The Strange Ride of Morrowbie Jukes

Name: The Strange Ride of Morrowbie Jukes
Author: Rudyard Kipling

A civil engineer, suffering from fever, accidentally falls into a horseshoe-shaped crater in the Great Indian Desert. He discovers a hidden village inhabited by people who are neither fully alive nor dead, having survived near-death experiences. The inhabitants, including a former Brahmin named Gunga Dass, reveal that they are outcasts who have recovered from death rituals but are now trapped in this grotesque existence. The engineer learns that the village is a place for those who have been mistakenly declared dead and subsequently revived. Gunga Dass explains that when people are taken to be cremated, if they show signs of life, they are brought to this village instead. The engineer is horrified by the conditions and the inhabitants' desperate attempts to escape, which are futile due to the treacherous sand slopes surrounding the crater. As he grapples with his situation, the engineer witnesses the villagers' brutal behavior, including their fights over food and their indifference to death. Gunga Dass, who has become a scavenger, offers to help the engineer but also reveals his own selfish motives. The engineer's attempts to escape are thwarted by the quicksand and the hostile environment. Eventually, he discovers the remains of a previous inhabitant, a man who had been shot while trying to escape. This man had been working on a plan to navigate the quicksand to freedom. Gunga Dass, eager to escape himself, proposes a plan based on the dead man's notes, but he ultimately betrays the engineer, attempting to kill him to secure his own escape. In a twist of fate, the engineer is rescued by his dog-boy, Dunnoo, who tracks him down and pulls him from the crater using ropes. The engineer vows never to return to the village and hopes to identify the corpse of the man he found, seeking closure for the horrors he experienced. The story explores themes of survival, betrayal, and the thin line between life and death in a harsh and unforgiving landscape.

By Rudyard Kipling · First published 1885 · Genre: Horror, Adventure, Fantasy · 12,215 words

First lines

Alive or dead -- there is no other way. -- _Native Proverb._

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The Strange Ride of Morrowbie Jukes is listed on Textopian as a novel by Rudyard Kipling, dated 1885 CE.

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Work type: Novel
Author: Rudyard Kipling
Date: 1885 CE
Language: English
Genres: Horror, Adventure, Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Psychological Fiction
Length: 12,215 words
Structure: 1 section, 119 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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Discussion starters

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Similar titles

Genres

Horror — The story's themes of death, decay, and the grotesque nature of the village create a pervasive sense of horror.
Adventure — The protagonist's journey through the desert and his struggle for survival in a hostile environment exemplify adventure elements.
Fantasy — The surreal aspects of the village and the concept of the 'living dead' introduce fantastical elements.
Literary Fiction — The narrative explores deep themes of existence, morality, and the human condition, characteristic of literary fiction.