Hero or villain?Hero or villain? This is the question we ask ourselves when we consider the mongoose character in the short story “Rikki-tikki-tavi” by Rudyard Kipling. In the story, Rikki-tikki the mongoose goes to great measures to protect her human family from deadly attacks by a family of king cobras. Rikki is first introduced as the main character who fought “alone” in the “great war” (22). Furthermore, Kipling concludes the telling of the story with the following statement: "Rikki-tikki had a right to be proud of himself, but he did not become too proud..." (34) While Rikki honorably protected his family against the cobras, he should not be proud of his actions because he was ruthless in his relationships and he even gloried in his murders. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Rikki's actions reveal a ruthless and cruel heart. First of all, Rikki has no qualms about killing all the baby snakes that weren't born yet. “He bit off the tops of the eggs as quickly as he could, taking care to crush the young cobras...at least there were only three eggs left, and Rikki-tikki laughed inwardly”(30). Although Rikki may have considered killing the snake eggs a necessary evil in order to protect her human family, her laughter expresses a twisted joy at this mission that leaves her character in question. When Nagaina learns from Rikki-tikki that all but one of her eggs are destroyed by Rikki-tikki, she begs Rikki-tikki to let her take the egg and promises to leave and never return. Rikki tikki refuses. “Yes, you will leave and never come back; because you will go in the trash with wood. fight the widow…”(31) maybe rikki tikki doubts his sincerity, but he doesn’t even give a second’s thought to this plea. In light of these events, Rikki's strength seems to lie in her heartlessness and cruelty. Rikki-tikki killed the cobras who just wanted to provide a good home for their family and gloried in his killings. "Quick Chuchundra or I'll bite you." (27) This shows that Rikki-tikki can only be friendly with creatures who are on his side. Not even with characters who are neutral. And obviously not with his enemies. He also doesn't feel sorry for not having solved a problem without or at least with fewer deaths. He didn't even try to move the snakes. Rikki-tikki also didn't listen to Nagaina when she asked him to let her go to save her and baby's lives. Then maybe he wanted to kill as many of his enemies as possible. Or kill anyone who wants to give him a reason. "The boy is safe, and it was me...I...me who grabbed Nag by the hood last night in the bathroom." Then he began to jump up and down, all four feet together, his head close to the ground. “He threw me back and forth, but he couldn’t shake me. He was dead before the big man blew him in half. I did it! (31) All this leads to the conclusion that Rikki-tikki enjoyed killing others and wanted everyone to recognize him for it. Maybe he wanted to let the others know that he dominates in this garden, and you better not argue with him, otherwise you will go the same way as Nag and Nagaina. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article now written by our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay In conclusion, Rikki-tikki has more reason to be ashamed of himself than to be proud. He was ruthless in his dealings with the snake eggs, and he was ruthless in not allowing Nagaina to leave with her last egg, the only family she had left...