Mowgli's Syndrome. Children raised by animals. Mowgli children

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Mowgli is a popular character invented by Kipling. For a long time, this hero continues to be admired by both book lovers and moviegoers. And there is nothing strange in this, because Mowgli embodies beauty, intelligence and nobility, while being just a fairy tale of the jungle.

There is another well-known character brought up by monkeys. We are, of course, talking about Tarzan. According to the book, he managed not only to integrate into society, but also to successfully marry. At the same time, animal habits have almost completely disappeared.

Is there a place for fairy tales in the real world?

Naturally, the stories look quite attractive, they take your breath away, take you into the world of adventure and make you believe that the characters will find a place for themselves in any country, in any conditions. But in reality, things don't look so great. There have never been such cases when a child, brought up by animals, eventually became a man. He will begin to develop Mowgli syndrome.

Main features of the disease

The development of people is characterized by the presence of specific boundaries, when certain functions are laid down. Teaching speech, imitating parents,upright posture and much more. And if the child does not learn all this, then he will not do this when he grows up. And the real Mowgli is unlikely to learn human speech, start walking not on all fours. And he would never understand the moral principles of society.

So what does Mowgli's Syndrome mean? We are talking about a number of signs and parameters that those who were not brought up in a human society possess. This is the ability to talk, and the fear caused by people, and the rejection of cutlery, etc.

Of course, a "man-cub" raised by beasts can be taught to imitate human speech or behavior. But Mowgli's syndrome turns it all into an ordinary training. Naturally, a child is capable of adapting to society if he is returned before the age of 12-13. However, he will still suffer from mental disorders.

There was a case when a child was brought up by dogs. Over time, the girl was taught to talk, but from this she did not consider herself a man. In her opinion, she was just a dog and did not belong to human society. Mowgli's syndrome sometimes leads to death, because children raised by animals, when they get to people, begin to experience more and culture shock, and not just physiological.

Specialists know a large number of stories of "human cubs", and only a small part of them is known to society. This review will consider the most famous Mowgli children.

Nigerian chimpanzee boy

In 1996 in the jungles of Nigeriathe boy Bello was found. It was difficult to determine his exact age, but according to experts, the child was only 2 years old. The foundling was found to have physical and mental abnormalities. Apparently because of this, he was left in the forest. Naturally, he could not stand up for himself, but the chimpanzees not only did not harm him, but also accepted him into their tribe.

Like many other feral children, a boy named Bello adopted animal habits, began to walk like monkeys. The story became widespread in 2002, when the boy was found in a boarding school for abandoned children. At first, he often fought, threw various things, ran and jumped. However, over time, he became more calm, but he never learned to talk. In 2005, Bello died of unknown causes.

Bird boy from Russia

Mowgli's syndrome made itself felt in many countries. Russia was no exception. In 2008, a six-year-old boy was found in Volgograd. Human speech was unfamiliar to him, instead the foundling chirped. He acquired this skill thanks to his parrot friends. The boy's name was Vanya Yudin.

It should be noted that physically the guy was not injured in any way. However, he was not able to get in touch with people. Vanya had bird-like demeanor, used his hands to express emotions. This was due to the fact that for a long time the guy lived without leaving the room in which his mother's birds lived.

Although the boy lived with his mother, but, according to socialworkers, she not only did not talk to him, but also treated him like another feathered pet. At the present stage, the guy is in the center of psychological assistance. Specialists are trying to bring him back from the bird world.

A boy raised by wolves

In 1867, a 6-year-old boy was found by Indian hunters. It happened in a cave where a pack of wolves lived. Dean Sanichar, and that was the name of the foundling, ran on all fours, like animals. They tried to treat the guy, but in those days there were not only appropriate means, but also effective methods.

At first, the "human cub" ate raw meat, refused dishes, tried to rip off his clothes. Over time, he began to eat cooked meals. But he never learned to speak.

Wolf Girls

In 1920, Amala and Kamala were discovered in a wolf den in India. The first one was 1.5 years old, the second one was already 8 years old. Most of the girls' lives were raised by wolves. Although they were together, experts did not consider them sisters, since the age difference was quite significant. They were just left in the same place at different times.

The feral children were found under rather interesting circumstances. At that time, rumors about two ghostly spirits that lived with wolves became widespread in the village. Frightened residents came to the priest for help. Hiding near the cave, he waited for the wolves to leave and looked into their lair, where the children who were raised by the animals were found.

