LEXICAL, SEMANTIC, AND CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE JUNGLE BOOK BY RUDYARD KIPLING

Abstract

This study offers a digital analysis of The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling (1894) through lexical, semantic, and contextual analysis by using Voyant Tools. The main objective of the research is to investigate how Kipling’s language, imagery, and recurring expressions contribute to the thematic core of the narrative. By identifying the word frequency, patterns, and contextual use of words, the study highlights the linguistic structures that shape ideas of nature, civilization, identity, and survival. The research follows the digital humanities framework, combining traditional literary interpretation with computational text analysis. After converting The Jungle Book into a digital corpus, the text is analyzed into Voyant Tools to conduct word frequency counts, keyword-in-context (KWIC) exploration, collocation studies, and thematic mapping. Through these tools, major terms such as “jungle,” “law,” “man,” and “pack” emerge as key lexical items reflecting the moral and social hierarchies of the story world. The semantic relationships among these terms reveal Kipling’s symbolic view of order and chaos, while contextual patterns illustrate how the protagonist, Mowgli, negotiates between human and animal realms.The findings suggest that Kipling’s vocabulary not only facilitates storytelling but also encodes ideological and moral perspectives, demonstrating how nature and culture interact within the text. The analysis confirms that Voyant Tools provide a systematic and visual way to interpret literary meaning, linking quantitative data with qualitative understanding. The conclusion emphasizes the relevance of digital textual analysis for modern literary studies, particularly in reinterpreting classic narratives through linguistic and thematic dimensions.