feature imagery, movement, and sound. Films are like a two-and-a-half-hour GIF with sound. I have never been a movie connoisseur, but the movies I like seem to become a part of me. I’m impressionable like that. In whatever movies we enjoy, we identify with one (or multiple, but generally one) of the characters and watch that movie as if we are that character. A few examples of characters that I identified with are Will Hunting from Good Will Hunting. No, I am not a genius, but I identified with Will as he is living a life of squandered potential. Ben Stiller from Meet the Parents. It’s the little things that go wrong that drive me up a fuckin’ wall. Matthew Broderick from Finding Amanda. The dry humor on display from Matthew’s character is right up my alley. He tells constant, sarcastic one-liners that nobody understands are jokes but him. However, some movies tell stories on a much grander scale. The classics are classics for a reason. Take The Lion King, for example. Everybody loves that film because we understand that there is a deeper meaning behind what we see on the screen, even if we are not conscious of it while watching. Lord knows I wasn’t. It wasn’t until recently that I understood the complexities of The Lion King. Complexities such as Zazu being analogous to Horus, the Egyptian god, who was a falcon, but an eye at the top of the pyramid. Zazu is Mufasa’s eye, so to speak. Rafiki, the mandrill, represents ancient wisdom and forms a bond with Simba upon his birth, which symbolizes the idea that “the way to full maturity is to find what you lost as a child and regain it.” (I’ll link Jordan Peterson’s breakdown of the film at the bottom) There is so much in The Lion King that I never realized, but it never was one of my favorites. My favorite, dating back to my childhood, was The Jungle Book.
What I’ll attempt to do here is what was done with the Lion King. Although The Jungle Book is all CGI, the movie opens with aesthetically pleasing images of God’s creation. A simple, underlying theme of the film is that humans, along with their capability to produce “the red flower” (or fire), have the capacity to bring ruin to God’s creation. The ensuing scene shows Mowgli running with the wolves in what appears to be a drill of sorts. Mowgli tries to do things his own way, trying to use a “trick” to complete the obstacle course but falls after a branch gives out from under him, allowing Bagheera to catch him. I suppose it must be mentioned that after Mowgli’s failure, his littler wolf-brother Gray wants to play, but Mowgli is too down on himself to partake. A scene that almost breaks me every time. After Mowgli fails, he presents a number of excuses to Bagheera as to why he wasn’t able to succeed. This presents Mowgli as the “fool” or an uneducated “wolf” with a lot to learn. He is in a place resembling the bottom of a hierarchy, a place that we all must undertake at some point in order to become a master. He didn’t run with the pack, which is the way of the wolves, as stated in “The Law of the Jungle.”
“This is the law of the jungle,
As old and as true as the sky,
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper,
But the wolf that shall break it must die,
As the creeper that girdles the tree trunk,
The law runneth forward and back,
For the strength of the pack is the wolf,
And the strength of the wolf is the pack.”
