How Does Kipling Use Biblical Allusions To Show The Meaning Of The Beast

The word “beast” carries many different meanings, and of them, the cruel and harsh actions of mankind are one of them. There lies a beast in all of creation, the savage side of men, and the feral sense of natural instinct. In Rudyard Kipling’s “Mark of the Beast”, Kipling uses his knowledge of Indian religion to set up the short story. Through his writing, Kipling takes a few English men and puts them in India, and they showed the beast that is within all of mankind. In this story, Kipling uses biblical allusions and symbolism to show the beast within all of humanity.

Kipling was a great writer for his time and location in India. He knew a lot about the world around him and wrote short stories to show his view on the world with his interpretation.

The man laid his head upon Fleete marking him just as he branded the statue (Kipling 3). As they were trying to leave the temple a different priest approached and told they “He has done with Hanuman but Hanuman has not done with him” (Kipling 4). This incident sets up the oncoming change from man to beast. The spot that is left on Fleete is later described as to look like the spots of a

The new world was a growing experience for England as it was symbolic for Fleete and his friends. In the growing experience however, Fleete did not remember his change into the beast he became: his friends never told him the story of what happened they just let him continue his life but the other two went and paid respect to the God that they had watched be defiled. This was the first step towards the religious tolerance that was later seen in the “new world” in about 1791 with the passing of the “Bill of Rights”. However, it was not until 1978 when the natives were given their freedom to worship, much like the natives of India are, in some places, still not accepted for their