Adrienne Rich Poetry

In English we have been studying some poetry by Adrienne Rich, a poet that we will be studying for the Leaving Cert. So far we have read "Storm Warnings", "Living in Sin" and "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers". I really like her confessional style. I think poetry is more interesting when it gives you an insight into someones life, feelings and emotions rather than a description of a monotonous object. having said that, I do like poetry with nice descriptions too. "Living in Sin" is about Rich's relationship with her husband. It is evident from the poem that their marriage was not a happy one - "She had thought the studio would keep itself; no dust upon the furniture of love". The woman in the poem (presumed to be the poet herself) it busy trying to dust off the cobwebs and tidy up the house, trying to put things back the way they should, make things right. In contrast, the man "with a yawn, sounded a dozen notes upon the keyboard, declared it out of tune, shrugged at the mirror, rubbed his beard, went for cigarettes". It is clear the man is resigned to the fact that nothing can be done, the relationship is over. This poem makes me sad, because it is clear the woman is trying to make up for what has gone wrong in their relationship, whereas the man has just given up. He seems completely unwilling to forgive her and forget what happened in the past. It seems almost inevitable that their relationship will never be as good as it once was. "Storm Warnings" is a descriptive poem about a storm. I really like it as a descriptive poem alone, as I think the language use is really unusual - "How with a single purpose time has traveled, by secret currents of the undiscerned into this polar realm". "Storm Warnings" is also a very metaphorical poem, and the hidden meanings are really what bring it to life for me - "A proof against the wind; the wind will rise, we can only close the shutters." This is one of my favourite metaphors in the poem. It is a classic example of the underlying story of how things have gone wrong in her life, and as she has grown older she has realised that things will go wrong in life, and sometimes try as we might we can't always prevent them. "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" is about a woman of creative fire and passion, but she has been defined by the rules of others (especially her husband who it could be interpreted is abusive) for so long that she is unable to express herself outside of them. Ultimately, the poem is a tale of hopelessness, of a caged bird’s inability to sing of freedom because she doesn’t know what it is. I think this poem was the saddest of all, because Aunt Jennifer had an awful life - " When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie, Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by." The use of the word "ringed" references to "uncles wedding band". The only bit of hope at the end of the poem was when she said that after Aunt Jennifer's death "The tigers in the panel that she made will go on prancing, proud and unafraid." This portrays the tigers as a symbol for the life of freedom and happiness Aunt Jennifer had always wished for herself, but never experienced. They seem to say that because Aunt Jennifer left them behind, other people will be comforted and break out of bad relationships like her marriage, which caused her so much heartche and suffering.