The essence of this chapter for last-minute revision: characters, themes, key lines and a fast recap. The full notes, with the whole explanation, are available separately.
1 The Chapter in One Line Each
The Tiger King
1. AuthorKalki, pen name of the Tamil writer R. Krishnamurthy
2. SettingThe fictional state of Pratibandapuram
3. ProphecyDeath foretold to come “from the Tiger,” especially the hundredth
4. QuestA vow to kill a hundred tigers
5. TwistThe Maharaja’s hundredth kill was faked; the death came from a wooden toy
6. GenreA satire “on the conceit of those in power” (the book’s own words)
2 Characters at a Glance
| Character | Role and key trait |
|---|---|
| The Maharaja | Vain ruler obsessed with a hundred-tiger tally; ironically killed by a harmless wooden toy tiger |
| The dewan | Minister who objects to doubling the land tax, then, threatened with dismissal, smuggles a live tiger from the People’s Park in Madras |
| The chief astrologer | Makes the birth prophecy and, years later, the “hundredth tiger” warning that drive the whole plot |
| The British officer / duraisani | Colonial figures; the officer’s wife is sent fifty diamond rings and replies, “Thank you very much for your gifts” |
| The shopkeeper | Inflates the wooden tiger’s price out of fear, unknowingly sells the true cause of death |
3 The Story, Step by Step
Section IBirth and the astrologer’s prophecy
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Section IIEnglish upbringing; the hunt begins
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Section IIIThe British officer and the diamond rings
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Section IVTigers run out; a convenient marriage
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Section VThe faked hundredth kill, the wooden tiger, and death
4 Key Facts and Numbers
100tigers the Maharaja vows to kill
3 lakhrupees, the diamond-ring bill
2¼ annasthe wooden tiger’s real price (“two annas and a quarter”), quoted as ₹300
5 All Definitions in One Place
All definitions in one place
SettingPratibandapuram, a state ruled by a Maharaja fated to die from a tiger
SatireUsing humour, irony or exaggeration to expose human vices or folly
Dramatic IronyThe reader/other characters know something the main character does not, e.g. the Maharaja’s missed shot, known to the hunters but not to him
Irony (Situational)The actual outcome is the opposite of what is expected, e.g. death by a wooden toy tiger
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy(general term, not used in the book) A prediction that comes true partly because of the actions taken to avoid or fulfil it
Symbolism(general term, not used in the book) An object standing for a larger idea; one reading takes the tiger as power and fate
AllusionA brief reference to another well-known idea, e.g. “satyagraha,” the Ramayana
6 Words to Know
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| dewan | chief minister of a princely state |
| durai / duraisani | a British officer and his wife (colonial-era terms) |
| satyagraha | Gandhi’s term for non-violent resistance, used comically here |
| suppurating | discharging pus, infected |
| Emergency | the emergency rules the shopkeeper fears breaking; the book does not say which |
| Court of Wards | body that managed a princely state until its ruler came of age |
7 Lines to Remember
“The Bull and the Tiger are enemies, therefore, death comes from the Tiger.”
The chief astrologer, explaining the prophecy
“The operation was successful. The Maharaja is dead.”
The three surgeons, just before the story’s closing line
Quick Revision: read this the night before the exam
- Setting: Pratibandapuram; the Maharaja is fated by prophecy to die “from the Tiger,” with a special warning about the hundredth tiger
- His upbringing is entirely Anglicised; he hunts to defeat the prophecy and marries purely for access to more tigers
- The British officer episode: fifty diamond rings for the officer’s wife and a bill for three lakh rupees from the British jewellers, so that the Maharaja keeps his kingdom
- When real tigers run out, the dewan smuggles a live tiger from the People’s Park in Madras; the Maharaja’s shot misses but the hunters cover it up
- A splinter from a wooden toy tiger (real price two annas and a quarter, quoted at three hundred rupees) infects the Maharaja’s hand and kills him
- Final irony: “The operation was successful. The Maharaja is dead.” The wooden toy is the “hundredth tiger” only in the book’s figurative closing line; the literal hundredth tiger was a live tiger from the People’s Park in Madras, shot and buried
- Key literary devices: satire, dramatic irony, situational irony, allusion (self-fulfilling prophecy and symbolism are general terms the book does not use)
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