Word Meaning, Summary, Important Questions Of Chapter 2 The Tiger King | Class 12
Hindi Meaning Of Difficult Words | Chapter 2 The Tiger King
1 | Strategic | calculated | रणनीति-संबंधी | planned, deliberate |
2 | Stuka bomber | a German bomber aircraft that was used in the second world war | स्टुका बॉम्बर | …………. |
3 | indomitable | undefeatable | अदम्य | untamed, unconquerable, undefended |
4 | Final abode | refers to the final residence of the soul – the heaven. | अंतिम निवास | ……….. |
5 | Demise | death | मृत्यु | dying, decease, passing |
6 | Foretold | predicted | भविष्यवाणी | foresee |
7 | Compelled | forced | मजबूर | pressure, impel |
8 | Transfixed | cause (someone) to become motionless with horror. | भय के साथ गतिहीन हो जाना। | ………… |
9 | Stupefaction | shock | आश्चर्य | amazement, astonishment |
10 | Enunciated | say or pronounce clearly. | स्पष्ट रूप से कहना | articulate, vocalise |
11 | Incredible | unbelievable | अविश्वसनीय | unreliable, eely, suspectable |
12 | Rumour | a currently circulating story or report of uncertain or doubtful truth. | अफवाह | report |
13 | Rife | widespread, prevalent | प्रचलित | Extant, stylish |
14 | Hindsight | to understand an event or situation only after it has happened | बाद में समझ आना | ……….. |
15 | Proclamation | a public or official announcement | घोषणा | declaration, pronouncement, statement |
16 | Fling | throw | फेंकना | emit, shove, plunk |
17 | Confiscated | taken with authority | जब्त कर लिया | impound, seize |
18 | Ambition | a strong desire to do or achieve something. | महत्वाकांक्षा | aspiration, vanity |
19 | Bare | here, unarmed | निहत्था | weaponless |
20 | Firm | determined | दृढ़ | strong, steadfast, tenacious |
21 | Resolve | decision | समाधान करना | compromise, extricate |
22 | Boar | pig | सूअर | ………. |
23 | Durai | tamil word meaning chief or leader | ड्यूरेन | …………….. |
24 | Carcass | the dead body of an animal. | शव | corpse, defunct |
25 | Relented | relaxed his decision | मान जाना | succumb |
26 | Deliberations | discussions | विचार-विमर्श | conference |
27 | Dispatched | sent | भेजना | refer, consign |
28 | Unforeseen | unplanned, accidental | अनपेक्षित | Inexpectant, unwarranted |
29 | Hurdle | problem | बाधा | drawback, hitch, balk |
30 | Standstill | stop | ठहराव | pause, stasis |
31 | Extinct | having no living members. | मृत | defunct, Exanimate, gathered |
32 | Hara-kiri | a ritual of suicide practiced in Japan. | आत्महत्या | …………….. |
33 | Brandishing | waving as a threat or in anger or excitement | धमकाना | intimidate, threaten, browbeat |
34 | Shuddering | tremble with fear | भय से कांपना | shiver |
35 | Summoned | called | बुलवाना | cause to talk, convene |
36 | Investigate | find out | जांच करना | calibrate, inquire |
37 | Adorned | decorated | सजाना | ornamentation, getup |
38 | Fever pitch | extreme | उत्तेजना की चरम सीमा | rearmost |
39 | Anxiety | curiosity | उत्सुकता | avidity, Eagerness, impatience |
40 | Tally | count | गणना | reckon, total, score |
41 | Savage | uncontrolled | अनियंत्रित | fractious |
42 | Wary | be cautious | सावधान | careful, alert, aware |
43 | Gloom | sadness | उदासी | flatness, melancholy, doldrums |
44 | Dispelled | removed | हटाना | delete, remove, repel |
45 | Exemption | freedom | छूट | concession, allowance |
46 | Wantonly | carelessly | लापरवाही | ………….. |
47 | Flout | to go against something or someone | अवज्ञा | disobedience, defiance, insubordination |
48 | Fury | anger | क्रोध | rage, indignation, furor |
49 | Bafflement | confusion | उलझन | mix-up, complexity |
50 | Mounted | increased | बढ़ा हुआ | enhanced |
51 | Discontented | unhappy | नाख़ुश | dissatisfied, disaffected, discontent |
52 | Catastrophic | causing sudden great damage or suffering | आपत्तिजनक | objectionable, calamitous |
53 | Supplication | pray | प्रार्थना | prayer, request, petition |
54 | Elation | joy | आनंद | pleasure, enjoyment, delight |
55 | Procession | parade | जुलूस | march, demonstration, manifestation |
56 | Suppurating | a wound full of pus | पकना | ripen, mellow |
57 | Sore | painful inflammation | दर्दनाक सूजन | swelling |
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About The Poet | Ramaswamy Aiyer Krishanmurthi | Chapter 2 The Tiger King
Ramaswamy Aiyer Krishnamurthi (9 Sept. 1899-5 Dec. 1954) was a Tamil writer. His pen name was Kalki. He was also a freedom fighter, journalist, poet, critic and social activist. He was born in Purthamangalam in Tanjore district in Tamil Nadu. He got the Sahitya Academy Award for his Novel ‘Alai Osai’ in 1948.
