Watership Down: A Novel
by Richard Adams
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Book Reviews of Watership Down: A Novel
Book Review: The non-allegories of Watership Down
Summary: 5 Stars
Richard Adams states rather casually in the introduction to this 2005 edition that "Watership Down was never intended to be some sort of allegory or parable. It is simply the story about rabbits made up and told in the car." Well, that must have been some drive, because students of the book have been expositing upon its non-allegories since it was first published in 1972.
For instance; the final self-sacrifice of the mythical El-ahrairah to save his people; or Fiver the prophet of doom; or the character of the Black Rabbit; or the terrible rise of Woundwort. These may be unintentionally similar to historical or biblical characters, or merely representative of the subconscious imagination of a man who had survived WWII. A man who now lived under the shadow of communism, the cold war, Vietnam and jolly ol' England's slide into Socialism following the ruins of empire.
What I find preposterous is the idea that the various rabbit warrens portrayed were not allegories of some sort, particularly Cowslip's (Shining Wire) Warren and Woundwart's Efrafa Warren. These two warrens symbolized the quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin; "Those who would trade liberty for security deserve neither." Both warrens were unnatural, with the first being a total sacrifice of the traditional ways of the wild rabbit for the security from want. The second being a total sacrifice of freedom for the security from danger.
What these warrens achieved in their fictional realities were reflective of the shadows that Mr. Adams himself lived under at the time. The easier of the two to understand is the police state of Efrafa Warren, representative of the Fascist states brought to rubble in the war, and the looming Communist behemoth of the Soviet Union and its Eastern European vassals. The much harder to understand is the Shining Wire state of Cowslip's Warren, with its generations gone of lost traditions and its embrace of death.
Cowslip's Warren is the much more frightening of the two because it wasn't representative of the "other," as the Soviet Union was to the people of England in 1972. The Shining Wire Warren, with its promise of unwilling sacrifice, loss of culture, destruction of history and turning away from religion; that was the state of "becoming."
Whether Adams knew it or not, the Shining Wire Warren was a foreshadowing of what England was becoming. What England is today, and how much more England will be in the future.
In the human condition, freedom from want requires unwilling sacrifices that rob a culture of its very soul. For instance, the unwilling sacrifice of the elderly due to the expense of medical procedures. The unwilling sacrifice of history, culture and worship that are stolen from the young due to political correctness. Unwilling sacrifice leads to unparalleled selfishness. The only thing these people refuse to sacrifice, once all that had made them a great people is lost on the altar of Socialist Utopian theory, is the belief in the lie that there can be security from want.
Book Review: Sometimes the best stories are those written for children
Summary: 5 Stars
I've heard that one of my favorite stories, The Hobbitt, was originally written by J. R. R. Tolkien for his children - it wasn't even meant for publication. If not for the prodding of his friend, C. S. Lewis, it might never have been published. And in the introduction to Watership Down, Richard Adams explains that it was borne out of a request by his daughters for a story on a long car ride - not just any story, but a story made up just for them. And luckily for us, they encouraged their father to finish the story and have it published.
Watership Down (which is a very dramatic-sounding title) starts when Fiver has a foreboding of danger for the warren. His prophecies, however, are rejected by the chief rabbit, and he and his friend Hazel convince a few others to leave the warren in search of a place to start a new one. But there are a great many dangers out in the world: foxes and wolves, weasels and stoats, and not least of all man and his machines. That's right, this is a story about rabbits. No, they're not rabbits who wear little mittens and coats with buttons - they're real rabbits who forage in the grass and occasionally raid gardens. But they also have their own language and legends and mythology, and we're treated to plenty of that in this captivating story as we follow Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig, Silver, Dandelion, Pipkin and the others on their odyssey.
This book is often called an allegory, although Mr. Adams has insisted it was never meant as such and was simply "a story I told to my little girls." But there certainly seem to be elements of symbolism. The legends of El-ahrairah, a type of Brer Rabbit, are told by the rabbits with almost religious reverence. The Black Rabbit of Inlé, another figure from their legends, might be compared to the Devil, and General Woundwort made me think of Joseph Stalin, ruling with an iron fist - errr, paw, I mean. And Fiver certainly seems to have a gift of prophecy, but the comparisons are only conjecture on my part and the legends add color and texture to a wonderful story.
I'll admit I was hesitant to read this - a "classic" about bunnies? And it's not even very old, having been published originally in 1972. But I think it's certainly deserving of the attention it's received ever since and I thoroughly enjoyed it. There's some violence and it can be occasionally frightening or sad, but I loved it and found myself genuinely concerned for Hazel and Fiver and Bigwig and their group. I listened to the audio book read by Ralph Cosham (and my kids would cast questioning looks my way: "A story about rabbits, Dad? Really?!?") who does an excellent job. In fact, I plan to follow Mr. Adams example and listen to the audio book with the kids the next time we have a long drive. They're going to love it!
Book Review: Watership Down
Summary: 4 Stars
Wow, for a story about rabbits, this was a pretty exciting tale. Adams does a great job of bringing you into the story and making you care about these small critters. They still retain their rabbitness, but you feel empathy for them as you would another human.
When his brother Fiver predicts that tragedy is going to befall their warren, Hazel gathers as many people as will go with him to set off for a new place that will be free from danger. With a small band of rabbits, they face much hardship and dangerous foes in search of a place they can call home. Eventually, they come to the Watership Downs and find a place high on a hill that proves to be the perfect spot for their new warren.
