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niori_1709I first saw The Clan of the Cave Bear on one of those 100 books to read before you die lists, and truth be told, it didn’t really sound all that appealing to me. Don’t get me wrong, I love history, but I’m a bit less into the prehistoric humanoids. How much can there really be to tell about cavemen (excuse the simplistic term)? Despite those reservations I decided to read the book anyway, and I’m glad I did.
Clan of the Cave Bear takes place in the time where Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons lived in the world together.
Ayla is a little girl when her village is destroyed and she’s the only survivor. She wanders and after being attacked by a huge ancestor to the lion, is injured and found by a tribe of Neanderthals. They decide to take the girl with them, though she is ‘other’. Ayla is different in more ways than appearance, and that becomes more obvious as she grows. Ayla is a tomboy in a world where, even though women do as much physical labour as men, there are clear gender divisions. Women cannot hunt for example. Yet Ayla defies all that. She teaches herself to hunt and when her child is threatened, she violates the laws to protect him. Those are only a few of the moments where Ayla is like a prehistoric feminist.
Another interesting factor in the book is the culture that surrounds the clan. It’s nowhere near as simple as your cliched caveman tale. There is an extreme amount of mysticism and religion. The bear is a sacred animal, and each person has their own spirit animal. There are medicine women and shamans who preform rituals of deep religious and symbolic value. There is also a large amount of conflicting politics in the story. The issue of succession as a leader and how a personal vendetta can affect the wellbeing of the clan is a key plot point. There is xenophobia and distrust of the ‘other’. All of that makes it feel real. Never could I have imagined a prehistoric culture being so captivating. Auel makes it so real that you can imagine that this is what early people did believe in. Romanticized yes, but The Clan of the Cave Bear is fascinating nonetheless.
Clan of the Cave Bear takes place in the time where Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons lived in the world together.
Ayla is a little girl when her village is destroyed and she’s the only survivor. She wanders and after being attacked by a huge ancestor to the lion, is injured and found by a tribe of Neanderthals. They decide to take the girl with them, though she is ‘other’. Ayla is different in more ways than appearance, and that becomes more obvious as she grows. Ayla is a tomboy in a world where, even though women do as much physical labour as men, there are clear gender divisions. Women cannot hunt for example. Yet Ayla defies all that. She teaches herself to hunt and when her child is threatened, she violates the laws to protect him. Those are only a few of the moments where Ayla is like a prehistoric feminist.
Another interesting factor in the book is the culture that surrounds the clan. It’s nowhere near as simple as your cliched caveman tale. There is an extreme amount of mysticism and religion. The bear is a sacred animal, and each person has their own spirit animal. There are medicine women and shamans who preform rituals of deep religious and symbolic value. There is also a large amount of conflicting politics in the story. The issue of succession as a leader and how a personal vendetta can affect the wellbeing of the clan is a key plot point. There is xenophobia and distrust of the ‘other’. All of that makes it feel real. Never could I have imagined a prehistoric culture being so captivating. Auel makes it so real that you can imagine that this is what early people did believe in. Romanticized yes, but The Clan of the Cave Bear is fascinating nonetheless.
