1.Read the poem again, and work in pairs or groups to do the following tasks.
(i) Find the words that describe the movements and actions of the tiger in the case and in the wild. Arrange them in two columns.
(ii) Find the words that describe the two places, and arrange them in two columns. Now try to share ideas about how the poet uses words and images to contrast the two situations.
Ans: (i)In the cage Stalks In the wild Few steps of his cage Lurking in shadow Quiet rage Sliding through long grass Snarling around houses Locked in a concrete cell Baring his white fangs, his claws Stalking the length of his cage Terrorising the village WildIgnoring visitors Stares at the brilliant stars
(ii)Cage Few steps of his cage Shadow Concrete cell Long grass Locked Water hole Behind bars Plump deer Visitors Houses at the jungle’s edge Patrolling cars Village
Notice the use of a word repeated in lines such as these:
(i) On pads of velvet quiet,In his quiet rage.
(ii) And stares with his brilliant eyesAt the brilliant stars.What do you think is the effect of this repetition?
Ans: This repetition is a poetic device used by the poet in order to increase the intensity of the tiger’s rage and his helpless silence. Velvet quiet’ refers to the quiet, velvet paws of the tiger, which cannot run or leap. They can only walk around the limited space in the cage. The use of ‘quiet rage’ symbolizes the anger and ferocity that is building up inside the tiger as it wants to run out into the forest and attack a deer.But the rage is quiet because it cannot come out in the open as it is in the cage. This double use of ‘quiet’ has brought immense beauty to the poem. Similarly, the use of ‘brilliant’ for the tiger’s eyes as well as the stars also brings out the magnificence of these lines. The tiger has dream of being free in its ‘brilliant’ eyes. It sees the stars (that have also been described as brilliant) with the same eyes. It stares at the brilliant stars with its brilliant eyes thinking about how beautiful its life could be in the forest. The repetitiveness of these words gives a wonderful effect to the poem.