A Tiger in the Zoo — Practice

Question 1

What is the caged tiger doing at the start of the poem?

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: stalking the few steps of his cage in 'quiet rage', on pads of velvet.

Question 2

What should the tiger be doing if he were free?

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: lurking in the shadows to hunt deer at the water hole, or snarling around houses and terrorising the village at the jungle's edge.

Question 3

What does the caged tiger stare at during the night?

Accepted Answer

✦ Answer: with his brilliant eyes, he stares at the brilliant stars — longing for freedom.

Question 4

What is the poet protesting against in 'A Tiger in the Zoo'?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — He contrasts the majestic, free tiger of the wild with the helpless tiger caged in a small concrete cell.

Step 2 — Through this contrast he protests against the cruelty of confining wild animals and pleads for their freedom.

✦ Answer: the captivity of wild animals — he pleads for their freedom.

Question 5

How does the tiger feel in the cage, and how do you know?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — He feels frustrated, helpless and full of suppressed anger.

Step 2 — We know this from phrases like 'quiet rage', his ignoring of the visitors, and his longing stare at the stars at night.

✦ Answer: frustrated and silently angry ('quiet rage'), ignoring visitors and longing for freedom.

Question 6

How does the poet use contrast to convey his message?

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — He alternates images of the caged tiger (a few steps, quiet rage, concrete cell) with images of the free tiger (hunting deer, terrorising the village).

Step 2 — The gap between the tiger's magnificent natural power and his caged helplessness makes his captivity feel cruel and unnatural.

Step 3 — The contrast itself argues, without preaching, that wild animals belong in the wild.

✦ Answer: by juxtaposing the free, powerful tiger with the caged, helpless one, the contrast makes the cruelty of captivity vivid.

Question 7

'He stalks in his vivid stripes / The few steps of his cage.' Explain and bring out its significance.

Accepted Answer

Step 1 — The tiger, still beautiful with his vivid stripes, is reduced to pacing just the few steps his cage allows.

Step 2 — 'Stalks' suggests his natural hunter's movement, now pointless in a tiny space.

Step 3 — The line captures the tragedy of a magnificent wild creature confined — power trapped in helplessness.

✦ Answer: a majestic hunter reduced to pacing a tiny cage — highlighting the cruelty and waste of captivity.

Practice — A Tiger in the Zoo

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