Short Summary Of Chapter 2 The Tiger King
In English
This story is about the king of Pratibandapuram who was also known as the ‘Tiger King’ and was famous for his indomitable courage.
The Tiger King was rumored to have spoken when he was ten days old. His miraculous first words proved his intelligence, curiosity and bravery to the astrologers.
The astrologers predicted that the young prince would grow to become the mightiest of all, but he would be killed by a tiger.
Since it was a period of British dominance, the prince was groomed and the British impact was quite visible. He drank the milk of an English cow, was brought up by an English nanny, tutored in English by an Englishman, saw nothing but English films. He was crowned king at the age of twenty.
The king of Pratibandapuram was arrogant but brave. As the stories of the predictions resurfaced he killed the first tiger to show his superiority against destiny. Then he called the state astrologer. The astrologer reaffirmed his prediction saying that ninety nine tigers would cause no harm but it was the hundredth tiger that he needs to escape from. This made the king to make a vow to kill at least hundred tigers to show that he was determined to win the challenge against the fate. Maharaja’s sole aim of life was now to hunt tigers. This fixation led him to kill all the tigers of the tiger rich forests of Pratibandapuram. He even pronounced that anybody who dared even to think evil of any of the tiger will have to surrender all wealth and property as he wanted the right to kill all the tigers for himself. To achieve his target to kill hundred tigers he became nonchalant to his duties of a king. During the course of his mission, he faced many life threatening situations. Sometimes he even fought the beast without any weapons but each time he was successful. The high ranking British officer who wanted to go for tiger hunting visited Pratibandapuram. He was fond of clicking photographs of tigers, which he killed. The Maharaja did not allow him as he thought granting permission once would lead to other British officers also making similar requests.
As the king refused the permission to the British officer, his kingdom came under the threat. So he discussed with his dewan and thought of sending fifty sample rings to the British officer’s wife. They thought that his wife would choose one ring, but the greedy wife took all the fifty rings. Those rings cost the king three lakh rupees, but the kingdom was saved.
After this incident the tiger hunting expedition of the king continued. Within a decade he managed to kill seventy tigers. The population of the tigers drastically began to come down. The king told his dewan to find a princess of a royal family suitable for his marriage and their kingdom should have a large number of tiger population. After his marriage the king killed five to six tigers each time he visited the kingdom. This way he could reach the number up to ninety nine tigers. These ninety nine tiger skins ornated the reception hall of Pratibandapuram palace. Now, only one tiger was left to be killed.
The Maharaja became even more uneasy and desired to kill that single tiger and get over his fears. He could then give up tiger hunting. However, the hundredth tiger could not be found. The king became anxious. One day, he got the news that sheep had started disappearing from the hill side village, his hopes rose. He was extremely pleased that he announced a three year exemption from all taxes for the village and set out to find the tiger. But it was in vain.
The king got so angry that many officers had to lose their job and in his frenzy he ordered to double up the tax. The dewan was very worried, so in order to find a solution he got an old tiger from the People’s Park in Madras and kept it hidden in his house. When Maharaja went for tiger hunting the dewan along with his wife took the tiger and dragged him out of the car. The old tiger started wandering in the forest. The king spotted and shot the tiger. The exhilarated king took the procession of the dead tiger through the town. After the king left, the other hunters realized that the tiger only fainted due to shock of the bullet. They thought if they will tell Maharaja they might lose their jobs. Therefore, they decided not to tell him the truth. One of the hunters shot the tiger dead. Then they took out the procession and buried the tiger. A tomb was erected over it.
