A Tiger In The Zoo, Class 10th English, Complete Notes

 A Tiger In The Zoo, Class 10th English, Complete Notes

 1 – Introduction

 2- Stanza Wise Explanation

 3 - Word Meaning

 4- Poetic Devices

 5- Textbook Exercises 

 6- Important Questions-Answers 

 7- To Conclude

1-Introduction 

This poem is written by Leslie Norris who was Welsh poet and short story writer. His literary publications have won many prizes. He wrote A Tiger In The Zoo in 1938. By Profession he was a poet and writer. In this poem, the poet tries to depict the poor condition of a caged tiger.

He compares the life of a caged tiger with a tiger living in his natural habitat that is forest. He is of the view that wild animals should be allowed to live freely in their natural habitat. Freedom is loved by all whether it’s human being or animals.

2-Stanza Wise Explanation

Stanza 1

He stalks in his vivid stripes

The few steps of his cage,

On pad of velvet quiet,

In his quiet rage.

Explanation

 In these lines, the poet is describing a tiger in the cage. The tiger is moving quietly and slowly in his cage. As his cage was very small, he hardly take a few steps.  The stripes on his body is very bright and clear. His pads are soft like velvet. In spite of being so powerful creature, he is behind the bars. So the whole situation has made the tiger angry. So he is quiet with anger.

Stanza 2

 He should be lurking in shadow,

 Sliding through long grass

 Near the water hole

 Where plump deer pass.

Explanation

 The tiger is hiding in the shadow and quietly moving through the long grass near the water hole. He must be waiting for a fatty dear to pass, as he is in the hope of getting a heavy meal. The poet is filled with sorrow for the caged tiger.

stanza 3

 He should be snarling around houses

 At the jungle’s edge,

 Baring his white fangs, his claws,

 Terrorising the village!

Explanation

 According to the poet, a wild tiger should be roaring around the houses that are located at the jungle's edge. he should be showing his two long sharp teeth at the front of the mouth and his claws to threaten the villagers.

Stanza 4

But he is locked in a concrete cell,

 His strength behind bars,

 Stalking the length of his cage,

 Ignoring visitors.

Explanation

 The tiger in zoo is locked in the concrete cell. His  strength and power is of no use because he is behind the bars. He is moving in his cage quietly and slowly ignoring the visitors. He is full of anger because he is not free.

stanza 5

 He hears the last voice at night,

 The patrolling cars,

 And stares with his brilliant eyes

 At the brilliant stars.

Explanation

 In the concluding lines, the poet says that even at night time the tiger is disturbed. The patrolling cars of the zoo take a round of the zoo to check, Whether the situation is under control or not. The tiger hear the sound of the patrolling cars, which disturbs him. Now the tiger stares at the brilliant stars shining in the sky. And with his brilliant eyes he hopes for his freedom.

3- Word-Meaning 

vivid - bright and clear

stalks - to move quietly and slowly

rage - anger

 lurking - hiding

 plump - fat

 snarling -  roaring

 bearing - showing

 terrorising - threatening

 Stalking - moving slowly and quietly

 Brilliant - very bright

4- Poetic Devices

1 Rhyme Scheme- abcb ( rage, cage)

2 Oxymoron- In Oxymoron two contradictory opposite terms are combined. Quiet, rage (line 4)

3- Personification-  no it’s good it occurs when a writer or poet gives human traits to non human things. Example  tiger is referred as ‘he’ (for animals we use it)

4- Metaphor- Is comparing two unlike things or objects that have some common qualities in them.  Pads of velvet

 5- Repetition-  Repetition of words or phrases in the same line.  Velvet quiet, quiet rage (stanza 1)

 Brilliant eyes, brilliant stars (Stanza 5)

6- Alliteration- It is the occurrence of the same sound at the beginning of closely connected words. 

He stalks in his vivid stripes- sound s is repeated 

Concrete cell- sound c is repeated. 

5- Textbook Exercises 

 i-Read the poem again and work in pairs or groups to the following task.

 1-find the words that describe the movements and actions  of the tiger in the cage and in the wild. Arrange them in two columns.

Answer- In the cage

•Stalks

•Locked in Concrete cell

•He hears the last voice

•Stares at the brilliant stars 

In the wild

•Lurking in shadow 

•Sliding through long grass 

•Snarling around houses 

•Terrorising the villagers.

2- Find the words that describe the two places and arrange them in two columns:

Ans - Cage

•Few steps of his cage 

•Locked

•Concrete cell

•Behind bars

Wild

•Shadow 

•Long grass

•Plump deer

•Village.

ii- Notice the use of a word repeated in lines such as these

 • On pads of velvet quiet, in his quiet rage.

 And stares with his brilliant eyes At the brilliant stars.

 What do you think is the effect of this repetition?

Ans- The repetition is a poetic device used by the poet in order to highlight his rage and his helpless silence. Here velvet quite refers to the quiet velvet pads of the tiger. The tiger cannot run because of limited space in the cage. The quiet rage symbolises the anger that is inside the tiger as we want to be free but at the same time this rage is quite because he's locked in the cage. Similarly the use of brilliant eyes and brilliant stars add immense beauty to the poem. The tiger stares at the brilliant stars with his brilliant eyes because he dream of free life in the forest.All these repetitive words give magnificent effect to the poem.

iii- 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 comma 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 is snarls,

 The tiger behind the bars of his cage roars. 

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 softest 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 tense, arrested muscles,

 plunges into the heart and is gone.

Rainer Maria Rilke

Ans- There is a need to protect and conserve these species which are on the verge of extinction that is tigers,lions  etc. Zoos are artificial habitats that can also develop into good research centres. But they are not perfect substitute for wild animals. As a result their freedom is restricted.

 Yes, there are human alternative to zoos such as wildlife centuries, national parks where animals live in an open environment. There they are able to roam freely yet they are protected from hunters.

6- Important Questions-Answers 

i-Where should the tiger have been according to the poet? (C.B.S.E.2014)

Ans- According to the poet, the tiger should have been in the forest hiding in the shadow, quietly moving in the long grass near the water hole to catch its prey. It should also be on the outskirts of the jungle growling around houses, and terrifying the villagers.

ii- How Does a tiger create terror for the villagers?

 OR

 How does the tiger make his presence felt in the village? (C.B.S.E.2015)

Ans- The tiger frightens the villagers by roaring around their houses as they are situated near the jungle. He terrified them by showing his teeth and claws.

iii- Why should the tiger snarl around houses at the edge of the forest? (C.B.S.E.2012)

 ANs- The tiger should snarl around houses at the edge of the forest for the following reasons: the villagers will neither disturb the peace of the forest nor they kill the animals. 

iv- Love for freedom is the natural instinct of every living being. Comment. (C.B.S.E.2014)

Ans- Freedom is liked by every living being. No one wants to live behind the bars or as a slave. The tiger in this poem, has been kept in a cage. He feels helpless and he wants freedom. He also ignores visitors, as he knows that nobody could help him. How one could live happily if their freedom is abandoned. The tiger stares at the brilliant stars in the sky as he wants to be free. We as human beings should allow freedom to all other creatures as they belongs to the forest and not to the cage.  

7- To Conclude 

I hope the above article would be a great help in your upcoming exams. If any doubts, you can reach me through the comments section below and I will get back to you as soon as possible. For the complete notes of English syllabus, visit my page and there you will get chapter wise notes. Stay connected, thank you....