Editing Adrienne Rich (section)

=== On feminism ===
Adrienne Rich wrote several pieces that address the rights of women in society. In ''Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law'' she offered a critical analysis of the life of being both a mother and a daughter-in-law, and the impact of their gender in their lives.  ''Diving Into the Wreck'' was written in the early 'seventies, and the collection marks the start of her darkening tone as she wrote about feminism and other social issues.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Contemporary Women's Poetry: Adrienne Rich's 'Diving into the Wreck' and Harryette Mullen's 'She Swam On from Sea to Shine'|last=Kloeckner|first=Christian|publisher=Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier (WVT)|year=2015|isbn=9783868216103|location=Trier, Germany|page=400}}</ref>  In particular, she wrote openly about her outrage at the patriarchal nature of the greater society.  In doing so, she became an example for other women to follow in the hopes that continued proactive work against sexism would eventually counteract it.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Understanding Adrienne Rich|last=Riley|first=Jeannette E.|publisher=The University of South Carolina Press|isbn=9781611177008|location=Columbia, South Carolina|pages=39–41|date=August 31, 2016}}</ref>

Her poems are also famous for their feminist elements. One such poem is "Power", which was written about [[Marie Curie]], one of the most important female icons of the 20th century. In this poem, she discussed the element of power and feminism. Curie was slowly succumbing to the radiation that she absorbed in her research, to which Rich refers in the poem as her source of power. The poem discusses the concept of power, particularly from a woman's point of view.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Power for Women: Poems of Adrienne Cecile Rich|last=Selvalakshmi, S. & Girija Rajaram}}</ref>

Besides poems and novels, Rich also wrote nonfiction books that tackled feminist issues. Some of them were: ''Of Woman Born, Motherhood as Experience and Institution, Blood, Bread and Poetry, etc.'' Especially, ''Bread and Poetry'' contains the famous feminist essay entitled "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence", and ''Feminism and Community. ''

Her works, interviews, and documentaries demonstrated Rich's in-depth perspective on feminism and society.

For one, Rich had something to say about the use of the term itself.  She preferred using the term "women's liberation" rather than feminism. She thought the latter term was more likely to induce resistance from women of the next generation. Also, she feared that the term would amount to nothing more than a label if used extensively. On the other hand, using the term women's liberation means that women can finally be free from factors that can be seen as oppressive to their rights.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Adrienne Rich and the Women's Liberation Movement: A Politics of Reception|last=Sheridan|first=Susan}}</ref>

Rich also wrote in depth about "white feminism" and the need for [[intersectionality]] within the feminist movement. In ''Blood, Bread, and Poetry'', Rich wrote that "feminism became a political and spiritual base from which I could move to examine rather than try to hide my own racism, recognize that I have anti-racist work to do continuously within myself". She went on to write that "so long as [feminists] identify only with white women, we are still connected to that system of objectification and callousness and cruelty called racism".{{citation needed|date=January 2023|reason=page needed}} Rich implored white feminists to consider the fact that "[they], as victims of objectification, have objectified other women" through their role as the oppressor, and through the white privilege they inherently possess under a racist regime.

Rich's views on feminism are evident in her works. She says in ''Of Woman Born'' that "we need to understand the power and powerlessness embodied in motherhood in patriarchal culture."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-23 |title=Adrienne Cecile Rich |url=https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/rich-adrienne-cecile |access-date=2024-06-23 |website=Jewish Women's Archive |language=en}}</ref> She also speaks regarding the need for women to unite in her book ''On Lies, Secrets and Silence.'' In this book, she wrote:

"Women have often felt insane when cleaving to the truth of our experience. Our future depends on the sanity of each of us, and we have a profound stake, beyond the personal, in the project of describing our reality as candidly and fully as we can to each other."{{citation needed|date=January 2023|reason=page needed}}

Given the feminist conditions during the 1950s–1970s, it can be said that Rich's works on feminism were revolutionary. Her views on equality and the need for women to maximize their potential can be seen as progressive for the time. Her views strongly coincided with feminist thinking during that period. According to Rich, society was founded on patriarchy and limits the rights of women. For equality to be achieved between the sexes, the prevailing notions must be readjusted to accommodate the female perspective.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Collins|first=Michael J|title=The Unearthing of the Body in Adrienne Rich's Politics|url=http://scholarship.shu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1067&context=theses|journal=Seton Hall ERepository, Seton Hall University}}</ref>