After a few days, Maharaja’s son’s third birthday was celebrated. He looked out for a gift. He saw a wooden tiger. That toy was only for two anas but the shopkeeper said it was a rare example of the craftsmanship and sold it to the king for three hundred rupees. He played with that wooden tiger along with his son. It was carved by an unskilled carpenter. The surface of the toy tiger was rough with quills all over it. One of these quills pierced the king’s hand. The king took it out and kept on playing with the prince. Next day, his right hand got infected which spread all over the arm, three renowned doctors from Madras could not save him. Therefore, the hundredth tiger took its final revenge. It killed the Tiger King.
Important Previous Year Questions From Chapter 2 The Tiger King
SAI (2 marks)
- Why did the Maharaja ban tiger hunting in the state? (Delhi 2014)
- Why did the Maharaja order the Dewan to double the land tax? (AI 2014)
- How did the Maharaja please a high-ranking 1 British official? (Delhi 2014 C)
- What gave the astrologers the greatest surprise of their life while they were studying the horoscope of the ten-day-old prince? (AI 2014 C)
- Why did the Maharaja decide to get married? (Delhi 2014 C)
- How did the Tiger King become the victim of the hundredth tiger? (AI 2014 C)
- What sort of hunts did the Maharaja offer to organise for the high-ranking British officer? What trait of the officer does it reveal? (Delhi 2013)
- How did the Tiger King stand in danger of losing his Kingdom? How was he able to avert the danger? (Delhi 2012)
- Why was the Maharaja so anxious to kill the hundredth tiger? (Al 2012)
SAII (3 marks)
- How did the Tiger King’s marriage bring him closer to his target? (Al 2019)
- What made the chief astrologer place his finger on his nose? (Delhi 2019)
- What considerations influenced the Tiger King to get married? (2018)
- How did the Maharaja deal with a high ranking British officer who wanted to shoot a tiger? (Delhi 2017)
- When he was only ten days old, a prediction (Delhi 2016) was made about the future of the Tiger King. What was ironic about it?
- How did the ten-day-old baby (the future Tiger King) react to the prediction about his future made by the astrologers? (Delhi 2016)
- What kind of life was enjoyed by crown prince Jung Bahadur till he reached the age of twenty? (Delhi 2016)
- Who killed the 100th tiger? Why?
- The manner of his (the Tiger King’s) death is a matter of extraordinary interest. Comment. (AI 2015)
- When was the Tiger King in danger of losing his throne? (AI 2015)
- How did the Tiger King manage to retain his kingdom? (Foreign 2015)
- What made the chief astrologer place his finger on his nose? (Foreign 2015)
- Why did the Maharaja ban tiger hunting in his state? (Delhi 2015 C)
LA II (6 marks)
- What was the prediction of the astrologers regarding the ultimate fate of the Tiger King? How did it come to be true? Describe with reference to the story? (2020)
- Giving a bribe is an evil practice. How did the Tiger King bribe the British officer to save his kingdom? How do you view this act of his? (Delhi 2015)
- Even today so many among us believe in superstitions. An astrologer predicted about ‘The Tiger King’ that he would be killed by a tiger. He killed’ one hundred tigers yet was himself ‘killed’ by a tiger. How did the superstitious belief ‘prevail’? (AI 2015)
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Answer Of Chapter 2 The Tiger King
For The Above Questions
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- There were various reasons because of which the Maharaja banned tiger hunting in the state of Pratibandapuram. He vowed to hunt and kill hundred tigers to prove the astrologer wrong who predicted that a tiger would be the cause of his death. However, the tiger population of his kingdom was quickly diminishing because of the Maharaja’s hunting spree. This is why he did not want anyone else to hunt or kill tigers.
- After hearing about disappearances of sheep, the Maharaja set out on an expedition to find the hundredth tiger, which was supposed to be the reason for the disappearances. However, the tiger could not be found anywhere. The Tiger King was becoming impatient day by day. In his rage, the Maharaja ordered the Dewan to double the land tax.
- A high ranking British officer visited Pratibandapuram and sought permission to hunt tiger from King. Even though the king declined his request, he did not want to displease the officer. So in order to please the high-ranking British officer, he sent fifty diamond rings to his wife which cost the Maharaja three lakh rupees.
- The fact that the ten-days-old infant prince spoke clearly and coherently and that he raised intelligent questions about life and death, gave the astrologers the greatest surprise of their life while they were studying the horoscope of the infant crown prince.
- So far, the Maharaja had succeeded in killing only seventy tigers when they became extinct in Pratibandapuram. In order to fulfil his vow of killing one hundred tigers, the Maharaja decided to get married to a girl from a royal family of a kingdom with a large tiger population.
