Content Warning: This section references colonialism and ethnic stereotypes.

“Rikki-tikki-tavi” takes place entirely in and around a single bungalow and, with its (predominantly) animal cast of characters, might seem divorced from any broader sociohistorical context. However, “Segowlee cantonment,” the location of the family’s bungalow, refers to a military base in India, and the story itself was published in 1894. This was the height of British rule over the Indian subcontinent: nearly four decades after the Indian Rebellion of 1857, which saw control of India pass from the East India Company directly to the British crown, and a half-century before the subcontinent would gain its independence and be portioned into India and Pakistan (the 1947 Partition of India). Kipling himself was a vocal supporter of British imperialism, and in the decades following their publication, his works gained a reputation for racism (though scholars argue over the depth of his prejudice and the complexities of his attitudes towards empire). While “Rikki-tikki-tavi” can be read “simply” as a children’s story, this political and biographical backdrop necessarily informs any comprehensive reading of the text.

During the time period in which the story takes place, many British people lived in India; cantonments were meant specifically for military personnel and their families.