Propaganda, perhaps. A substantial dry season hits the jungle, dry enough that “not even the mohwa had flowered.” “Peace Rock” is uncovered due to the lack of rainfall, a place where all animals are bound by a code of peace, allowing them to drink during the time of drought as there is no water around for miles. Another law of the jungle is that with the lack of water, there must be unity so all can survive. Mother Nature is God to the jungle and to us as well. Even at odds, the animals of the jungle understand that without God, without the Water of Life, they cannot survive. It might also mean that Peace Rock (God) never leaves, but rather that we leave it, or Him, failing to recognize that it was God himself who had provided to begin with. At Peace Rock, Mowgli is reprimanded by Akela, the leader of the wolf pack, for using another “trick,” scooping the water surrounding Peace Rock out with a bowl-like object. Mowgli isn’t playing by the rules. He is not doing things “the wolf way,” not playing the game straight up. This establishes order in the life of Mowgli. There is a way things are done in the jungle, in our case, the concrete jungle, and if we don’t play by the rules, then eventually, we won’t be allowed to play. Traditions exist because the people that came before us found various ways that work, and to deviate from those traditions or findings would be, well, to make things not work. We expect people to behave in certain ways, and people expect us to do the same. Whether that is waiting in lines, letting people merge, holding doors, or whatever the case. If we don’t do these things, then we are rightfully deemed assholes, and people won’t want us around. Mowgli wants to be a part of the jungle; therefore, he needs to abide by the law. A lost concept in today’s America it seems, doesn’t it? If you break the law, you get arrested. Anyway, enter Shere Khan, the biggest heel (bad guy, villain) in the history of film. The thing about heels is that they have to be competent and/or have a valid point. Thanos was both competent and had a point. Hell, (no pun) even Lucifer had a *point.* Otherwise, the villains are easily taken down, and if that is the case, then they serve no purpose. The purpose of defeating a villain is to wrestle and contend with them so that we come out stronger than we were before. Shere Khan is competent, and he definitely has a point. He doesn’t want Mowgli around. Mowgli is a man (although a man-cub at this point), and man is forbidden. It is the law of the jungle. Man has the capability to destroy the jungle. Aside from that, man burned Shere Khan’s face with the red flower. Khan has extreme resentment towards man, and he has his reasons. The problem with Shere Khan is that he is what order looks like when it goes too far. He is tyrannical to the point where everyone in the jungle is petrified of him, unlike Bagheera, who also represents order but a necessary order (perhaps extreme in his own right, but nothing of the likes of Khan). He is feared but not respected. The scene ends with Shere Khan vowing to come after Mowgli when the rain returns, as it inevitably will, and Peace Rock is covered.
As the rain rapidly descends upon the jungle, the wolf pack must decide what to do with Mowgli. Gray almost makes me crack once again as the wolves are discussing Mowgli’s fate. “What do you think they’re talking about up there?” Gray asks. Freaking little pup is a tear-jerker. The wolves decide that the life of one is not worth the lives of many, and Mowgli must be taken to the man-village. Raksha, Mowgli’s “Mother,” is adamantly against the decision but concedes in the end to the thinking that Mowgli being sent away would ensure the safety of all. “Never forget this. You’re mine. Mine to me. No matter where you go or what they may call you.. You will always be my son.” A lesson that I’m sure many Mothers understand. At some point, a mother must let her child go out into the World to either sink or swim. Otherwise, she becomes a tyrant just as well. Bagheera, Mowgli’s mentor, takes the responsibility of returning Mowgli to the man-village. En route to the man-village, Bagheera and Mowgli encounter elephants, and Bagheera tells Mowgli to bow to them. We all need a mentor. Somebody to show us the ropes. Without Bagheera’s mentorship, Mowgli may never have been able to commit an act of heroism when he encounters the elephants later in the film. A little foreshadowing, there. In an unsuspecting moment, Shere Khan attacks Mowgli and Bagheera, but unsuccessfully as Mowgli escapes in the midst of a buffalo stampede. Bagheera and Mowgli are separated as Khan gets the better of Bagheera as he tries to fend Khan off. Being unable to catch and kill Mowgli really pissed Shere Khan off, so much so that he returns to the wolves and kills Akela, knowing full well that when Mowgli learns of this, he will return. Eventually, Mowgli finds himself deep in the jungle, lost and alone without his mentor. Hit Kaa’s theme music. Here we go. If you are one of those weird people who loves snakes, you have life backward. The only thing snakes are good for is when the non-poisonous snakes eat the poisonous ones. Aside from that, nothing. “They keep