- The Tiger King gifted his son a wooden toy tiger. The toy was made by an unskilled carpenter because of which its surface was rough; tiny slivers of wood stood up like quills all over it.
A splinter from the wooden tiger pierced his hand caused suppurating sore, resulting into his death. This is how the Tiger King became the victim of the hundredth tiger.
- The Maharaja refused to allow the British officer to hunt tigers in his kingdom. Instead, the Maharaja offered to organize a boar hunt or a mouse hunt or even a mosquito hunt. It shows the shallowness and pretense of the British official.
- A high-ranking British officer, who was fond of hunting tigers, visited Pratibandapuram. The Tiger King refused to allow the British officer to hunt tigers saying it was banned in his kingdom. He did not even permit the officer to get himself photographed with the tiger killed by the king. This annoyed the high-ranking British officer because directly or indirectly, the king was preventing an important man from fulfilling his desire.
Anticipating unfavorable consequences of denying a British officer and to avert the danger of losing his kingdom, the Tiger King sent a gift of fifty expensive diamond rings to the British officer’s wife. Although he thought that the duraisani would only select a couple of rings, he did not mind that she kept them all. In fact, he was happy to know that he was able to retain his kingdom even though he had to pay three lakh rupees to the British jewelers for the diamond rings.
- When the Maharaja was only ten days old, an astrologer predicted that a tiger would be the cause of his death. In order to prove the astrologer wrong and also to save himself from getting killed, the Maharaja vowed to hunt and kill hundred tigers. This is why he was so anxious to kill the hundredth tiger.
- The Maharaja had exhausted the tiger population in Pratibandhapuram but he still had thirty more to kill, so he asked his dewan to find out the tiger populations in different native states. He decided to marry in a royal family with a large tiger population. The Maharaja decided to do this so that he could be allowed to hunt tigers from the state of his father-in-law. The dewan found out the right girl. The Maharaja killed five or six tigers each time he visited his father-in-law.
- The chief astrologer placed his finger on his nose because he was filled with surprise ane wonder on hearing a small baby, just ten days old speak.
- Refer to answer 5.
- When the high ranking British offices expressed his desire to hunt tigers in Pratibandapurm, the Maharaja denied him permission. He said to the British officer that the latter could hunt anything, even mosquitoes, but not tigers. Later, when the Maharaja realised that refusing the high ranking British officer could jeopardize his kingdom, he sent fifty samples of diamond rings to the British officer’s wife to choose from. She kept them all; it cost the Maharaja three lakhs rupees.
- The chief astrologer predicted that the Tiger King would die one day. The irony was that, hearing this, the ten days old infant Tiger King, then a crown prince, spoke like a wise man and said that everyone who is born had to die one day.
- After listening to the prediction about his death, the ten-days old crown prince responded by saying that death is inevitable for anybody who is born. It does not require prediction. He wished to know about the manner of death as it is more important than the news of his death itself. When he learnt that the cause of his death would be tigers, he said with a growl: “Let tigers beware!”
- Crown prince Jung Bahadur drank the milk of an English cow. He was brought up by an English nanny and tutored in English by an Englishman, saw nothing but English movies. Until he reached his twenties, the crown prince Jung Bahadur enjoyed everything which other Indian crown princes during British rule were enjoying.
- The hundredth tiger was killed by one of the hunters accompanying the Tiger King. The Maharaja missed his mark, but loud bang of the gun shot made the old and weak tiger faint. If the king had found out about this, the hunters would have lost their job.
- The occasion was the Tiger King’s son’s third birthday, he had not been paying much attention to the crown prince because of his obsession of killing hundred tigers. Since, it was his son’s birthday, he wanted to give something special to the crown prince. He went to the shopping center in Pratibandapuram and searched every shop, but I could not find anything suitable. He then saw a wooden toy tiger and thought it was his son. The toy had been carved by an perfect for unskilled carpenter. The surface was rough because slivers of wood were poking out, of the entire toy. One of the quills pierced the Maharaja’s hand. Although the king pulled it out the wound became infected. The infection spread all over the arm. As the situation worsened, three famous surgeons were called from Madras to treat the king. All three surgeons agreed that the king needed to be operated on immediately. After the surgery, the three surgeons announced that the operation was successful but king had passed away. Ultimately, the Tiger King met his end by the hundredth tiger, ironically not by a real tiger but by a wooden one whose splinter injured him proving deadly.
