Australian Legendary Tales - The Jungle Book of Australia
Australian Legendary Tales - The Jungle Book of Australia
AUSTRALIA makes an appeal to the imagination which is all its own. When the first white settlers arrived in Australia, all was unique, and, while seeming fresh, was incalculably old. The grey gum-trees did not resemble any familiar forest, but were antique, melancholy and seemingly featureless. In a continent of rare hills,intermittent streams and interminable deserts nothing was concealed within the wastes, yet, somehow, a secret was promised. The birds and beasts--kangaroo, wombat, platypus and emuare, like the continent and all that is within - ancient. The natives were seemingly a race without a history, yet far more antique than Egypt and closer to the beginnings of mankind than any other known race.
The manners, customs and rites of the natives seemed to be by far the most archaic of all. They did not have Kings and countries; they were nomads, houseless, but not homeless. The mysteries of the natives, the initiatory practices, a little of the magic, a great deal of the social customs and portions of the myths had been recorded. But, till Mrs. Langloh Parker compiled this book, we had but a few of the stories which Australian natives tell their young ones by the camp-fire or in the shade of a gum-tree.
These, for the most part, are children's tales, though they include many tiological myths, explanatory of the markings and habits of animals, the origin of constellations, and so forth. Children will find here the Jungle Book of Australia, but there is no Mowgli, set apart as a man. For man, bird, and beast are all blended in the Aboriginal consciousness. All are of one kindred, all blend into each other; all obey the Bush Law. Unlike any European Mrchen, these stories do not have the dramatic turns of Western folk-lore. There are no distinctions of wealth and rank, no Cinderella, Red Riding Hood nor a Puss-in-Boots. The struggle for survival, for food and water is the perpetual theme, and no wonder, for the narrators dwell in a dry and thirsty land. We see cunning in the devices used for hunting, especially for chasing honey bees. The Rain-magic, actually practised, is of curious interest. In brief, we have pictures of the hard life of the Australian Aborigines, and romances which are truly realistic.
Parker has some odd connections with modern popular culture. She was rescued from drowning by an aborigine at an early age. This incident was portrayed in the film 'Picnic at Hanging Rock'. The song They Call the Wind Mariah was based on a story from this book and the pop singer Mariah Cary was reputedly named after this song.
33% of the Publisher's profit from the sale of this book will be donated to charity.
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