Mahajan pathshala@ YouTube

98100 67744
vkmapex12@gamil.com
V.K.Mahajan
Aunt Jeniffer’s Tigers
By: Virendra Mahajan
Mob: 9810067744
Email: vkmapex12@gmail.com
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
1. Bright topaz, yellowish-brown coloured tigers are shown jumping all over the tapestry made by Aunt Jennifer.
Prancing tigers are the symbol of the spirit of freedom which the male community enjoys. The traits that the poet
assigns to the tigers are traditionally accepted as masculine. Tigers who are the dwellers of the forest where only the
law of the mighty works and they are not afraid of anyone in the forest are here compared to the male community who
is fearless, enjoys his freedom away from all the clutches of society
2. The men beneath the trees
Aunt Jennifer's tigers…...a world of green
Though the tigers are seen prancing all over the tapestry of the panel and are shown graceful, proud and confident.
They are not afraid of the men sitting beneath the trees. Similarly the male, enjoy absolute freedom and are not
confined to the dogma and clutches or the society They are indifferent to people and enjoy a life of freedom, pride and
power.
3. They pace in sleek, chivalric certainty.
The movement of the tigers is elegant, stealthily, sure, majestic and pride, gallant and confident. They move
undeterred by any restrains or hindrance caused by the social system. They seem certain about their purpose.

4. Denizens of a world of green

Tigers live in jungles, so they are here referred as 'denizens' or inhabitants of the green world of jungles. The poet has
depicted fingers to symbolise men, so the world of green symbolises the animal instinct of men and their tendency to
dominate women by their might and absolute freedom that they enjoy in the society.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
05. Why are they called 'Aunt Jennifer's Tigers?
Because they have been made by Aunt Jennifer and they are the manifestation of her feelings that she can't
express in any other way to free her from the clutches of patriarchal society and to be fearless and free.

06. Aunt Jennifer's fingers fluttering through her wool..

Aunt Jenifer is a victim of gender oppression at the hands of her husband. She feels so nervous and terrified that
her hands shake and flutter when she works with her ivory needle. The agony and traumatic effact of the
domineering husband seem playing on her psyche making her nervous and unable to pull even a very light needle
of ivory.

07. How are the tigers different from their creator?

The tigers shown are fearless and proud unlike Aunt Jennifer who is submissive, meek and bonded. Her feminine
but subdued nature is in complete contrast to the masculine and fearless and proud tigers mean the men of the
society.

08. Massive weight of uncle's wedding band.

This expression is the symbolic of the authority and power assigned to men through the institution of marriage.
Matrimony makes the woman subservient to her husband physically as well as mentally. Aunt Jennifer is trapped
in marriage and is burdened by her domineering husband who enjoys absolute authority over aunt's mind, spirit
and body She desperately longs for a life that she can live by her choice.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
09. Terrified hands.
Aunt Jennifer has been imprisoned not only by the bindings of customs and patriarchal society but also
emotionally. She has submitted herself to the oppression of her husband and has undergone many untold
sufferings meekly. These ordeals have created this psychological trauma making her terrified,

10. Ringed with ordeals.

It implies the victimization and oppression that trapped Aunt Jennifer throughout her life. It seems that even after
death she will remain trapped in chains of servility. Her hands bear the stamp of the trying times she has spent in
her life to meet the expectations of the patriarchal society

11. The tigers…...unafraid.

This expression is symbolic of the dispassionate and indifferent attitude of male community towards the desire for
freedom among females. Whatever the sacrifices the woman makes in her life go unnoticed by the male
community. Tre male will keep enjoying their unchecked freedom and live with pride and absolutely fearless
keeping a blind eye to the trials and tribulations the woman goes due to their domineering nature.

12. Why has the writer used Aunt instead of Aunt Jennifer in the last stanza?
The ideology of the poem is to bring aul the struggle for survival of women in a harsh male dominated world. The
poet make mention of Aunt Jennifer in the beginning but in the last stanza she tries to generalise the idea to tie
whole woman community that undergoes deep conflicts of bondage and freedom in matrimony due to patriarchal
and domineering nature of the male community.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
13. Bring out the main significance of 'ringed'.
Once she is dead she still will have the ring that is a symbol, after matrimony in her hand. The other symbolic and
metaphorical meaning is to tell 'chained or bonded' expression. Together with 'mastered it invokes the image of a
circus ring which mirrors Aunt Jennifer's married life. Her husband is her master and she has to obey him aunt of
fear engulfing the slave tiger of the circus.

