The Tigers ("Aunt Jennifer's Tigers") (symbol)
"Aunt Jennifer's tigers prance across a screen,
Bright topaz denizens of a world of green.
They do not fear the men beneath the tree;
They pace in sleek chivalric certainty." (excerpt from "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers")
The tigers in this poem are actually symbols representing liberated women. They are described as beautiful "bright topaz denizens," and they don't fear the men "beneath the tree," suggesting their fearlessness. Their powerful, sleek prowling symbolizes the attitude of the empowered woman: confident, free, and powerful. Interestingly, here, it is women who are viewed as possessing "chivalry."
The White Room ("Origins and History of Consciousness") (symbol)
In Rich's long poem "Origins and History of Consciousness," she uses the image of a blank white wall as a symbol for the true nature and limits of reality. She turns the mind into a room, speaking of the inevitable existential crises of those who really think: "No one lives in this room / without confronting the whiteness of the wall / behind the poems, planks of books, / photographs of dead heroines." This symbol is a profound one, and a sobering aspect of reality. While poetry and art can seek to fill this empty space, consciousness itself will always defy representation.
Radium ("Power") (symbol)
In the poem "Power," Rich talks about Marie Curie, who died as a result of the exposure to the radiation of Radium, the element which she famously discovered. Radium is a symbol of power itself, both the positive and the negative aspects: Curie found success and fame, but the power of the metal eventually killed her. This relates to Rich's larger commentary on the theme of power: power can actually come from vulnerability and wounds, and does not prevent one from experiencing them.
The Wreck ("Diving into the Wreck") (symbol)
"Diving into the Wreck" is a poetic work about the role of the feminist in a predominantly male world. This titular "wreck" is a symbolic representation of the male-dominated world, a place with a deeply dysfunctional value system. Only by diving into the wreck and confronting it head-on can a woman make a significant change in the world.
Blank Spaces (motif)
Rich had a penchant for including large blank spaces in her poems (often in the middle of lines). These blank spaces are nonetheless filled with meaning: sometimes they symbolize long pauses where introspection should occur. They may also refer to gaps in meaning, or ideas that defy representation. Sometimes, they can be viewed as simply aesthetic additions to the visual appeal of the poem. These blanks spaces also symbolize the limitations of poetry, of which Rich was well aware, as seen through poems such as "Origins and History of Consciousness" and "Tonight No Poetry Will Serve."