There is one problem however, the only ones who escaped where males. They need to have some does in order to get on with their lives. With a daring plan they set out to gather does only to be brutally beaten by a warlord in charge of another warren. After nearly dying, they decide to devise a plan and get back at this evil foe and make sure that they expand their warren any way possible.
Even though they are rabbits, the characters in this novel are amazing and full of depth. They all have their own distinct personalities but still act like rabbits. There is no amazing feats of daring that a normal rabbit couldn't do. They all operate inside their natural limitations.
Adams has an easy going writing style. I found it particularly interesting that he developed his own "language" for the rabbits. As a linguist it was interesting to see how he chose to use both the English language and the rabbit's natural along with the pidgin language they used to communicate with other animals. It showed great complexity. His writing is very clear and descriptive and he describes the rabbits movements very accurately. I could picture easily what events were taking place.
As a bit of a warning, as much as this could be a book for children, it has some very violent aspects. The rabbits fight frequently and their injuries are described in detail. This could be frightening for younger children. Another part of the book I didn't particularly care for were the stories the rabbits told. They just seemed like filler and I wasn't that interested in them.
A great book to be sure and I can see why it is highly recommended. I'll definitely look into his other books and perhaps the cartoon based off of the book.
Watership Down
Copyright 1972
474 pages + maps and Lapine Glossary
Review by M. Reynard 2010
Book Review: rather high-toned for a book full of talking animals!
Summary: 2 Stars
I suppose my threshold for silliness for books with talking animals (particularly bunnies) is "The Wind in the Willows." Anything more sophisticated than that is preposterous, I think.
Nevertheless, this aims to go several degrees more sophisticated than that. It succeeds in parts, but on the whole, it's hard to take it seriously unless you're a pre-teen girl. But if you are, good luck with the language.
Now, maybe I just waited too long to read this. I had wanted to ever since I was a kid but never got around to it until middle age. Sure, I've seen the cartoon on which it was based years ago, but didn't think much of it. I was assured by those who had read it, however, that the book was much better (and deeper!). I guess I'm glad I didn't read this as a teenager: I think I would have given up after a few chapters. For a book with a bunch of talking animals, it contains an unreasonably high level of prose.
There's another reason it was hard to get into: I've lived in cities all my life, so much so that I've never even seen a wooden fence, much less a cow. (I think maybe once I saw a squirrel.) Sad, I know; but the point is, much of the bucolic terms were completely flat to me: marjoram? meadowsweet? thistle bloom? kingcups? watercress? It's like you need a PhD in Botany to understand what's going on. (The cynic in me suspects the author doesn't know either, and was simply writing with Newcomb's Wildflower Guide propped open next to the typewriter.)
There are points in the book's favor: the action is swift and things are helped along by short chapters. But Adams's characterization must be accounted a minus: there's plenty of rabbits along for the exodus, but it's hard to tell them apart.
Worse, though, is the sustained pretension of Lapine, the language of Adams's bunnies. Why not just "translate" everything into English? At one point (p. 15), we're told the rabbits are going to "meet again here, fu Inle." What does "fun Inle" mean? A helpful glossary at the back of the book tells us: it means "after moonrise." What did it add to include the original expression? Why couldn't Adams have just written "after moonrise"? Why is that particular expression rendered in the original Lapine, but not others, such as "Is it true?" "Who is this?" and "Over the hill"?
I'll tell you why: because the interlarded Lapine, like so much else in the book, symbolizes the flowery affectation in which the whole thing is steeped.
Book Review: Sometimes unbelievable or slow, but largely intelligent, compelling, and strongly written. A satisfying book. Highly recommended
Summary: 5 Stars
When Fiver has an ominous premonition that death will come to the warren, his brother Hazel leads a pack of willing bucks out into the wide world. Their journey takes them through challenges and strange encounters, and Hazel must grow to be a cunning leader that he may found and protect a better warren in a safer land. Although it requires a certain suspension of disbelief, Watership Down is remarkably faithful to the animals which inspire it. The constantly involving plot can make for slow reading, but on the whole this is an intelligent, compelling, strongly written work. I highly recommend it.
Watership Down differs hugely from most anthropomorphic animal stories in that in that it remains quite faithful to its source. That is to say: these rabbits are rabbits. They do not wear clothes or cook meals in a kitchen; I'm not a rabbit expert, but it's clear that Adams has researched, and for the most part his depiction of rabbits and other wildlife is convincing. Sometimes the novel does stretch the suspension of disbelief--the rabbits don't have human lifestyles or intelligence, but there are still an unbelievable number of unusual rabbit behaviors, from singing and laughing rabbits to a militarized warren. Nonetheless, Watership Down is refreshingly realistic, and the story is all the more compelling for the fact that it could indeed occur in the country downs.
As a novel rather than a concept alone, Watership Down is sometimes slow but largely skillful. The premise--that a group of disaffected rabbits leave one warren to found another--is only mere glimpse into the overall plot, which includes a journey across the countryside, dealings with two other unusual warrens, and a lengthy search for does. The plot is constantly unfolding and the book is quite long, and so it sometimes feels like slow going. Once the reader adjusts to the unfolding plotline, however, the book becomes easier to read--and it is remarkably well written. With thoughtful detail and a complex plot, lifelike characters and skillful writing, Watership Down is on the whole an intelligent and strongly written book. It is heavier fare than many anthropomorphic-animal stories, and it has some faults, but on the whole it's a joy to read, engaging and thought-provoking, with plentiful interpretations which will stand up to rereads. I was very satisfied, and I highly recommend it.