14. What is the significance of' the ivory needle'?

Ivory needle is made of ivory, the substance achieved from the tusk of an elephant. It is a very light but very
expensive material. So the ivory needle here in the poem is the indicative that she was quite well-off, her husband
must have provided her with all the materialistic comforts but due to her traumatic married life she was so upset:
that she couldn't even pull a very light needle made of ivory.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
ABOUT THE POEM
Introduction
The poem "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" is clearly a feminist' poem. It is critical of the male world for terrifying and
oppressing 'Aunt Jennifer' and causing her to create an alternate world of freedom, which she inhabits only in her
imagination. It is her make-believe world of escape. The three quatrains (four-lined stanzas) expose the desolating
effects of patriarchy. The struggle for existence and the deep conflicts of bondage have given rise to gender
conflicts. Aunt Jennifer, in the poem, is totally victimised and the absent Uncle, represented only by his wedding
band, is the figure of oppression. The first stanza of the poem highlights Aunt Jennifer's fears, the second her
implied slavery and the third her ordeals in life.

AUNT JENNIFER'S TIGERS

(ADRIENNE RICH)
Through the poem, the poet highlights the struggles of the spirit and racial and religious injustice and oppression
of an apparently upper-middle class woman who can express her desire for freedom only in her art. The poem is a
mystified tragedy for we do not know what terrors Aunt Jennifer had to live with. Tortured and terrorized by the
male dominated world, Aunt Jennifer recoils within and seeks solace in her embroidery art which is a means of
escape for her as well as a compensation for the loss of individual freedom.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
Summary
"Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" is a feminist poem which is critical of the male world for terrifying and oppressing 'Aunt
Jennifer. She thus creates an alternate world of freedom in her art. Even in this alternate world she fails to liberate
herself from the male domination. She knits a panel of tigers jumping jerkily across a screen. The tigers are the
inhabitants of the jungle and are fearless creatures pacing elegantly and majestically. The 'tigers' in this context is
symbolic of the spirit of freedom which is enjoyed only by the men-folk. Women like Aunt Jennifer are never able
to taste this freedom as they are victims of male chauvinism. The lines bring out the evils of patriarchy as evident
in the blatant gender bias and discrimination against women.

Feelings of implied slavery are brought out in the second stanza of the poem. Aunt Jennifer is so oppressed and
so timid and terrified that she finds it hard to pull the ivory needles through the base cloth. How victimised and
oppressed she feels is clear from the burden of the weight of the Uncle's wedding band she experiences on her
hand. She continues to dread him even in his absence.

