Quote:
Originally Posted by gmw
The book shows savagery among both white and black men; only the white nobility stands out as honourable ... and, curiously, this is apparently hereditary, so the white nobility can't even take credit for it as something they choose.
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Burroughs was subtle about racial issues. He went as far as he could go and still be able to sell the stories. A white, male protagonist was commercially mandatory. Subsequent Tarzan novels did portray some noble, courageous black characters.
And consider the John Carter novel. It opens as a typical western, but when the protagonist finds himself on Mars, he discovers that the red people have an advanced culture and technology, but the only white creatures in sight are savage, mindless apes!