The Tiger King

The Tiger King is the story of a brave king of Pratibandhpuram. His death had been predicted at his birth by the chief astrologer. He predicted that the royal child was born in the hour of the bull and tiger is enemy of bull so king’s death would come from a tiger. The brave prince warned all tigers to beware of him. He came to be known as the ‘Tiger King’.

The prince became king at the age of twenty and came to about the prediction about his death. He started killing tigers and put a ban on tiger hunt in his state. A high ranking British officer was also not allowed to kill tiger in his state. In order to secure his state from British Officer, he sent 50 diamond rings to the officer’s wife.

According to the astrologers he needs to be careful with the 100^th tiger. Within ten years the maharaja successful killed 70 tigers. But after that, there were no tigers left in Pratibandapuram. Hence, to complete his target of killing a hundred tigers he marries a princess from the royal state that has more tigers in her state. Whenever he visits his in-laws, he makes sure that he kills 5-6 tiger each time. In this way, he was able to kill 99 tigers but he was unable to find the 100th tiger. On not finding the 100th tiger the maharaja became violent and threatened the Dewan. The Dewan got an old tiger from the circus and put him in the forest. He told Maharaja about the tiger. Maharaja went on a hunt and shot the tiger. But he didn’t know that his bullet miss and the tiger was alive and he only collapsed out of fear. No one has the guts, to tell the truth to the king so they killed the tiger and brought it in a grand procession.

Maharaja was happy on his son’s birthday, he buys a wooden tiger as a gift for him. The tiger had rough edges and while playing with it he gets a woodcut in his hand which later on advances into an infection. And because of it, he dies.  Therefore, fatefully the 100th tiger made of wood take its revenge and killed the king.

 

 

  

1.      Who is the Tiger King? Why does he get that name?

Ans. The tiger king was the maharaja of Pratibandapuram. He got this name since his birth, the astrologer of the state had said that his death would occur because of a tiger. The king took it to heart and started killing all the tigers in the Pratibandapuram forests. Thus, he came to be known as the Tiger King.  

2.      What did the royal infant grow up to be?

Ans. The royal infant grew up to be the king of Pratibandapuram. He went on a tiger-killing to prove that the prediction of the astrologer was wrong. With time, he grew up to be arrogant, moody, careless, irresponsible, and selfish.

3. What will the Maharaja do to find the required number of tigers to kill. 

Ans. The Maharaja asked his people to look for a state with a high tiger population and then look for a girl from the royal family whom he could marry. His dewan followed his orders and searched for the princess from a state with a high tiger population.

4. How will the Maharaja prepare himself for the hundredth tiger which was supposed to decide his fate?

Answer. Maharaja was very anxious and careful with the hundredth tiger that was supposed to be the reason for his death. When he encountered the tiger, he shot it and was overjoyed.

5. What will now happen to the astrologer? Do you think the prophecy was indisputably disproved?

Answer. The astrologer dies of old age. No, I think the prophecy was indisputably not disapproved since the Tiger King ultimately died from the 100^th tiger, though not a real one and a small wooden toy.

1. The story is a satire on the conceit of those in power. How does the author employ the literary device of dramatic irony in the story?

Answer. The author employs the literary device of dramatic irony in the story by describing the smallest of actions and phrases to showcase the character of the king. Be it Tiger King’s focus on his life and dedication to killing all 100 tigers without showing even a slight interference with the state’s functioning. Tiger King decides to spend three lakh rupees on gifts that were sent to the officer’s wife just to prevent the officer from hunting tigers. On multiple occasions, Tiger King increased the taxes and punished those who didn’t pay it. He was very proudy, this is proved by his phrases like ‘let the tigers beware’ and ‘tiny little wooden tiger’. All these incidents have been described by the author to showcase the conceit of those in power.

2. What is the author’s indirect comment on subjecting innocent animals to the willfulness of human beings?

Answer. The author beautifully expresses the foolishness of the king in killing tigers. He puts it in a certain way to showcase how hunting is just mere fancies for human beings, who hunt or kill tigers for fun, enjoyment, and here in this case so-called self-defense. The entire story is a slap on the human race for hunting animals only for their enjoyment, with no logical reason behind it.

3. How would you describe the behavior of the Maharaja’s minions towards him? Do you find them truly sincere towards him or are they driven by fear when they obey him? Do we find a similarity in today’s political order?

Answer. The Maharaja’s ministers obey them only because of fear. Yes, the similarity can be observed in today’s political world as well. But, I believe this is something that will happen forever. Every individual working under powerful authorities is influenced by their power and position and ends up doing whatever they are asked to do. Obviously, fear is the driving force. But, this is not something that is limited to the law and order of today’s day and age. It is going to continue forever.

4. Can you relate instances of game-hunting among the rich and the powerful in the present times that illustrate the callousness of human beings towards wildlife?

Answer. Worldwide, people hunt wildlife for their fun. Yes, rich ones are more inclined towards doing it, since it is considered as a hobby. Hunting started ages back with the motive of survival. As we grew and development took place, people depended on various sources of survival. However, the game of hunting remains unchanged. Rich use it as a power, as a right to hunt, because they are the rich ones and possess the authority to do so.