rats and mice at bay.” Okay, but that means snakes are in the vicinity, and if you would rather contend with snakes than with mice and rats, you have things, again, backward af. Nothing about snakes is good (other than what was stated previously) in real life, or mythology. There’s my rant. Snakes are symbolic of many things and are represented in a feminine and masculine forms. The first thing that comes to mind is, of course, temptation as Lucifer took on the masculine form of the snake. Speaking of which, it’s relevant to point out that before Mowgli comes into contact with Kaa, he sees apples hanging on a tree, and he ends up getting them jacked after retrieving them. In trying to chase down the scoundrels that stole from him, he winds up coming into contact with Kaa, the snake. It’s hard not to assume that the Garden of Eden is being alluded to in some way. Kaa is a feminine representation of the snake and is voiced by Scarlett Johansson. I believe it was a strategic choice to portray Kaa as a temptress. It was common knowledge that ScarJo was the voice of Kaa. They didn’t choose Roseanne to voice Kaa, you know? Kaarlet Johansson hypnotizes Mowgli and shows him the story of how he ended up abandoned in the jungle. Mowgli’s biological father brought him out to the jungle to, I don’t know, go camping or something, and Shere Khan spotted that he had started a fire. Khan ventured into the area of Mowgli’s father and killed him, but not without suffering severe burns on his face, exacerbating his hatred of man. Mowgli is forgotten by Khan as he deals with his burning face, leaving Mowgli behind to be found by Bagheera. Kaa says to Mowgli that she will protect him, an obvious lie as women are prone to tell (juuuuuuuuuust kidding), and before she devours Mowgli, he is rescued by Baloo, the bear.
Baloo is the polar opposite of Bagheera. As Bagheera is order; Baloo is chaos. Bagheera follows the law, no ifs, ands, or buts. He is tradition through and through but symbolic of what happens with too much order. Straying too far to the order side of the spectrum results in becoming a slave. Although Bagheera’s lessons and teachings are an absolute necessity, they have sequentially rendered Mowgli a slave to the law and stymied all his creativity. This makes Baloo, chaos, also a necessity. On account of saving Mowgli’s life, Baloo asks Mowgli to gather honey for him as he needs to eat his weight. Mowgli tells Baloo that he can’t do it because he is not allowed to use his “tricks.” Now, maybe Baloo has ulterior motives, but he tells Mowgli, “You know what Bagheera’s problem is? He always plays by the rules. And sometimes rules were meant to be, well, not necessarily broken but certainly bent. And, definitely reinterpreted.” Mowgli overhears Baloo singing “Bare Necessities,” and Baloo is bewildered that Mowgli has never heard of a song before. Mowgli gives Baloo his idea of what a song might be, reciting the law of the jungle, and Baloo tells him, “That’s not a song. That’s propaganda.” Baloo sets Mowgli free creatively and urges him to be who he really is. This allows Mowgli to desert doing things “the wolf way” and gets it done by using “tricks.” “That’s the Baloo way. That’s the Mowgli way. That’s our way,” says Baloo. Baloo counterbalances everything instilled into Mowgli by Bagheera. However, just as too much order can create problems, so can too much chaos. Moving too far to the chaos side of the spectrum results in not growing up. It results in the alleviation of responsibility or meaning. “A man cannot stand a meaningless life.” – Carl Jung. Bagheera finds Mowgli and Baloo floating down a river and becomes enraged when he sees what Baloo has allowed Mowgli to do. He demands that Mowgli continue to the man-village, but Baloo convinces him to sleep on it. While they are sleeping, Mowgli discovers that a baby elephant has fallen into a ditch. Mowgli runs out to the ditch to see what has happened and bows to the elephants. A lesson he would have never learned without Bagheera. The elephants allow Mowgli to assist, and he saves the baby elephant by using his tricks as Baloo and, more importantly, Bagheera, look on. Bagheera and Baloo, order and chaos, realize that they are both essential to the life of Mowgli. Bagheera informs Baloo that Mowgli is not being hunted by just any tiger but by Shere Khan. Baloo understands the severity of the situation and reluctantly pushes Mowgli away so that he will go with Bagheera to the man-village. Mowgli, obviously perturbed by seemingly losing his best friend, heads for higher ground and is subsequently captured by the monkeys. Before we move on, you should probably know what Shere Khan is doing during this time. Shere Khan pays a visit to Raksha and the wolf pups, telling them the story of how the Cuckoo Bird survives by preying on a mother’s weakness. Gray doesn’t go with the other pups to listen to Khan’s bullshit because he is a good boy. The cuckoo bird sneaks its eggs into another’s nest, so when they hatch, the Mother Bird is fooled, which causes her own chicks to “starve and die.” This insinuates that Mowgli is Raksha’s weakness, and he is in some way trying to turn the pups against her. Such a fuckin’ heel.
