Question

Directly in front of him, holding on by a low branch, stood a naked brown baby who could just walk – as soft and as dimpled a little thing as ever came to a wolf's cave at night.

—“Mowgli’s Brothers,” The Jungle Book,
Rudyard Kipling

How does the narrator characterize the baby?

by giving physical descriptions
by using character dialogue
by sharing a character’s inner thoughts

Answer 1

The narrator characterizes the baby **by giving physical descriptions**. The phrases "naked brown baby," "soft and as dimpled a little thing," and the context of the baby standing and holding onto a branch provide a vivid physical portrayal of the child. There is no use of character dialogue or sharing of inner thoughts in this excerpt.