"It seems to him there are
a thousand bars; and behind the bars, no world."
This was one of the most visual poems for me. I actually just went to the zoo a few days ago. The tiger (obviously not the same thing as a panther, but still) was pacing back and forth by the bars. People stood and simply ogled it. This isn't a real, natural tiger. This has been raised in captivity or taken from the wild and caged behind bars. It has none of the wild power that makes a tiger a tiger. Rilke creates the same image of a panther: what should be a magnificent creature but has been subdued.
I think this poem is a symbol. The panther represents something oppressed, and the bars represent the oppressing force. The image is hope, but the panther has been in the cage for so long that it is only a fleeting image. The panther has no chance to escape unless some outside force comes to help it.
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