8. Analysis

The poem 'A Tiger in a Zoo' as the title suggests, talks about the bondage of wild animals. It has been a debate since time memorial if the concept of caging animals is morally right. The poem attempts to ponder over this concept in detail. Human beings consider themselves superior in most cases and try to take control of other creatures for their own benefit. The tiger is not a meek animal, and it keeps score. Rather than submitting himself to the circumstances, he keeps stalking the cage and ignoring the visitor. Just because he is caged, he does not have to submit himself, rather he looks for a chance to be satisfied within the confines of the cage by looking at the stars. He would have been his natural self by preying deer and terrorising the village if he had been free. The poem shows that we are curbing the rights of animals by caging them.