영어로 읽는 SF고전 _ 에드가 R. 버로스의 타잔과 오파의 보석들
"타잔과 오파의 보석들"은 20세기 초에 쓰여진 에드가 라이스 버로스의 소설로, 상징적인 캐릭터 타잔의 모험을 이어갑니다. 이야기는 콩고와 오파의 험난한 풍경 속에서 펼쳐지며, 유인원들에 의해 자란 고귀한 야인 타잔이 다양한 역경과 적들을 마주하게 됩니다. 여기에는 알버트 베르퍼 중위와 악명 높은 아크메트 젝이 포함되며, 이들은 오파의 보물을 착취하려 하는 동시에 타잔의 사랑하는 이들을 위협합니다.
도입부는 과거의 악행과 콩고에서의 고립으로 깊은 고민에 빠진 알버트 베르퍼 중위를 소개합니다. 그의 대위와의 폭력적인 대립 후, 베르퍼는 정글로 도망치고, 그곳에서 교활한 아랍 지도자 아크메트 젝을 만나게 됩니다. 이 초기 만남은 젝이 타잔을 생포하고 그의 아내 제인을 인질로 삼기 위해 베르퍼의 도움을 요청하면서 배신과 복수의 음모를 위한 무대를 마련합니다.
대조적으로, 타잔은 문명화된 자아의 흔적과 타고난 본능 사이에서 고민하는 원초적인 모습으로 묘사되며, 결국 위험, 보물, 그리고 그가 사랑하는 이들을 지키는 것으로 가득한 모험으로 이어집니다. 긴장이 고조되면서, 도입부는 앞으로의 여정을 정의할 충성심과 갈등의 복잡한 관계망을 암시합니다.
Classics Read in English _ Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar by Edgar Rice Burroughs
"Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar" is a novel written during the early 20th century by Edgar Rice Burroughs, continuing the adventures of the iconic character Tarzan. The story unfolds in the rugged landscapes of the Congo and Opar, where Tarzan, the noble savage raised by apes, confronts various adversities and foes, including Lieutenant Albert Werper and the notorious Achmet Zek, as they plot to exploit the treasures of Opar while also threatening Tarzan's loved ones.
The opening portion introduces us to Lieutenant Albert Werper, who is deeply troubled by his past misdeeds and isolation in the Congo. After a violent confrontation with his captain, Werper flees into the jungle, where he encounters Achmet Zek, a cunning Arab leader. This early encounter sets the stage for a plot of betrayal and revenge, as Zek enlists Werper's help to capture Tarzan and ransom his wife, Jane.
In juxtaposition, Tarzan is depicted in his primal form as he grapples with remnants of his civilized self and his inherent instincts, ultimately leading him towards adventures filled with danger, treasure, and the preservation of those he loves. As tensions arise, the opening hints at an intricate web of loyalties and conflicts that will define the journey ahead.
Among the contents
Lieutenant Albert Werper had only the prestige of the name he had dishonored to thank for his narrow escape from being cashiered. At first he had been humbly thankful, too, that they had sent him to this Godforsaken Congo post instead of court-martialing him, as he had so justly deserved; but now six months of the monotony, the frightful isolation and the loneliness had wrought a change. The young man brooded continually over his fate. His days were filled with morbid self-pity, which eventually engendered in his weak and vacillating mind a hatred for those who had sent him here?for the very men he had at first inwardly thanked for saving him from the ignominy of degradation.
He regretted the gay life of Brussels as he never had regretted the sins which had snatched him from that gayest of capitals, and as the days passed he came to center his resentment upon the representative in Congo land of the authority which had exiled him?his captain and immediate superior.
