The first time people saw the wild boy, he was about 9 years old. When he was around 10 years old, he was caught by a group of woodsmen and displayed in the village square. He managed to escape and return to the forest. Later, he was captured again, but instead of being put on display, he stayed with a poor old widow who lived in a cottage on the edge of the village. For 8 days he was treated with kindness. He escaped again.
He was less fearful of people because he realized they might give him food.
In January 1800, he was caught again. Rumors had spread across the countryside about a wild boy, and officials wanted to know if it was true. They also realized that scientists in Paris would be very, very interested in studying a real wild human.
The wild boy was 12 years old when he was caught stealing food from a garden. Many believed he was deaf and mute. Should he be in an orphanage? An insane assylum? A school of deaf and mute children? For many years, the wild boy was treated not as a human, but as a specimen. Until a hero came to teach him.
Wild Boy was an interesting read about the true story of a wild boy found in southern France in the late 1700s.
Rating: 8 out of 10 stars
Not available at NOLS...yet!