- Refer to answer 8.
- Refer to answer 8. 21. Refer to answer 11.
- Refer to answer 1.
- The astrologer predicted that the King will be killed by a tiger. Obsessed with the prediction, the king killed a tiger when he came of age and sent it to the astrologer. The astrologer then clarified that killing one tiger wouldn’t make him any safer and that he should be wary of the hundredth tiger. This led to the King going on a killing spree of tigers throughout his adult life. After killing the 99th tiger the king asked his dewan to arrange for the 100th tiger. The king shot the tiger and felt relieved that he had won against his fate. But the tiger merely fainted from the shot and didn’t die. Later on the king bought a wooden tiger for his son as a birthday gift and got his hands pierced by a tiny sliver on the wooden tiger. He died from the infection of the wound caused by the tiny sliver. Somehow making the prediction come true because the 100th tiger never died and the wooden tiger became the 100th tiger which took his life.
- The Tiger King dispatched a telegram to a famous British company of jewelers in Calcutta to send samples of expensive diamond rings of different designs. Some fifty rings arrived and the king sent all of it to the British officer’s wife. The king and his minister expected that the duraisani would choose one or two rings and send the rest back. However, it turned out that the duraisani kept the entire lot and replied with a thank you note for the gifts. In two days, a bill of three lakh rupees was sent by the British jewelers , to the Maharaja which he was happy to pay. This is how the Maharaja had managed to retain his kingdom. This act of the king sheds light on the deplorable practice of bribery that perpetuates the vicious cycle of corruption, especially considering the fact that the king had personal interests to protect rather than the welfare of his kingdom.
- From the moment the Tiger King heard the prediction that a tiger would be the cause of his death, he made it the aim of his life not to lose to the tigers. The Tiger King vowed to kill hundred tigers and not rest until his vow was completed. While the Maharaja believed that he was fighting to change his destiny, it was the other way round. One may find it superstitious, but it was his destiny, which pushed him to act the way he did and eventually die because of a tiger.
The Tiger King took lives of the innocent tigers, one after another, until it became an obsession of his He was selfish, self-centered and to quite an extent hot-headed, which influenced each of his actions He banned tiger hunts in Pratibandapuram fo others and threatened to confiscate wealth an property of anybody who dared to hurt the tiger He gave up his royal duties only to fulfil his vow, without once thinking about the effects it would have on his kingdom. He bribed the high ranking British officer, whom he had denied permission to hunt tigers in Pratibandapuram, so that he, the Tiger King, did not lose his kingdom. The Maharaja even married into a royal family only on one condition, the forests of that kingdom had to have tigers.
After killing ninety-nine tigers, the Tiger King’s obsession grew. On his last hunting expedition, when the hundredth tiger was nowhere to be seen, the Tiger King became furious and asked Dewan to double the land tax of the village where he had gone to hunt. The Dewan feared that the king’s decision would prove to be catastrophic, if the hundredth tiger was not found and killed quickly; the dewan’s job was in jeopardy too.
These chain of events paved way for the death of the Tiger King. The Dewan arranged for a senile tiger to be killed by the Maharaja. However, the King’s bullet did not kill the beast; the old tiger merely fainted by the sound of the gun shot. It was one of the king’s hunters who finally killed the tiger, leaving the king content with the thought of killing hundred tigers. Therefore, the king’s death due to the infection caused by the splinter from the wooden toy tiger, was a death caused by his own action, proving that the superstitious belief prevailed.
For more chapters word meanings click on the links given below.
Prose
Chapter 1 The Last Lesson |
Chapter 2 Lost Spring |
Chapter 3 Deep Water |
Chapter 4 The Rattrap |
Chapter 5 Indigo |
Chapter 6 Poets and Pancakes |
Chapter 7 The Interview |
Chapter 8 Going Places |
Poem
Chapter 1 My Mother at Sixty-six |
Chapter 2 An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum |
Chapter 3 Keeping Quiet |
Chapter 4 A Thing of Beauty |
Chapter 5 A Roadside Stand |
Chapter 6 Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers |
Vistas
Download Free pdf For NCERT English Solutions Class 12
Chapter 1 The Last Lesson |
Chapter 2 Lost Spring |
Chapter 3 Deep Water |
Chapter 4 The Rattrap |
Chapter 5 Indigo |
Chapter 6 Poets and Pancakes |
Chapter 7 The Interview |
Chapter 8 Going Places |