Plz give me the meaning of the underlined word?

[Inanna]

Hello friends
I did not find the meaning of a particular word in the dictionary,although I guessed & may be my guess is right but still I want to ask you to be sure,what does the poet exactly mean by 'Peke's been stifled'?I am talking of T.S Eliot's poem 'Macavity,the Mystery Cat'.I give the following lines as excerpts:
He's outwardly respectable.(They say he cheats at cards.)
And his footprints are not found in any file of Scotland yard's.
And when the larder's looted,or the jewel-case is rifled,
Or when the milk is missing,or another Peke's been stifled,
.......
It is a nice poem by Eliot where he shows his affection for the cat Macavity.
English is not my mother tongue,plz remember.I was shy to make this post for you might think I am uneducated but lastly I thought it is always better to clear up one's confusion.Plz help me.

[666]

It's an abbreviation for Pekingese, a smallish breed of dog and a possible enemy of cats.

[Inanna]

Thank you,666,thank you ever so much.

[666]

:seteacher:

[Inanna]

ok 666.I think you'll 've to help me many times in the future because I've many other queries about other texts also.I am no longer a student formally but actually I will remain an inquisitive reader of English literature,all my life.

[Mobyseven]

'Affection' is probably the wrong word to describe Eliot's feelings towards Macavity (and what he wants the reader to feel). 'Respect' would be a better word - it's implied that you couldn't get close enough to Macavity to feel any affection towards him.

[Inanna]

Dear Moby,may be you are right.I just don't hope to get as close to Macavity as Eliot had gone.He was a talented man.I respect both Eliot & Macavity & would read the poem thousand more times I am sure.There's another point.I feel affection for all the cats on Earth but only 1 or 2 deserve my respect.Macavity's one of them.That's because of the poetic talent of Eliot.Thanx to the British,they taught us English.Otherwise we would've remained ignorant of these treasures known as English poems.

[Mobyseven]

Where are you from, Inanna? And if you don't mind me asking, how old are you? Your English (while flawed) is quite good.

Little aside that I thought was appropriate: In that last sentence, I very nearly spelled 'your' as 'you're'. Glad I caught that one.

[TuftedPuffin]

'Affection' is probably the wrong word to describe Eliot's feelings towards Macavity (and what he wants the reader to feel). 'Respect' would be a better word - it's implied that you couldn't get close enough to Macavity to feel any affection towards him.

I may be biased by Cats the Musical, but it seems like the poem isn't about respect so much as morbid fascination, maybe?

[Mobyseven]

I may be biased by Cats the Musical, but it seems like the poem isn't about respect so much as morbid fascination, maybe?

Having been in a production of Cats, I disagree.

Certainly there is a fascination there (in the musical there is a strong sexual undertone to the entire song), but there is also a great deal of respect. Macavity is demonised far more in the musical, however, than in the poem - in the poem he comes across as a cross between Houdini and a cat-burgular...unseen, able to slip in and out of places unnoticed, seemingly defying the laws of physics.

Macavity is the master illusionist of the cats - sure, Mistoffeles is magical, but in a more 'showy' way. Macavity is the guy who walks on stage, gets chained up in a tank filled with water, and then disappears in front of your very eyes. Along with your wallet.

He's not 'good', but damn do you respect him and his craft.

[Inanna]

Dear Moby,I am from India.Thanx for pointing out that my English is flawed but good.I was born 17 years before you were born.
TuftedPuffin,I thank you too for your remarks.I personally believe no dramatisation or work on the audiovisual field can catch the magic of Eliot's words about Macavity.Ohh that line-'His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare'.It's a humorous line but full of admiration for the magical FELINE species.If there's a/more than one mistake in my remark,plz mention it to me.:) I will be happier.

[Mobyseven]

Dear Moby,I am from India.Thanx for pointing out that my English is flawed but good.I was born 17 years before you were born.
TuftedPuffin,I thank you too for your remarks.I personally believe no dramatisation or work on the audiovisual field can catch the magic of Eliot's words about Macavity.Ohh that line-'His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare'.It's a humorous line but full of admiration for the magical FELINE species.If there's a/more than one mistake in my remark,plz mention it to me.:) I will be happier.

No problem - glad that you enjoy English literature. I have at home a translation of the Ramayana and Mahabharata, but the translation (while wonderful in parts) seems to lack...something. Same for Dante's Divine Comedy - I have read a tiny bit of the original Italian, and it is far superior in that language than any translation I've ever seen, even just the opening canto.

Worst translation I've ever seen - a version of The Divine Comedy translated into English blank verse. The original terzine lose all their flavour when dragged out like that...much like a comparison between Italian and English food.

By the way, if you get a chance to see a musical production of Cats, I highly recommend you go. It is fairly accurate to the spirit of the original work, the music is highly enjoyable and the dancing...is hard as all hell.

[Inanna]

Dear Moby,thank you ever so much.I'll try to get to the musical.