Supposedly, Peter Marlowe is based in some ways upon Clavell himself. He is returned to what he was before the war, a nobody.īecause this story is semi-autobiographical (James Clavell was also a prisoner in Changi during World War II), it's safe to assume I think that the final image of the King, which is sympathetic and even admiring, reflects some of Clavell's own notions about what it takes to survive. Then, the King's world is turned upside down. This pair makes an unlikely partnership at first that eventually blossoms into true respect and friendship. He even manages a privatized system of charity, making sure his unit and others are fed and survive.Īlong the way, he makes one genuine friend, Peter Marlowe, a captured upper class RAF pilot, a veteran of the Battle of Britain. He is domineering, arrogant, and conniving.īut like a business mogul-a sort of Henry Ford of Changi-he creates a system that provides for the general good. But he also succeeds in making this depraved life in the camp work-not just for his benefit but for others. In the Darwinian world of the POW camp, the King is the one most able to adapt and rise to the top, outwitting and dominating colonels, majors, captains, and even the Japanese guards. A man with no home back in the United States, no true friends among the small number of other American POWs, and completely apart from the culture of the other 10,000 POWs who are British and Australian.īut the King survives. He is also a prototype for most of the protagonists who would follow in James Clavell's novels.

The King is an American corporal held as a POW in Singapore's Changi Prison during World War II.

King Rat by James Clavell