CBSE Class 12 English Aunt Jennifers Tigers VBQs

Question. Which of the following does NOT represent the contrast between Aunt Jennifer and the tigers?
a) uncertainty and confidence
b) terror and fearlessness
c) fiefdom and freedom
d) authority and autonomy

Answer : D

Question. Read the statements given below. Choose the option that accurately describes the given statements.
Statement I - The poem is a manifesto against the institution of marriage.
Statement II - Aunt Jennifer represents all women artists.
Statement III – The poem embodies an alternative for women to express their repressed desires through art.
a) Statement I is True, Statement II is False, Statement III cannot be inferred.
b) Statement I and III are False, Statement II cannot be inferred.
c) Statement I and II are True, Statement III cannot be inferred.
d) Statement I is False, Statement II cannot be inferred, Statement III is True.

Answer : B

Question. Choose the option that does NOT reflect what the tigers represent in the poem:
a) Aunt Jennifer’s undying hopes
b) Aunt Jennifer’s failing marriage
c) Aunt Jennifer’s artistic merit
d) Aunt Jennifer’s frustrations

Answer : B

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow:

DERRY: What do you do all day?
MR LAMB: Sit in the sun. Read books. Ah, you thought it was an empty house, but inside, it’s full. Books and other things. Full.
DERRY: But there aren’t any curtains at the windows.
MR LAMB: I’m not fond of curtains. Shutting things out, shutting things in. I
like the light and the darkness, and the windows open, to hear the wind.
DERRY: Yes. I like that. When it’s raining, I like to hear it on the roof.
MR LAMB: So you’re not lost, are you? Not altogether? You do hear things.
You listen.
DERRY: They talk about me. Downstairs, When I’m not there.

Question. Choose the option that best describes the sequence of Derry’s emotions in the above extract:
a) shyness – friendliness – reluctant acceptance
b) inquisitiveness – nostalgia – mild sadness
c) curiosity – measured delight – disappointment
d) defiance – excitement – grouchy insecurity

Answer : C

Question. According to Mr. Lamb, what does the idea of being ‘lost’ signify?
a) He who does not hear what other people say is lost.
b) He who does not appreciate man and nature is lost.
c) He who does not pause to reflect on wind and rain is lost.
d) He who is closed off to nature and its wonders is lost.

Answer : D

Question. Read the following analysis of Mr. Lamb’s character based on the given
extract. Choose the option that fills in the given blanks most appropriately:
Mr. Lamb’s (i) ____________ and daily activities reflected the values he lived by and the kind of person he was. His openness, inquisitiveness, and his (ii) ____________ to nature were embodied in his work and words. Being close to and experiencing (iii) was not only significant to him, but was at the heart of finding meaning and (iv) ________ in life.
a) (i) preferences ; (ii) attunement ; (iii) nature ; (iv) direction
b) (ii) choices ; (ii) loyalty ; (iii) the world ; (iv) hope
c) (iii) words ; (ii) attitude ; (iii) gardening ; (iv) worthiness
d) (iv) sermons ; (ii) proximity ; (iii) life ; (iv) values

Answer : A

Question. “You do hear things. You listen.” Choose the option that captures the difference between hearing and listening.
hear: listen :: _________: _________
a) shut in: shut out
b) smile: laugh
c) act: reflect
d) chance: attend

Answer : D

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow:

Aunt Jennifer's finger 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.

Question. How would you describe Aunt Jennifer based on the above extract?
a) oppressed
b) malnourished
c) aging
d) diseased

Answer : A

Question. Pick the option that displays the image which correctly corresponds to the type of task Aunt is engaged in.

a) Option (i)
b) Option (ii)
c) Option (iii)
d) Option (iv)

Answer : B

Question. Which of the following is an example of an alliteration?
a) finger fluttering through the wool
b) upon Aunt Jennifer’s hand
c) ivory needle hard to pull
d) massive weight of Uncle's wedding band

Answer : A

Question. Uncle’s wedding band sits heavily on Aunt Jennifer’s hand because
a) it is an expensive and heavy ring.
b) she was married against her will.
c) she feels burdened in her marriage.
d) their relationship is lacking in love.

Answer : C

Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow:

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.