Even death will fail to release her of the chains of her struggles which have dominated her and bound during her
lifetime. The tigers, representing the authority of the male remain undeterred. Indifferent to the suppression of the
women, the men, like the tigers go on prancing menacingly and exhibiting their pride and fearlessness of any
social or gender conflicts.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
THEME
The poem 1s clearly a feminist' poem and revolves around the theme of male chauvinism and gender conflicts.
The theme of the victimisation of the women by their male counterparts has been starkly brought out in the poem
making it a forceful expression of the evils of patriarchy. Aunt Jennifer is totally victimised and suffers the
oppression of her male counterpart even though he is absent. She is never able to liberate herself from the
oppression of custom and law. Aunt Jennifer thus, creates for herself an alternate world of freedom, one which she
can inhabit only in her imagination.
TITLE
"Aunt Jennifer's Tiger" is an appropriate title in that it refers to a tapestry Aunt Jennifer has made. It contains some
ferocious, proud, fearless and prancing tigers. The title also suggests the "tiger like terror" Aunt's husband was.
She was in constant fear of him and felt trapped and suffocated in marriage. She felt that her husband was her
master and she was a tame animal who must carry out his command. Very suggestive title, indeed.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
IMAGES AND SYMBOLS
The poet has used various images and symbols to stress upon the chauvinism of man and the oppression of the
women at their hands. Tiger' has been used as a symbol of the terror and oppression perpetrated on women like
Aunt Jennifer by the male world. It also symbolizes the freedom of spirit which Aunt Jennifer dreams of but is
never able to achieve.
Bright topaz.' Bright yellowish-brown colour of the tiger skin.
The image of 'fluttering wool' highlights the extensive oppression of the women. Aunt Jennifer is so victimized and
oppressed that her frail fingers are not able to carry the weight of something even as light as wool. Her struggling
with the ivory needles suggests the loss of her individual identity under the weight of Uncle's domination and her
terrorized state of mind.
'Uncle's wedding band' symbolizes the Suppression of women in matrimony. The wedding band is symbolic of the
oppression of Women by custom and law. It also symbolises so called male authority and dominance. For many
men, women are possessions.
'Ringed with ordeals' is an image used by the poet to express the struggles of the spirit, racial and religious
injustice and oppression that Aunt Jennifer suffers but never expresses or complaints against. No one knows the
trauma Aunt Jennifer has had to undergo.
Repetition of "Aunt Jennifer" and "tigers" creates a horrifying ambience of the oppressor and the oppressed. The
theme of male chauvinism runs throughout the poem creating a fearsome atmosphere of tigers on the prowl for a
prey.
RHYME SCHEME
The poem has a perfect rhyme scheme aabbec making it lyrical in nature.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
GLOSSARY
prance to move quickly with exaggerated steps
topaz of a yellowish brown colour
denizens inhabitants or residents
below; directly under
sleek elegant, stylish or streamlined
chivalric gallant; honourable and brave
fluttering moving about or behaving in an
agitated aimless manner
massive very large or heavy
wedding band a wedding ring in a form of a plain band
mastered managed or controlled
ordeals severe or testing experiences
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
(1) Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across a screen,
Bright topaz denizens of a world of green.
They do not fear the men beneath the tree;
They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.
(a) What does the expression 'Aunt Jennifer's tigers' imply?
Aunt Jennifer was knitting a panel of prancing tigers. The poet refers to them as Aunt Jennifer's tigers because
they are her creation, her work of art.
(b) What does prancing tigers symbolize?
Prancing tigers are a symbol of the spirit of freedom within Aunt Jennifer which remains subdued. They also
symbolise her fear of her male counterpart.
(c) Why are they referred to as 'denizens of a world of green'?
The tigers which symbolically refer to the male counterpart, are the natives of the 'jungle' or the green world.
Besides the general meaning of 'the wild', the world of green can symbolise the male animal instinct. It can also
symbolise the evil and viciousness of the male dominance and jealousy.
(d) What qualities of the 'tigers' are highlighted here?
Fearlessness and ferocity of the tigers is highlighted here. Aunt Jennifer's nervousness and timidity are in sharp
contrast to wild ferocity of the tigers who are not afraid of hunting men. Unlike Aunt Jennifer, the tigers fear
nothing.
(e) Explain: "They pace in sleek chivalric certainty"
The movement of the tigers is sleek, stealthy, sure, majestic and elegant. They are sure of their purpose. Gallant
and confident, they move ahead undeterred by any obstacles or hindrances.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
(2) Aunt Jennifer's fingers fluttering through her wool
Find even the ivory needle hard to pull.
The massive weight of Uncle's wedding band
Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand.
(a) Why do Aunt Jennifer's fingers flutter through her wool?
