Poetic Devices

Though short and tightly organised, the poem is rich in figurative meaning. The chief devices are explained below with the effect each achieves.

Symbolism of the tigers

The embroidered tigers are the poem's central symbol. They stand for everything Aunt Jennifer is denied in her own life -- freedom, strength, fearlessness, energy and pride. Prancing confidently across their green world and unafraid of any hunter, they represent the bold, liberated self that she can express only through her art, never in her actual existence. Their permanence also symbolises the lasting power of art to outlive the artist.

Symbolism of the wedding ring

Opposed to the tigers is the symbol of the heavy wedding band. Instead of standing for love or happiness, the ring here represents the crushing burden of marriage and the weight of male dominance. Its heaviness pressing on Aunt Jennifer's hand is the emblem of the whole institution that has worn her down and taken away her freedom.

Contrast

The entire poem is built on a sharp contrast between the fearless creation and its fearful creator. The tigers are proud, sleek and confident, while Aunt Jennifer is nervous, weary and oppressed. This opposition is the source of the poem's meaning: it dramatises the gap between the freedom a woman longs for and the constrained reality she must live in.

Imagery and colour

Rich uses vivid visual imagery, especially of colour. The tigers gleam like burnished gold -- "bright topaz" -- against a bright green background, an image of vitality and boldness. Against this glowing picture stands the image of Aunt Jennifer's trembling, tired hands. The contrast in imagery reinforces the contrast in meaning.

Alliteration

Repeated consonant sounds add force and musicality, and often reinforce the sense. The pairing of words like 'prancing, proud' and 'fingers fluttering' links sound to meaning, making the tigers' fearless energy almost audible and Aunt Jennifer's nervousness palpable. Such sound-patterning helps fix the key images in the reader's mind.

Metaphor and transferred epithet

The poem works largely through metaphor: the tigers are not literally about wildlife but stand in for the human desire for freedom, and Aunt Jennifer's weighed-down hand is a metaphor for a spirit weighed down by oppression. The phrase "terrified hands" is a transferred epithet -- the fear that belongs to the woman is transferred to her very body -- while "ringed" puns on the wedding ring and on being encircled by ordeals.

Structure and rhyme …