Tarzan of the Apes

Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875 - 1950)

Tarzan of the Apes is Burroughs’ exciting, if improbable, story of an English lord, left by the death of his stranded parents in the hands of a motherly African ape who raises him as her own. Although he is aware that he is different from the apes of his tribe, who are neither white nor hairless, he nevertheless regards them as his “people.” When older, larger, stronger apes decide that he an undesirable to be killed or expelled from the tribe, it is fortunate that Tarzan has learned the use of primitive weapons.

Although small and weak by ape standards, Tarzan is a human of god-like strength and agility to men who discover him. By studying these people, he gradually decides he is not an ape at all, but human.

And when he meets Jane, a beautiful American girl marooned with her father and friends on the hostile coast of Africa, Tarzan conceives love for her. When they are unexpectedly rescued before Tarzan can find a way to reveal his feelings to Jane, he determines to become civilized and follow her into the world of people – to find her and wed her, though he must cross continents and oceans, and compete with two other suitors for her hand.

This story was the subject of a successful film in 1932, with Tarzan being played by Johnny Weissmuller, who acted in a further eleven Tarzan films. According to Weissmuller in an interview with Mike Douglas, his famous ape-call was audio stitched together from a soprano, an alto, and a hog-caller! Summary by Mark F. Smith

Genre(s): Action & Adventure Fiction

Language: English

Group: Tarzan Series

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 Out of the Sea Mark F. Smith
00:23:18
Play 02 The Savage Home Mark F. Smith
00:20:42
Play 03 Life and Death Mark F. Smith
00:14:52
Play 04 The Apes Mark F. Smith
00:16:21
Play 05 The White Ape Mark F. Smith
00:17:44
Play 06 Jungle Battles Mark F. Smith
00:14:13
Play 07 The Light of Knowledge Mark F. Smith
00:25:53
Play 08 The Tree-Top Hunter Mark F. Smith
00:12:37
Play 09 Man and Man Mark F. Smith
00:23:34
Play 10 The Fear-Phantom Mark F. Smith
00:11:36
Play 11 King of the Apes Mark F. Smith
00:22:41
Play 12 Man’s Reason Mark F. Smith
00:17:58
Play 13 His Own Kind Mark F. Smith
00:29:36
Play 14 At the Mercy of the Jungle Mark F. Smith
00:21:25
Play 15 The Forest God Mark F. Smith
00:10:33
Play 16 Most Remarkable Mark F. Smith
00:20:59
Play 17 Burials Mark F. Smith
00:22:07
Play 18 The Jungle Toll Mark F. Smith
00:23:04
Play 19 Call of the Primitive Mark F. Smith
00:22:40
Play 20 Heredity Mark F. Smith
00:26:01
Play 21 The Village of Torture Mark F. Smith
00:13:30
Play 22 The Search Party Mark F. Smith
00:22:19
Play 23 Brother Men Mark F. Smith
00:18:27
Play 24 Lost Treasure Mark F. Smith
00:17:08
Play 25 The Outpost of the World Mark F. Smith
00:22:29
Play 26 The Height of Civilization Mark F. Smith
00:22:10
Play 27 The Giant Again Mark F. Smith
00:26:41
Play 28 Conclusion Mark F. Smith
00:20:21