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Q.Read the assertion and the reason below, with reference to the given extract. Assertion: Aunt Jennifer lives a life full of agony and pain. Reason: She is a victim of the male dominant society. (A) Both the assertion and the reason are true and the reason is the correct explanation of the assertion. (B) Both the assertion and the reason are true, but the reason is not the correct explanation of the assertion. (C) The assertion is true, but the reason is false. (D) The assertion is false, but the reason is true. (Aunt Jennifer's Tigers)

CBSECBSE Class XII Board 2025MCQ· 1mImportance★★★★★
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The poem depicts Aunt Jennifer's oppressed life under patriarchal marriage; both her suffering and its cause (male dominance) are textually supported, making the reason the correct explanation of the assertion.

The question asks you to evaluate two claims about Adrienne Rich's poem Aunt Jennifer's Tigers and determine their relationship. This is a common assertion-reason format in literature exams, where you must judge not only whether each statement is true but also whether one genuinely explains the other.

Understanding the poem is essential here. Rich presents Aunt Jennifer through two contrasting images: the fearless tigers she embroiders, and her own trembling, constrained existence. The tigers are "prancing, proud and unafraid," moving through a world of certainty. Aunt Jennifer, by contrast, has hands so "terrified" and weighed down by "the massive weight of Uncle's wedding band" that even pulling the ivory needle is difficult. The final stanza is devastating—even in death, her hands will remain "ringed with ordeals she was mastered by," suggesting a life of subjugation that not even death can erase.

Now let's examine each statement:

Assertion: "Aunt Jennifer lives a life full of agony and pain."

The textual evidence is unambiguous. Her fingers are "fluttering through her wool," a word choice that conveys nervousness and fragility. The wedding band sits upon her hand with "massive weight"—not literal heaviness, but the psychological burden of marriage. The phrase "ringed with ordeals" directly names her suffering, and "mastered by" indicates domination. The contrast between the freedom of her artistic creation and her own trapped reality underscores her anguish. This assertion is true.

Reason: "She is a victim of the male dominant society." …

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