The Gentlemen of the Jungle Summary

“The Gentlemen of the Jungle” is a fable written by Jomo Kenyatta who was an African political leader and the first president of Kenya. This story reflects the attitude of Kikuyu people of Kenya toward European laws and commissions. It was in the late nineteenth century the European powers divided Africa among themselves. This story begins in a context where an ‘act of kindness misunderstood as weakness’.

Once, an elephant made a friendship with a man. One day, due to a heavy thunderstorm, the elephant went to his friend for shelter. The kind man offered to let the elephant put his trunk inside his hut as he had room only for him and the trunk of the elephant. But the cunning elephant pushed his head inside and flung the man out. The man started to grumble and started to argue with his friend. Disturbed, the lion came roaring and sought to know why there was disturbance. The elephant replied that he had only been discussing with friend the possession of the little hut. The lion wanted to have ‘peace and tranquility’ in his kingdom. So, he commanded his ministers to appoint a Commission of Enquiry and report accordingly.

The man was pleased by the sweet words from the King of the Jungle. The following elders were appointed to sit in the Commission: Mr. Rhinoceros; Mr. Buffalo; Mr. Alligator; The Rt. Hon. Mr. Fox as chairman and Mr. Leopard as Secretary to the Commission. But there was no one from the man’s side. When he protested, he was told that there was no one from his side who was well educated to understand intricacy of the jungle law. He was further assured that there was nothing to fear since the members of the Commission were chosen by God and they were endowed with teeth and claws. So, they would investigate the matter with greatest care.

The Commission sat to take the evidence. Mr. Elephant justified his act saying that he had always regarded it as his duty to protect the interests of his friends and that had caused the misunderstanding. He said that his friend had invited him to save his hut from being blown away by a hurricane. The elephant said that he considered it necessary, to turn the undeveloped space to a more economic use by sitting in it.

The elders of the jungle supported what Mr. Elephant had said. Then, the man began to give his account. The commission cut him short and asked him if the undeveloped space in his hut was occupied by anyone else before Mr. Elephant assumed his position. The man was bewildered. Finally, the commission gave its verdict. It was not on the expected lines of man. They concluded that the dispute had arisen through a misunderstanding due to the backwardness of man’s ideas. They defended Mr. Elephant’s actions saying that he had fulfilled his sacred duty of protecting man’s interests. They considered that the space should have been put to its most economic use. As man had not yet reached the stage of expansion, they arranged a compromise to suit both parties. Accordingly, Mr. Elephant would continue to occupy his hut whereas the man was advised to look for a site to build another hut.

The man did as suggested, for he feared the teeth and claws of the Commission. But, the same fate awaited. A new hut was built; Mr. Rhinoceros occupied, a Royal Commission was appointed only to give the same finding. This procedure went on till all were accommodated with new huts. The man by now had decided to adopt an effective method. When the huts already occupied by the jungle lords were beginning to decay, he built a bigger and better hut. As soon as the animals saw it, one by one came and occupied the space they found. They soon started to fight over their rights of penetration. The man found the perfect opportunity and set the hut on fire and burnt it to the ground while the animals were all inside. He was finally relieved to find ‘Peace is costly, but it’s worth the expense.”

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