Aunt Jennifers Tigers 2016

You may use bullet statements OR write in sentences for the evidence. Only the final is
required to utilize MLA format and standard conventions of English.
1. What are some of the distinguishing characteristics of Aunt Jennifer? What
lines/phrases create these impressions? IS she old? Dead? Or not?
Aunt Jennifer is an older woman who is married and makes tapestry. We know she is not
young because she is an aunt and she finds the ivory needle hard to pull meaning she may be
weak. She is older, but we do not know how old. However she is not dead because in line 9, the
poem uses the future tense by saying When Aunt is dead, implying that she has not died yet.
2. Cite details about the tapestry/needlepoint shes working on:
Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across the screen,
Bright topaz denizens across a world of green.
They do not fear the men beneath the tree;
They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.
From these we get an overall picture of how the tapestry looks. We know that her
tapestry includes tigers in a jungle setting that are free and do not fear the men, or hunters,
below them.
3. What do we understand about Uncle?
We understand that Uncle could Aunt Jennifer's husband. The lines [t]he massive
weight of Uncle's wedding band [s]its heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand and [s]till ringed with
ordeals she was mastered by implies that Uncle is holding down Aunt Jennifer and is
controlling of her. Uncle was more of a master of Aunt Jennifer than a husband. Uncle may also
be somewhat abusive to her.
4. On the metaphorical level, what is the story of the poem? Cite specifics that lead
you to this impression.

On the metaphorical level, this poem is about Aunt Jennifer being afraid of men and the
tapestry being her fantasy/dream. Tigers in her tapestry that do not fear the men beneath the
tree and go on prancing, proud and unafraid represent her dreams. The tigers represent the
woman who are not afraid by men or controlled by men, unlike her. Uncle is the man she is
afraid of. The lines her terrified hands will lie [s]till ringed with ordeals she was mastered by
and [t]he massive weight of Uncle's wedding band [s]its heavily upon Aunt Jennifer's hand tells
the readers that Aunt Jennifer felt controlled by him and feared him. Uncle could have been
abusive to her, which explains why she feared him Aunt Jennifer could not be free like the tigers
in the tapestry.

5. Finally, on the universal or profound level, what is the poem attempting to say to
the reader?
The poem is attempting to say that women should not feel afraid or controlled by men,
but instead free and fearless like the tigers in Aunt Jennifers needlepoint work.
Following our class discussion write a short or two at most (This is where you write in format
and cite):
What is the poems theme and message?
Andrew Schwefler
Mrs. P. Bradley
AP English 12
23 August 2016
Theme of Aunt Jennifers Tigers
The theme of Aunt Jennifers Tigers is about woman freedom. The main character of
the poem was not allowed freedom, but was controlled her husband and was not granted
freedom. The poem is saying that the woman should not be controlled by men. Instead, they
should feel free, and should be treated equality to their husbands. Woman should not feel like
the men are there masters.

Work Cited

Rich, Adrienne. Aunt Jennifers Tigers. Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and
Drama. Ed. X.J Kennedy. 9th ed. New York: Pearson Learning, 2005. 707. Print