AUNT JENNIFER’S TIGERS

ADRIENNE RICH

Aunt Jennifer's Tigers by Adrienne Rich

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.

​

(This stanza highlights Aunt Jennifer’s fears)

{Footnotes: ordeals: testing experiences

Chivalric : Honourable and brave,denizens:dwellers}��

ADRIENNE RICH

Adrienne Rich (1929) was born in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Her claim to fame were her feminist ideas and her wide involvement in contemporary women’s movement as a poet and theorist.

​

She received a number of awards including 1996 Tanning Award for Mastery in the Art of Poetry, the Lennon foundation’s 1999 Lifetime Achievement Award, The Commonwealth Award in Literature and National Book Award

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.

(FOOTNOTES: fluttering:moving about in an aimless manner)

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.

(FOOTNOTES: ordeals:severe or testing experiences)

​

​

​

​

Adrienne Rich's "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers", depicts a woman trapped within the cultural constraints and responsibilities of married life.��In the first stanza, Aunt Jennifer’s situation and character is contrasted with her artistic creation that portrays her aspiration. The tapestry on which she has knitted tigers are very symbolic of what she wants to be in life - fearless, assertive, noble and powerful like the tiger as expressed in the words "They pace in sleek chivalric certainty". The word 'certainty' could portray the self-assuredness of the tiger or the confident bearing of the tiger as it is fearless of life. The tigers depicted as prancing across the screen bring to mind a being that is confident, self-assured and happy; all things that Aunt Jennifer is not. The use of colours implies that Aunt Jennifer's tigers and their land are more vital and enjoy a sense of freedom far greater than her. Yellow (bright topaz) connotes the sun and fierce energy, while green reminds one of spring and rebirth.

�In the second stanza, Aunt Jennifer's present state is depicted. Her fingers are "fluttering through her wool" showing both physical and mental weakness. She finds it difficult to pull the needle. "The massive weight of Uncle's wedding band / Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand" reminds us that her marriage responsibilities weigh her down which makes her unable to realize her full potential as a woman in a male-dominated society. She escapes from her difficult situation through art i.e. through knitting.

�The final stanza contains imagery that reflects back on the first two stanzas. The reference of the hands symbolizes Aunt Jennifer as a whole. Though her death would free her from her present miserable state, her hands will remain terrified with the wedding ring which binds her to her ordeals that took complete control of her. The only sign of her freedom from her present life is the art work which she escapes into by depicting the prancing, proud and unafraid tigers which is what she really wants to be and which she attains through her imagination.

IMAGES AND SYMBOLS USED IN THE POEM:

• (1)‘Tiger’…has been used as a symbol of the terror and oppression perpetrated on women like Aunt Jennifer by the male world.
• It also symbolises the freedom of spirit which Aunt Jennifer dreams of but is never able to achieve.
• (2)‘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 as light as wool.
• Her struggling with the ivory needles tells us of the loss of her individuality under the weight of Uncle’s domination and her terrorizes state of mind.
• (3)‘Uncle’s wedding band’..symbolises the suppression of women in matrimony. It also symbolises so called male authority and dominance.
• (4)‘Ringed with ordeals ‘..it expresses the struggle of the spirit,injustice and oppression that Aunt Jennifer suffers but never expresses.

RHYME SCHEME….aabbcc�

• THEME OF THE POEM :�The poem is a feminist poem and revolves around the theme of male chauvinism and gender conflicts.
• It also highlights the theme of victmisation of the women by their male counterparts.
• Aunt Jennifer is victimised and suffers the oppression of her male counterpart even though he is absent.