Aunt Jennifer is a victim of gender oppression at the hands of her husband. She feels so nervous and terrified that
her hands shake and flutter when she sits down to knit.
(b) Why does she find it hard to pull the ivory needles?
Suppressed under the weight of male domination, Aunt Jennifer has become a nervous wreck. She finds it difficult
to pull the ivory needles through the tapestry more because of mental suppression than because of physical
weakness.
(c) Explain: 'massive weight of Uncle's wedding band.
The expression is symbolic of male authority and power. Matrimony binds the woman physically as well as
mentally. Likewise Aunt Jennifer is trapped in gender oppression and feels herself burdened by the authority of her
husband.
(d) How is Aunt Jennifer affected by the 'weight of matrimony' ?
Aunt Jennifer suffers from implied slavery and feels trapped in something more than gender oppression. Living in
a male dominated world, she seems to have lost her identity. The freedom that she dreams of through her art is
itself symbolic of her oppressed self.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
(3) When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie
Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by.
The tigers in the panel that she made
Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.
(a) What is Aunt Jennifer's death symbolic of ?
Aunt Jennifer's death is symbolic of her complete submission to her suppression.
(b) Explain: 'terrified hands'
Aunt Jennifer has allowed herself to be imprisoned not only in the prison of the family
ideology, but also in the prison of ego-psychology. Her hands are terrified even after
death for even death could not liberate her from the chains of her mental suppression.
(c) What does 'ringed with ordeals' imply?
Aunt Jennifer has been so victimised in her life that even after death she remains trapped in the struggles of the spirit.
Though we do not know what terrors Aunt Jennifer had to live with and why her friends and relatives did not step in if
she was so terrified, we find her a victim of racial, social and gender injustice and oppression.
(d) Is the society in any way affected by Aunt Jennifer's death ?
Since the society is male dominated, it shows no concern for Aunt's suffering, even her death. The loss of her freedom
is her individual loss. The society is not affected by it.
(e) Explain "The tigers in the panel.. will go on prancing, proud and unafraid".
The expression is symbolic of the dispassionate and unconcerned attitude of the male towards the desire for freedom
among women. Aunt Jennifer dreams of her escape in her art, but lands up producing the very image of her
suppression. As an expression of the spirit Aunt Jennifer's art will survive long after her death, but the social milieu
remains unaffected, arrogant and ferocious.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
Q1. How do 'denizens' and 'chivalric' add to our understanding of the tiger's attitudes ?
Denizens' means inhabitants and 'chivalric' means gallant and fearless. Tigers are territorial by nature and take
pleasure in being the masters of their domain. They are proud of their identity and position. The poet attributes
similar traits of character and attitude to men who, like the tigers, love to be the masters of their domain. They do
not like to relent.
Q2 Why do you think Aunt Jennifer's hands are fluttering through her wool in the second stanza ? Why is
she finding the needle so hard to pull?
Aunt Jennifer is victimised by the overbearing and dominant nature of her husband. Living in the isolated world of
her own, she produces the very image of her oppression. However, even her art fails to provide her an escape
from the domination of her husband. Her hands, thus shake and flutter so much that she is not even able to pull
the needles through the tapestry.
Q3. What is suggested by the image 'massive weight of Uncle's wedding band'?
The image is symbolic of the oppression a woman faces in matrimony at the hands of a terrifying husband. She
feels suppressed and trapped in the unbreakable bars of matrimony represented by the wedding band. She
cannot liberate herself from the harshness and bondage of matrimony.
Q4. Of what or of whom is Aunt Jennifer terrified with in the third stanza?
Although dead Aunt Jennifer is terrified of her harsh, callous, unfeeling and domineering husband whose wedding
ring is still there in her fingers. Aunt Jennifer's fear of her husband outlasts her body and life. She continues to be
afraid of her husband in spirit. She is also afraid of the bondage that her marriage has turned out to be.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
Q5. What 'ordeals' do you think Aunt Jennifer is surrounded by ?
Although Aunt Jennifer's ordeals are not explicitly mentioned in the poem, we can easily judge that she suffers from
matrimonial oppression. Her personal liberty and spirit are constricted by her unfeeling and domineering husband. Forced
to suffer her ordeal in silence she recoils herself in a make-believe world of her thoughts and gives an expression to her
suppressed feelings through her art.
Q6. Bring out the significance of the use of the word "ringed" in the poem.
The image of a ring is very prominent in the poem and has several shades of meaning. First of all, the ring refers to the
wedding ring which permanently binds a husband and a wife into matrimony. In Aunt Jennifer's case it has proved to be
burdensome and restrictive. The 'ringed' in the third stanza means surrounded or bound by. Together with 'mastered' it