The monkeys bring Mowgli to King Louie, a Gigantopithecus, or giant orangutan. King Louie offers Mowgli protection from Shere Khan in exchange for the ability to make fire. Along with the know-how to create the red flower comes power, for if you have the weaponry to destroy, you certainly have power. Monkeys are emblematic of mischief, misbehavior, or that of the “trickster.” Mowgli’s interaction with King Louie could mean several things, but the clearest message that I can find is to “never negotiate with terrorists.” Terrorists, in this case, is anything or anyone that can destroy you if you were to negotiate. It could very well be that King Louie represents any vice that can destroy you, others, and the World around you. Furthermore (nobody says furthermore in real life, so I hate to use it, but oh well), King Louie could symbolize being careful with whom you share your secrets or ideas, as people may use them against you or for their gain at some stage.
Bagheera and Baloo (order & chaos working together) rescue Mowgli from the power-hungry Louie, but not before Louie tells Mowgli of Shere Khan murdering Akela. Mowgli becomes incensed that none of the people close to him informed him of Akela’s death and shouts, “Someone’s gotta do something!” It’s a powerful scene that signifies Mowgli’s transformation from a man-cub to a man. Mowgli makes the decision to slay his dragon with the understanding that the dragon may slay him. That’s the journey. That’s our journey. We do not sit idly by while evil, tyrannical people or ideas threaten our jungle. We stare our dragons in the face knowing that they could take us out but knowing it is what must be done. Otherwise, we are just walking dead anyway. Mowgli steals a torch from the man-village, runs back to the jungle to confront Shere Khan, but unknowingly sets a portion of the jungle on fire in the process. He stands in front of all the animals in the jungle, including Shere Khan, and announces that he is no longer afraid of Khan. Khan points out to the rest of the jungle that man had set their World on fire. Still, with the torch in hand, Mowgli sees that little brother Gray is frightened of him and tosses the torch into the water. He is going to slay the dragon straight up and play by the rules. Order. With the tossing of the torch, Mowgli wins the jungle over, and all rise up against Khan. Baloo, of all characters, steps forward first, reciting the law of the jungle. Chaos displays order. Bagheera stops Mowgli from joining the pack in attacking Khan, stating that Mowgli needs to fight Khan the way he knows how, like a man. Order displays chaos. Mowgli lures Shere Khan out to the burning jungle and slays the dragon (tiger) by using a combination of tradition and creativity. The elephants, who trust Mowgli after saving the baby, divert the rivers flowing through the jungle to put out the fires. In the final shot, they show Bagheera, Mowgli, and Baloo resting in a tree. Order, us, and chaos together in the Tree of Life.
In short, here’s what I think The Jungle Book has for us (in no particular order):
• Take care of God’s creation.
• We need order in our lives. Order is routine, responsibility, and tradition. It is playing by the rules.
• Too much order results in becoming a slave to tyrannical rules and stymies your growth.
• We need chaos in our lives. Chaos is creativity, play, and revampment.
• Too much chaos results in living life without purpose. A life which man cannot stand.
• Resentment can kill. Shere Khan’s resentment made him evil and killed him in the end.
• Be careful with who or what you negotiate with.
• Flee from temptation.
• Respect your elders. (The elephants)
• Slay your dragons.
Honorable mention:
• Get a mentor.
• We cannot do this alone. Run with your pack.
• Set your children free.
• Pray for your enemies. We need them to be competent.
• Let your loved ones be who they will. Not who you want them to be.
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