He stalks in his vivid stripes — Poema

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He stalks in his vivid stripes — Poema | Poetry Explainer

Poesía original

He stalks in his vivid stripes The few steps of his cage, On pads of velvet quiet, In his quiet rage. He should be lurking in shadow, Sliding through long grass Near the water hole Where plump deer pass. He should be snarling around houses At the jungle’s edge, Baring his white fangs, his claws, Terrorising the village! But he’s locked in a concrete cell, His strength behind bars, Stalking the length of his cage, Ignoring visitors. He hears the last voice at night, The patrolling cars, And stares with his brilliant eyes At the brilliant stars.

Traducción

He walks quietly in his bright stripes The few steps of his cage, On soft, silent paws, In his quiet anger. He should be hiding in the shadows, Moving through tall grass Near the waterhole Where fat deer walk by. He should be growling near houses At the edge of the jungle, Showing his white teeth, his claws, Scaring the village! But he’s trapped in a concrete cell, His strength behind bars, Walking the length of his cage, Ignoring the visitors. He hears the last voice at night, The patrolling cars, And stares with his bright eyes At the bright stars.

Explicación

The poem 'A Tiger in the Zoo' by Leslie Norris contrasts the life of a tiger in captivity with its natural life in the wild. The tiger, described with 'vivid stripes,' is confined to the 'few steps of his cage,' moving with 'quiet rage.' This imagery highlights the tiger's frustration and loss of freedom. In the wild, the tiger would 'lurk in shadow' and 'slide through long grass,' hunting near waterholes where deer pass. The poem suggests that the tiger should be a fearsome presence at the jungle's edge, 'snarling around houses' and 'terrorising the village.' However, the reality is that the tiger is 'locked in a concrete cell,' its strength 'behind bars,' reduced to pacing its cage and ignoring visitors. The poem evokes sympathy for the tiger's plight, as it listens to 'patrolling cars' and gazes at the 'brilliant stars,' a reminder of the freedom it has lost. Through vivid imagery and contrast, Norris emphasizes the unnaturalness of captivity and the tiger's inherent wildness.

Diccionario de palabras

Palabra	Significado fácil	Traducción	Pron.
stalks	moves silently	to move quietly and carefully	stawks
vivid	bright	very clear and detailed	viv-id
pads	soft parts of feet	the soft underparts of an animal's feet	padz
lurking	hiding	to stay hidden, waiting to attack	lur-king
snarling	growling	making an angry sound	snar-ling
fangs	sharp teeth	long, pointed teeth	fangz
terrorising	frightening	causing fear	ter-or-izing
concrete	solid material	a hard building material	kon-kreet
patrolling	watching	moving around to guard	pa-trol-ling
brilliant	bright	very bright and radiant	bril-yant

Poeta y contexto

PoetaLeslie Norris

Época20th century

Leslie Norris was a Welsh poet and short story writer known for his vivid and evocative descriptions of nature and animals. His work often reflects themes of captivity and freedom.

Ver en Wikipedia

Cuándo20th century

Por quéThe poem reflects on the contrast between the natural life of a tiger in the wild and its existence in captivity. It explores themes of freedom, captivity, and the innate nature of wild animals.

FormaFree verse

Temas y más

Temas

CaptivityFreedomNature vs. Confinement

Recursos literarios

Imagery: Vivid descriptions of the tiger's stripes and movements.Contrast: Between the tiger's life in the wild and in captivity.Personification: The tiger's 'quiet rage' gives it human-like emotions.Metaphor: 'Pads of velvet quiet' compares the tiger's paws to soft velvet.