HERITAGE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

SUBJECT ENGLISH CORE

LEARNING @HOME
SHEET NO 9
CLASS XII

BOOK NAME FLAMINGO

POEM 6 : AUNT JENNIFER’S TIGER
POET : ADRIENNE RICH

ABOUT THE POET

Adrienne Cecile Rich (1929 – 2012)American poet, essayist and feminist.One of the most widely read and
influenced poets of the second half of the 20th century.She talks about a woman’s experiences in her married
life.She has tried to explore the inner feelings of a woman who is living under the dominance of men.

SUMMARY OF THE POEM

The poet is a feminist and at the centre of the poem. She addresses the difficulties of a married
woman. The woman, Aunt Jennifer, is a nervous and fearful wife. She spends good amount of
time in embroidering panel of tigers prancing across the screen. The tigers are fearless creatures
pacing elegantly and majestically. They symbolize the spirit of freedom. Aunt is a victim of
male chauvinism (male domination). She is so nervous that her fingers ‘flutter’ through the wool
she is using in her tapestry or panel.

The poet portrays the marriage of Jennifer as an unhappy one for her. The “weight of Uncle’s
wedding band “expresses how victimized, oppressed and dominated she is. It implies that aunt
Jennifer has to work hard to meet his expectation.

She spends her life in fear but she embroiders on the panel the fearless tigers to express her secret
longing for a life of freedom and confidence. Perhaps Aunt Jennifer uses art as an escape from
her troubles. In her artwork she imagines the kind of life she would have liked. The creatures she
places there are free and proud, just opposite to her. It seems that she creates a happier looking
world than the one she lives in. She makes precise and brightly coloured pictures like the sharp
yellow tigers of the poem, pictured against a green background. These bright contrasting
colours are probably much more vivid than her everyday world.
 Her artistic work will live on after she dies, as, according to the poet, her tigers will ‘go on
prancing’ The Aunt is terrified about the fact that when she would quit the world and when she
would be lowered into the grave, she would still remain afraid of her husband and would carry
the marks of torture in the form of wedding ring even in her grave. Even her death would not
end the problem and torture which a married woman experiences.

The poet is a feminist and she addresses the difficulties of a married woman.

She spends good amount of time in embroidering panel of tigers prancing across the
screen.

The tigers are fearless creatures pacing elegantly and majestically. They symbolize the
spirit of freedom. Aunt is a victim of male chauvinism (male domination).

Aunt Jennifer is so oppressed and terrified that she finds it hard to pull the needle.

The “weight of Uncle’s wedding band “expresses how victimized and oppressed she is. It
implies that aunt Jennifer has to work hard to meet his expectation.

She spends her life in fear but she embroiders on the panel the fearless tigers to express
her secret longing for a life of freedom and confidence.

Even her death does not end the problem and torture which a married woman
experiences..

POEM AND STANZA WISE EXPLANATION

FIRST STANZA

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.

EXPLANATION

The poet is talking about a lady whom she addresses as aunt, Jennifer.

She is embroidering a piece of cloth. It could be a table cloth or a wall hanging.

The pattern shows tigers who are moving and jumping around all over the fabric.

They are bright yellow in colour like the colour of the topaz stone (use of metaphor).

The dense green forest background is their home.

They are the proud and fearless citizens of the forest.

Here is a contrast between Aunt Jennifer and her tigers. The tigers are fearless but this lady, who is
embroidering them is not so.

The tigers look elegant, shining and full of the gentleman’s grace.

The poet is describing a lady whom she addresses as Aunt Jennifer. She says that Aunt Jennifer is doing
embroidery on a piece of cloth which could be a table cloth or a wall hanging. She has designed it with
beautiful tigers which are running fearlessly in the green forest. She has described their beauty by comparing
them with a precious yellow stone known as topaz. She says that they appear bright yellow in the green
backdrop of the forest. They are fearless and they are not affected by the presence of men. Here we can sense
the contrast of behavior between the tigers and aunt, though the tigers designed by her are fearless but she
herself is afraid of her husband. Further, the poet says that the tigers are proud and fearless citizens of the
forests. They are very shiny and elegant.

Rhyme scheme: aabb

Anaphora: use of same word in two consecutive lines (they do not … and they pace in…)

Metaphor: Use of topaz to describe the yellow color of tigers (Bright topaz)

SECOND STANZA

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.

EXPLANATION

The lady’s fingers are trembling with the fear of her husband.

She is pursuing her hobby in her free time but probably, she is still afraid of her husband who could scold her.

Her fingers are so tired of working endlessly all her life

The needle is also heavy for her to pull out of the cloth.

The words ‘uncle’s wedding band’ as the band was bought by her husband, it is his till today.

The lady is dependent on her husband .

She is still burdened by the weight of the ring. ‘weight’ means the encirclement or trapping that has fallen
upon her by getting married to him, she has been burdened by the obligations of married life, has become the
man’s property.

She has been living a demanding life due to which she has worn out in her old age.

Here the poet describes the fear of Aunt Jennifer towards her husband. She says that while she is doing
embroidery, her fingers are quivering (shaking) with fear of her husband. Her husband doesn’t approve of her
hobby of embroidery. Therefore, she trembles while she is embroidering the piece of cloth. It has become
difficult for her to pull her needle up and down. Then she describes the wedding ring which was given by
uncle to Aunt Jennifer on their wedding day. She says that it is a kind of burden for her to wear this ring. She
has been tortured by her husband so much that the wedding ring which could have been a beautiful gift for her
seems like a burden to her. She has faced so many difficulties in her married life that the little ring is
described as a heavy band on her trembling fingers. This means that the ring is associated with some bad
experiences in the form of torture she has faced because of her husband’s dominating behaviour.

Rhyme scheme: aabb

Alliteration: ‘f’ sound is repeated in finger fluttering

THIRD STANZA

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.

EXPLANATION

Her wish to live a free, fearless life is indicated by her choice of design – tigers.

It shows her innermost desire of being strong, fearless which has been overpowered by her husband.

Probably, her ordeal will end upon her death.

Her frightened, shaking fingers will be put to rest.

But still, even after death, the ring shall remain on her hand, i.e. her husband’s rule over her is not yet over!

After her death, her desire of freedom and fearlessness shall remain alive in these tigers which she has
embroidered.

The poet says that one can easily sense aunt’s desire for freedom and fearlessness through her design of tigers.
Further she says that it is not possible for aunt to achieve this freedom during her lifetime. She will attain it
only after her death but here also the irony of her life is that still, she will be tied up with shackles in the form
of her husband’s wedding ring. The ring was the sole proof of the tortures which she had faced from her
husband. On the other hand, there are the tigers designed by Aunt Jennifer which will always depict her desire
of living a fearless life by jumping proudly and bravely on the piece of cloth.

Rhyme scheme: aabb

alliteration: ‘p’ is repeated in prancing proud

New words
Prance : walk or move around with high springy steps.
Topaz : a bright yellow coloured stone.
Denizens : here, an animal that lives or is found in a particular place.
Sleek : elegant.
Chivalric : being courteous esp. to women, an act of a gentleman.
Ordeals: extremely severe tests or experiences.
Prancing : to move around proudly.
Fluttering : to move in quick, irregular motions as if being agitated.
SUBJECT TEACHER : MRS AKANSHA DIXIT
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