As describedpriest, the girls were "disgusting creatures from head to toe", moved exclusively on all fours, and did not possess any human signs. Although he had no experience in adapting such children, he took them with him.

Amala and Kamala slept together, refused clothes, ate only raw meat and howled frequently. They could no longer walk upright, as the tendons with joints in the arms had become shorter as a result of physical deformation. The girls refused to communicate with people, trying to get back to the jungle.

After a while, Amala died, because of which Kamala fell into deep mourning and even cried for the first time. The priest thought that she would soon die, so he began to work more actively on her. As a result, at least a little, but Kamala learned to walk, and even learned a few words. But in 1929, she too died of kidney failure.

Children raised by dogs

Madina was discovered by specialists at the age of three. Her upbringing was not done by people, but by dogs. Madina preferred to bark, although she knew some words. After the examination, the found girl was recognized as mentally and physically complete. It is for this reason that the dog girl still has a chance to return to a full life in human society.

Another similar story happened in Ukraine in 1991. Parents left their daughter Oksana at the age of three in a kennel, where she grew up for 5 years, surrounded by dogs. In this regard, she adopted the behavior of animals, began to bark, growl,moved exclusively on all fours.

The dog girl only knew two words, yes and no. After a course of intensive therapy, the child nevertheless acquired social and verbal skills, and began to talk. But psychological problems have not gone anywhere. The girl does not know how to express herself, and quite often tries to communicate not by speech, but by showing emotions. Now the girl lives in Odessa in one of the clinics, often spending her time with animals.

Wolf Girl

The Lobo girl was first seen in 1845. She, along with a flock of predators, attacked goats near San Felipe. After a year, information about Lobo was confirmed. She was seen eating the meat of a slaughtered goat. The villagers began searching for the child. It was they who caught the girl and named her Lobo.

But, like many other Mowgli children, the girl tried to break free, which she did. The next time she was seen only 8 years later, by the river with wolf cubs. Frightened by the people, she picked up the animals and hid in the forest. She was never seen again.

Wild Child

Girl Rochom Piengeng went missing with her sister when she was only 8 years old. They found her only 18 years later in 2007, when her parents no longer hoped for it. The wild cub was found to be a peasant from whom the girl tried to steal food. Her sister was never found.

We worked a lot with Roch, tried with all our might to return to normal life. After a while, she even began to say some words. If Rochom wanted to eat, thenshe pointed to her mouth, often crawled on the ground and refused to wear clothes. The girl was never used to human life, having fled into the forest in 2010. Since then, her whereabouts are unknown.

A child locked in a room

All those who are interested in children raised by animals know a girl named Jean. Although she did not live with animals, she resembled them in her habits. At the age of 13, she was locked in a room with only a chair and a pot tied to it. Also, my father liked to tie Jean up and close her in a sleeping bag.

The child's parent abused his power, did not let the girl talk, punishing her for trying to say something with a stick. Instead of human interaction, he growled and barked at her. The head of the family did not allow to communicate with the child and her mother. For this reason, the girl's vocabulary included only 20 words.

Gin was discovered in 1970. At first, she was thought to be autistic. But then the doctors still found that the child was a victim of violence. For a long period, Jean was treated in a children's hospital. But this did not lead to any significant improvements. Although she was capable of answering some questions, she still had the demeanor of an animal. The girl kept her hands in front of her all the time, as if they were paws. She kept scratching and biting.

Subsequently, the therapist began to deal with her upbringing. Thanks to him, she learned sign language, began to express emotions through drawings and communication. The training lasted for 4 years. Then she went to live with hermother, and then completely got to foster parents, with whom the girl was again unlucky. The new family forced the child to become mute. Now the girl lives in Southern California.

Wild Peter

Mowgli's syndrome, examples of which were described above, also manifested itself in a child living in Germany. In 1724, a hairy boy was discovered by people who moved only on all fours. They managed to catch him with the help of deception. Peter didn't talk at all and ate only raw foods. Although later he began to do simple work, he never learned to communicate. Wild Peter died at an advanced age.

Conclusion

These are not all examples. You can endlessly list people who have Mowgli syndrome. The psychology of wild foundlings is of great interest to many specialists, if only because not a single person raised by animals has ever been able to return to a normal, full life.