“We are, I am, you are
by cowardice or courage
the one who find our way
back to this scene
carrying a knife, a camera
a book of myths
in which
our names do not appear.”
-Adrienne Rich, Diving into the Wreck
In the poem Diving into the Wreck, Adrienne Rich inserts a lot of symbolism beneath the surface. It explores an almost ethereal experience underwater, that leaves much unanswered. The poem’s writer, Adrienne Rich, is a Harvard graduate, the receiver of the Gugenheim fellowship, and is also a highly impactful activist. The poem describes someone diving under the ocean and finding a shipwreck which they then explore. There is rich, yet abstract description of the experiences of the diver, like in donning equipment, the descent into the depths of the ocean, and in entering the shipwreck. The poem is quite interesting because the way in which it is composed makes it good for interpretation, and it seems to be pointing the reader in a specific direction. Diving into the wreck is a poem that uses the symbols of an undersea dive and the exploration of a shipwreck to represent death in its forms as a lonely, inevitable journey.
The time before the dive under the water symbolizes the lonely journey towards death. When Rich writes about the time before the dive, she says: “There is a ladder. The ladder is always there hanging innocently close to the side of the schooner. We know what it is for, we who have used it.” (Rich, second stanza) This ladder is a symbol that represents the popular personification of death, a figure that creeps ever close. The attention paid to the constant proximity of this ladder echoes how death is ever present and inescapable. Those close to death are being referred to as “[those] who have used it” as they know that as they approach death, the knowledge of the ladder parallels the knowledge of the final destination is revealed. The attention paid to the constant proximity of this ladder echoes how death is ever present and inescapable.
The passage where the diver enters the shipwreck deems to heavily use imagery of rotting and failing components. This is emblematic of the physical state of death. In this passage, as we dive into the wreck, this parts sticks out: “I am she: I am he / whose drowned face sleeps with open eyes / whose breasts still bear the stress.” It begins by calling attention to a figure that is both male and female. This represents how death comes for all of us, men and women alike. The next, the open eyed sleeper who still bears stress, is a seemingly contrasting image, but the first part is emblematic of the final, eternal sleep following death, while the second symbolizes regret in death.
From another perspective, the poem could also be interpreted as a journey of self-discovery by using the actual dive to metaphorically dive into one’s identity. Erykah Matabang in the week five discussion argues that the poem portrays the inner struggles and challenges faced by people as they seek to understand themselves and their place in the world. It highlights one person’s lonely descent fraught with uncertainty, obstacles and revelations as a metaphor for self-discovery. The poem could be saying that the path toward self-discovery is long and arduous, and can involve facing harsh truths about oneself. The description of donning “body-armor of black rubber,” “absurd flippers,” and a “grave and awkward mask” (Rich, Stanza 1) symbolizes the protective barriers individuals may erect as they embark on the journey of self-exploration. Despite the challenges and discomfort, the speaker persists in their quest to explore the wreck, representing the determination and courage required to delve into one’s own depths and confront the complexities of identity.
While there is certainly room to accept another interpretation of a work of art, what is missing in Erykah’s analysis is that Rich wrote the poem shortly following the suicide of her husband. This close time frame would make it unlikely that her writings in the period following were not influenced by this major event. Rich was also participating in anti-war demonstrations close to this time, another event that could bring death to the forefront of her creative mind.
Rich’s poem is inundated with hidden meaning, and there is certainly a lot to explore within it. Its colorful yet ethereal descriptions of the journey our diver takes leaves the reader with a sense that they have left with something intangible. Its frequent use of allegory to bring the mind toward the idea of death is impressive, and is a curious look into the mind of Rich after the events that uprooted her life. Understanding how events like this affect us is vital to learning more about ourselves. Maybe we should all consider using art as a medium to express how we feel, and what we think.