invokes the image of a circus ring which Aunt Jennifer's married life has proved to be and where her husband is the
master and she must carry out his orders and stay in constant fear of him. 'Ringed' also conveys the idea that Aunt
Jennifer's personal freedom and expression are curtailed.
Q7. Why do you think Aunt Jennifer created animals that are so different from her own character ? What might
the poet be suggesting, through this difference ?
Aunt Jennifer herself is submissive and subdued and allows herself to be victimised by her terrifying husband, yet she has
created 'tigers' as her image in the poem for her spirit actually craves tor freedom. She has a hidden desire to be free and
liberated like the tigers who are masters of their domain. By drawing out this difference and contrast in personality the poet
wants to highlight the spirit for freedom which is inherent in all human beings.
Q8. Do you sympathise with Aunt Jennifer ? What is the attitude of the speaker towards Aunt Jennifer
Aunt Jennifer indeed deserves our sympathy. Despite all efforts to get rid of gender bias she still remains victimised by the
male dominance and gender bias prevailing in many societies of the world. Even the speaker feels sorry for her. The last
stanza of the poem brings out the speaker's sympathetic attitude for Aunt Jennifer who fails to liberate herself from ordeals
and hardships even after her death.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
Q9 What ideology does the poem "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" propound ?
The poem "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" is clearly a 'feminist poem which is critical of the male world for terrifying and
oppressing the likes of Aunt Jennifer. Her isolation and her exploitation compel her to create an alternate world of
freedom in the world of her art.
Q10. How is the poem a forceful expression of the evil of patriarchy ?
The poem "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" brings out the struggles for survival of women at large in a harsh male
dominated world. All the deep conflicts of bondage and freedom with which women wrestle have been reduced to
gender conflict here.
Q11. How are genders polarized in the poem?
The genders in the poem are shown to be polarized as Aunt Jennifer is totally victimized. She feels the massive
weight of her wedding band even in the absence of Uncle. She fails to liberate herself of her mental suppression
even though Uncle is physically absent. The males like the Uncle are brutally dominant.
Q12. What does the 'wedding band' symbolize ?
The 'wedding band' is symbolic here of the oppression of women by custom and law which imposes an implied
slavery in matrimony. Marriage is socially and legally binding on the women and so they allow themselves to be
suppressed in this imposed relationship.
Q13. What do 'tigers' symbolise in the poem?
"Tigers' are symbolic of the fear of male domination with which Aunt Jennifer suffers. She struggles for freedom
but in doing so gets further victimized. Her ego psychology and the prison of the ideology of the family isolate her
in this male dominated world.
 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers - Explanation
Q14. What character traits of Aunt Jennifer come to light in the poem
Aunt Jennifer is portrayed as a terrified person who is victimised by a domineering husband. She is seen both as a victim
and as an oppressor. She is caged in the prison of her ego-psychology and the ideology of the family. The freedom of
spirit, which is symbolised by the tigers is never achieved by her even in her art.
Q15. Do you view "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" as a tragic poem ?
The struggle of the spirit, injustice and oppression, which women have to face in many societies of the world even today
make the poem a tragic one. But the tragedy here is mystified for we neither know what terrors Aunt Jennifer had to live
with nor why her friends and relatives did not step in to help if she was so terrified.
Q16. What different feelings of Aunt Jennifer are revealed in the poem?
The three quatrains of the poem express different feelings of Aunt Jennifer as a victim of the male world. The first stanza
expresses her fears, the second her implied slavery and the third the struggles and ordeals of her spirit.
Q17. Where does Aunt Jennifer seek refuge on being victimised by the male world ? Does she find her freedom ?
Unable to liberate herself from the victimisation of the male world, Aunt Jennifer tries to find the freedom of her spirit in her
art. Though her art is presented as positive, buoyant and triumphant, yet she fails to escape from the terrifying power of
her husband. The tigers go on prancing proud and unafraid even after her death.
Q18. Do you think Aunt Jennifer is both a victim and an oppressor ? Comment.
Aunt Jennifer is no doubt a victim as she is confined to the prison of her ego-psychology and the ideology of the family.
She is also an oppressor, for she seems to have quietly accepted her slavery. Though victimised, she finds an outlet in
knitting and embroidery.
Q19. Is Aunt Jennifer able to find a refuge in her art?
Oppressed by the overbearing dominance of her husband, Aunt Jennifer recoils into her make-believe world of dreams
and art. Her art gives her catharsis to her pent-up feelings and oppressed spirit. Neither the art, nor even her death could
liberate her body and spirit from the oppression and terror of the male world around her.