Question. What makes the tigers “proud and unafraid”?
a) They embody the grandeur and supremacy of animals in the wild.
b) They symbolise authority and are ‘topaz denizens of green’.
c) They represent Aunt’s repressed desires for freedom and power.
d) They are a product of Aunt’s imagination and colonial experience.

Answer : C

Question. Read the statement given below:
Aunt Jennifer’s plight is best explained by her hands, they hold both her freedom and the instrument of her imprisonment.
Choose the option that best explains the above statement, as per the extract.
a) Aunt Jennifer’s hands are terrified, but when she is dead, her tigers will roam free.
b) Aunt Jennifer knits her desires, but is overpowered by the wedding ring she wears.
c) Aunt Jennifer’s tigers are proud and unafraid, but she is mastered by ringed ordeals.
d) Aunt Jennifer makes panels of tigers when she has time from her responsibilities.

Answer : B

Question. Which of the following CANNOT be inferred from the given extract?
a) Aunt Jennifer’s tigers will keep her alive in everyone’s memory.
b) Aunt Jennifer feels oppressed and constricted in her marriage.
c) Even in death, Aunt Jennifer cannot escape patriarchal subjugation.
d) Aunt Jennifer’s tigers prance as a lasting symbol of her desires.

Answer : A

Question. Choose the option that DOES NOT reflect the movement implied by ‘prancing’.
a) bounding
b) frolicking
c) strutting
d) shuffling

Answer : D

Comprehension

Stanza 1
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.

Question. What is Aunt doing in the poem?
(a) cooking
(b) embroidery
(c) reading
(d) sleeping
Answer. B

Question. Of what or of whom is aunt Jennifer terrified of in the 3rd stanza?
(a) of tigers
(b) of her death
(c) of her old age
(d) of her husband
Answer. D

Question. What is the significance of the word ringed?
(a) falling into a trap
(b) moving in a circle
(c) wearing a ring as a symbol of
(d) engagement responsibilities that formed circles like a ring surrounding her finger
Answer. D

Question. Who mastered the aunt with ordeals?
(a) the poet
(b) her Father
(c) her Husband
(d) none of these
Answer. C

Question. ‘Proud’ and ‘unafraid’. These two adjectives have been used for
(a) the uncle
(b) the males in the society
(c) the tigers on the forest
(d) the tigers on the panel
Answer. D

Question. ‘Still ringed’ means
(a) oppression will continue
(b) too many rings on her fingers
(c) ring of the bell
(d) quiet and peaceful
Answer. A

Question. What is Aunt Jennifer doing with wool?
(a) she is embroidering a wall panel
(b) she is knitting a scarf
(c) she is making a ball of wool
(d) she is knitting a cap
Answer. A

Question. What do the Tigers do on the screen? They were .....
(a) singing
(b) Jumping
(c) catching the prey
(d) prancing
Answer. D

Question.What would Jennifer’s terrified hands tell after her death?
(a) story of her life
(b) her constrained married life
(c) her strength to find her ways and beat the fears
(d) all of these
Answer. D

Question. She was mastered by is a reference made to the
(a) hardships and difficulties that Aunt Jennifer faced during her lifetime
(b) she was a slave
(c) she had a rude master
(d) her teacher taught her nothing
Answer. A

Question. Why did aunt embroider tigers on the panel?
(a) to express her suppressed feelings
(b) to express her strengths
(c) to express her fighting spirit of a warrior
(d) all these
Answer. D

Question. What did ordeals or tough times do in Jennifer’s life?
(a) they made her a hard hearted person
(b) she developed hatred
(c) she became weak
(d) they crushed her artistic personality
Answer. D

Question. What did marriage bring for Jennifer?
(a) un-happiness
(b) loss of freedom
(c) loss of freedom and burden as if she has put on a heavy band
(d) a heavy mountain
Answer. C

Important Questions for NCERT Class 12 English Aunt Jennifers Tigers

Question. What are the 'ordeals' Aunt Jennifer is surrounded by? Why is it significant that the poet uses the word 'ringed'? What are the meanings of the word 'ringed' in the poem?
Answer : Aunt Jennifer has been living her life in accordance with the rules laid down by her husband. Her life lacks independence and is overburdened by the demands and duties of her married life. Although old and weak, she still has to face oppression by her husband. These are the ordeals that the poet talks about.
The use of word 'ringed', in the poem, is significant and appropriate because it correctly represents the vicious circle from which Aunt Jennifer is unable to free herself. The word  'ringed' not only indicates that she is wearing her wedding ring but also that she is bound by the responsibilities, fear and oppression of her marriage for entire life and, probably, after it too.

