Q1. 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 | In the wild |
Stalks | Lurking in the shadow |
Few steps of his cage | Sliding through long grass |
Quiet rage | Snarling around houses |
Locked in a concrete cell | Baring his white fangs, his claws |
Stalking the length of his cage | Terrorizing the village |
Ignoring visitors |
|
Stares at the brilliant stars |
|
(ii)
Cage | Wild |
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 |
Q2. 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 eyes
At 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 pads of the tiger, which cannot run or leap.
They can only walk around the limited space in the cage. The use of ‘quiet rage’ symbolises 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 dreams 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.
Tiger
Q3. Read the following two poems − one about a tiger and the other about a panther. Then discuss:
Are
zoos necessary for the protection or conservation of some species of
animals? Are they useful for educating the public? Are there
alternatives to zoos?
The Tiger
The tiger behind the bars of his cage growls,
The tiger behind the bars of his cage snarls,
The tiger behind the bars of his cage roars.
Then he thinks.
It would be nice not to be behind bars all
The time
Because they spoil my view
I wish I were wild, not on show.
But if I were wild, hunters might shoot me,
But if I were wild, food might poison me,
But if I were wild, water might drown me.
Then he stops thinking
And...
The tiger behind the bars of his cage growls,
The tiger behind the bars of his cage snarls,
The tiger behind the bars of his cage roars.
-- By Peter Niblett
The Panther
His vision, from the constantly passing bars,
has grown so weary that it cannot hold
anything else. It seems to him there are
a thousand bars; and behind the bars, no world.
As he paces in cramped circles, over and over,
the movement of his powerful soft strides
is like a ritual dance around a centre
in which a mighty will stands paralysed.
Only at times, the curtain of the pupils
lifts, quietly. An image enters in,
rushes down through the tensed, arrested muscles,
plunges into the heart and is gone.
--By Rainer Maria Rilke
Ans: The
Zoo is a very necessary place for some animals as they could be hunted
down, poisoned by some wild food, or could drown in water in the forest.
They also aware public of the nature of animals and make human friendly
with animals. However, a zoo is not the correct substitute for a
forest.
In a zoo, an animal would feel caged, bound, and not free to roam about in the wild. It is for this reason that wildlife sanctuaries and national parks have been instituted in order to conserve several endangered species. These places provide protection as well as natural surroundings to these species.
They can roam about freely in their habitats and are safe too. The public can visit these parks and get educated about the animals and their lifestyles. The parks and sanctuaries are run using a strict set of rules, the most prominent being the ban on hunting.
Since the animals are in the open, visitors would not be able to feed them and would not misbehave or try to play with them as they are under strict guidance. Such incidents have been recorded in zoos where people irritate and tease the animals. Hence, a wildlife sanctuary is a good alternative for animals to be safe as well as in their natural surroundings.
2023
Q1: Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow: ( 2023)
He hears the last voice at night.
The patrolling cars,
And stares with his brilliant eyes
At the brilliant stars.
He stalks in his vivid stripes
A few steps of his cage.
(i) Whose is the last voice heard by the tiger?
(a) police jeep
(b) patrolling cars
(c) watchmen
(d) roar of lion
Ans: (b)
(ii) Complete the sentence appropriately
It is clear that 'Repetition' is the poetic device used for ’his brilliant eyes at the brilliant stars' because ___ (Clue : explain how repetition applies here)
Ans: because there is a repetition of word 'brilliant'.
(iii) The main contrasting ideas in this extract are
(a) tiger and deer
(b) cruelty and sympathy
(c) confinement and freedom
(d) master and slave
Ans: (c)
(iv) The use of the word ‘stalks’ creates an image of
(a) cowardice
(b) frustration
(c) lethargy
(d) purposefulness
Ans: (b)
(v) State whether the following statement is true or False
The poem uses ‘staring at the sky’ to symbolize the freedom ‘he’ yearns for.
Ans: true
Q2: Read the following extract given below and answer the questions that follow: (2023)
He stalks in his vivid stripes
The few steps of his cage,
On pads of velvet quiet, In his quiet rage.
He should be lurking in shadow,
Sliding through long grass Near the water hole Where plump deer pass.
(i) ‘Quiet rage’ refers to the tiger's ______.
(a) helplessness
(b) has has not been able to hunt
(c) his prey has not come to the water hole
(d) he is not free
Ans: (a)
(ii) He is lurking in shadows because____.
Ans: he is waiting for his prey
(iii) Complete the sentence appropriately. It is clear that metaphor is the poetic device used for 'pads of velvet' because___ (clue - explain how metaphor applies here).
Ans: softness of the velvet is used to describe the softness of tiger’s feet.
(iv) Find a word from the extract which means - to walk with measured, stiff or haughty strides:
(a) steps
(b) lurking
(c) pads
(d) stalk
Ans: (d)
(v) State whether the following statement is True or False: The tiger is stealthily waiting for the deer to come to the water hole.
Ans: (v)
2021
Q3: Read the following extract given below and answer the questions that follow: (Term I, 2021-22)
He stalks in his vivid stripes
The few steps of his cage,
On pads of velvet quiet,
In his quiet rage.
He should be lurking in shadow,
Sliding through long grass
Near the water hole
Where plump deer pass.
I. How does the tiger show his helplessness?
(a) Through his beautiful stripes
(b) Through his brief walk
(c) Through his controlled anger
(d) By walking quietly
Ans: (c)
II. Study the following statements :
(i) Even in the zoo the tiger has retained his majesty.
(ii) He is walking softly in the cage as he is looking for his prey.
Choose the correct option :
(a) (i) is right and (ii) is wrong.
(b) (ii) is right and (i) is wrong.
(c) (i) and (ii) are both right.
(d) (i) and (ii) are both wrong.
Ans: (a)
III. Looking at the caged tiger we :
(a) admire his majestic looks.
(b) get scared of him.
(c) feel sympathetic towards him.
(d) feel safe that he is caged.
Ans: (c)
IV. The tiger in the zoo does not have to hunt for his food :
(a) so he feels happy.
(b) yet he is angry.
(c) so he feels secure.
(d) yet he feels lonely.
Ans: (b)
V. He likes the water hole as :
(a) the deer visits it
(b) there is tall grass around it
(c) it is a shady place
(d) he can hide behind the grass.
Ans: (a)
