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Question
Read the following extract and answer the questions:
|
But he’s locked in a concrete cell, |
- Why is the tiger ‘stalking the length of his cage’?
- What is the significance of the use of the word ‘locked’ to describe the concrete cell where the tiger is kept and how does it contrast with the tiger’s presence in its natural habitat? Answer in about 40 words.
- Complete the sentence with the appropriate option:
The lines from the poem tell us that the tiger is _______.
- enjoying his time in the cell
- being indifferent to visitors because it is a daily routine for him
- not as strong as his counterpart in the jungle
- wanting to be free from the cage
- Identify the type of literary device used in the line:
‘But he’s locked in a concrete cell’
Solution
- The tiger is 'stalking the length of his cage' likely due to a natural instinct to move and a restless spirit, which is not satisfied with the confines of the cage.
- The use of the word 'locked' emphasizes captivity and the lack of freedom. It contrasts sharply with the tiger's natural habitat, where it would roam freely and be the master of its own domain. In its natural habitat, the tiger would not be confined or controlled, unlike the restrictive and unnatural concrete cell.
-
The lines from the poem tell us that the tiger is wanting to be free from the cage.
- The literary device used in the line 'But he’s locked in a concrete cell' is a metaphor. The phrase compares the tiger's cell to a prison, highlighting the confinement and the unnatural state of living for a wild animal.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
Read the poem again, and work in pair or groups to do the following task.
Find the words that describe the movements and actions of the tiger in the case and in the wild. Arrange them in two columns
Now try to share ideas about how the poet uses words and images to contrast the two situations.
Read the poem again, and work in pair or groups to do the following task.
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.
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?
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. 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. RAINER MARIA RILKE
Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow by choosing the most appropriate option:
|
He stalks in his vivid stripes He should be lurking in shadow |
- 'He' is in a rage because he is ______. (1)
- hungry
- tied
- thirsty
- in a cage
- He is lurking in the shadow because ______. (1)
- The above lines express the tiger's ______. (1)
- resignation
- fear
- anger
- acceptance
- Complete the sentence appropriately: (1)
It is clear that metaphor is the poetic device used for ‘pads of velvet’ — because ______.
(Clue: explain how metaphor is applied here.) - The contrast in the above extract is between life in the forest and life in the ______. (1)
- circus
- national park
- cave
- zoo
How does Leslie Norris use vivid imagery and metaphorical language in A Tiger in the Zoo, to effectively depict the confinement and oppression, experienced by the captive tiger?
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
|
He stalks in his vivid stripes He should be lurking in shadow |
- 'Quiet rage' refers to the tigers ______. (1)
- helplessness
- he has not been able to hunt
- his prey has not come to the water hole
- he is not free
- He is lurking in shadows because ______. (1)
- Complete the sentence appropriately: (1)
It is clear that metaphor is the poetic device used for 'pads of velvet' because ______.
(clue-explain how metaphor applies here). - Find a word from the extract which means to walk with measured, stiff of haughty strides: (1)
- steps
- lurking
- pads
- stalk
- State whether the following statement is TRUE or FALSE: (1)
The tiger is stealthily waiting for the deer to come to the water hole.