Question. What does the title of the poem suggest to you? Are you reminded of other poems on tigers?
Answer : The title, "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers", suggests that the poem is about Aunt Jennifer's knitted tigers that, with their chivalric, ferocious, bright and carefree attitude, become an
alternate world of her creation. The tigers are the only means of freedom in her life, which is otherwise burdened by fear and struggles of the married life.The poet highlights the
suppressed desire of a woman that finds way to express her feelings of liberation in the shapes of tigers.She beholds herself as a tiger with tremendous strength, but is unable to
exercise it due to male chauvenism.
There are many other poems written about tigers.A few of them are mentioned below.
"The Tiger" by William Blake
"Tiger" by Alec Derwent Hope
"Tiger Drinking at Forest Pool" by Ruth Sophia Padel

Question. What is suggested by the image 'massive weight of Uncle's wedding band'?
Answer : The 'wedding band' that the poet talks about was the wedding ring worn by Aunt Jennifer. The image 'massive weight of Uncle's wedding band' suggests that she was  overburdened with duties and responsibilities, post her marriage.

Question. Interpret the symbols found in this poem.
Answer : Wedding band is a symbol of oppression in an unhappy marriage. Marriage is a social and legal binding, making women silently accept their subjugation and male domination, especially in a patriarchal society. Its weight refers to the burden of the husband's expectations. Ringed means encircled or trapped, losing individuality and freedom.
Aunt Jennifer is a a typical victim of male oppression in an unhappy marriage, who suffers loss of individuality, dignity and personal freedom silently. She becomes dependent, fearful
and frail.
Tigers symbolize untamed free spirit. Here they are antithesis of their creator’s personality. The use of colours implies that Aunt Jennifer's tigers and their land are more vital and they
enjoy a sense of freedom far greater than hers. Yellow (bright topaz) connotes the sun and fierce energy, while green reminds one of spring and vitality.
They pace and prance freely, proudly, fearless, confident and majestic in their bearing. Embroidery is a symbol of creative expression. The artwork expresses the Aunt’s suppressed  desires and becomes her escape from the oppressive reality of her life.
Aunt in the last stanza shows that she has lost her identity completely, thus lost even her name after her death.

Question. Of what or of whom is Aunt Jennifer terrified with in the third stanza?
Answer : Even after death, Aunt would carry her fear of her domineering husband as she would yet bear the burden of the wedding band on her finger. The ordeals faced by her in an
oppressive marriage would continue to terrify her.

Question. 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?
Answer : Aunt Jennifer's hands are 'fluttering through her wool' because she is an old lady on whom age has taken its toll. The fluttering of Aunt Jennifer's fingers also signifies her
oppressed mental condition which makes it difficult for her to even pull an ivory needle while embroidering.

Question. Do you sympathise with Aunt Jennifer? What is the attitude of the speaker towards Aunt Jennifer?
Answer : Yes, the character of Aunt Jennifer wins our sympathy as a reader. Her ordeals and sufferings move the reader. Even the speaker in the poem shows sympathy and pity towards her. The speaker says that even after Aunt Jennifer's death, she will be terrified of her husband and the ordeals of her marriage with a suppressed desire to be free.

Question. How do 'denizens' and 'chivalric' add to our understanding of the tiger's attitudes?
Answer : Like all beasts of prey, the tigers are the denizens of forest. They live far away from human settlements. They are called 'chivalric.' This indicates the majestic and honourable
position that they occupy in the world of animals. So the use of the words 'denizens' and 'chivalric' adds to our understanding of the tigers' attitudes.

Question. 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?
Answer : The timid and fearful Aunt Jennifer creates an alternative world of free and fearless tigers to express her longing for freedom, a medium of escape from her grim marriage.
The ironical contrast underscores a warning by the poet against acceptance of subjugation by women as it crushes their dreams, individuality and a full life.