Storm Warnings
Stormy Weather In the world of poetry, writers use many literary and poetic devices to achieve their end goal, whether the goal is a type of emotional or perhaps some other type of response. In her poem “Storm Warnings,” Adrienne Rich uses unique structural style including many poetic devices, such as structure, imagery, and descriptive language to reveal literal, as well as metaphorical meanings in her poem. This structure lets the poem progress in an organized and chronological manner, in order to explain an external as well as an internal conflict that is being held by the speaker. The emotions of the speaker run parallel to the storm happening on the outside; Rich uses this as the story’s metaphor. The main message of “Storm Warnings”
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is that one cannot prevent bad things from happening, but some of the time, one is able to stay out of the path of less than desirable situations. “Storm Warnings” is also composed of physical contrasts, such as the contrast between inside the house and outside of the house. This ties into the main idea of internal paralleling external, as well. Although the author is writing about and even describing a literal storm, what she is also writing about are her internal and emotional struggles and conflicts.
In the third stanza, the poem refers to the “mastery of elements” (Line 2), speaking of a change in the weather, which also relates to the fact that humans are unable to change or avoid similar changes. The poet describes the fact that she can only watch the storm in the first stanza. This relates to when she talks about how humans are helpless on the inside and only able to “close the shutters” (21). The whistle of the wind, or “whine” (23) as Rich uses, cannot be stopped. The “zone of gray unrest” (4) in the first stanza is made black by the fourth stanza and readers realize that the storm’s threat is not only a physical one, but it threatens her mood. She remains calm even as the storm reaches its climax. The poet comes to realize that in certain, extreme circumstances, a storm may break glass, externally, but internally, she comes to find that storms in the mind have the ability to break as well. Though she is physically safe inside her house and protected from the storm outside, despite the dark atmosphere inside, the howling wind outside still disturbs her. This suggests that individuals do not have much power over the storms that occur and the moods they fall into, except for the ability to endure them, despite the possibly disturbing atmosphere they
create. Despite the disturbing storm, the poet’s spirit stays calm. As the wind is “walking” (3), the poet “simply leaves the book” (5) on a pillowed chair. This is an example of imagery like the authors refer to in the textbook. The speaker begins to think for the next couple of stanzas. In the final stanza, she draws the curtains, lights a candle, and is now ready to sit out the storm. Despite feeling disturbed by the powerful and seemingly destructive storm, she is able to keep her emotions regarding the storm under control. Despite a mood change, which is made apparent when she mentions, “the weather in the heart,” (13) she remains in control due to specific procedures she appears to have learned from past storms. “ “Storm Warnings” challenges the natural instinct to reject rather than confront change.” (Marriner) As a storm rolls in and begins to rage, the character is brought out of the comfort of her “pillowed chair” (5) and must leave behind her book and the fantasy in it to deal with the less than ideal situation at hand. She is still anxious, fully aware of the change that is occurring and knowing there is nothing she can do to avert it. Although the shutters are closed and the curtains drawn, the “keyhole draught” (24) continues to acknowledge the whine of the wind, revealing that the protagonist cannot completely separate herself from the storm. In Adrienne Rich’s poem, “Storm Warnings,” the speaker makes it clear that regardless of knowing that something is going to happen or not, people are not able to change the fact that it is going to happen. In “Storm Warnings”, Rich relates the unpredictability of and the lack of control humans have over the weather, to the fact that pain and hurt, emotions in general, can be the same. Humans are not able to control what happens to them, nor their innate responses to situations, but by perhaps taking measures of separation to circumstances, the end results will not be as harsh. Works Cited
Johnson, Greg, and Thomas Arp. "Reading the Poem." Perrine 's Literature: Structure Sound & Sense. 12th ed. Belmont: Wadsworth, 2010. 700. Print.
Marriner, Katy. "Analyzing a Poetry Reading by Adrienne Rich." Insight Publications. Insight Publications, 1 Jan. 2006. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. .
Rich, Adrienne. "Storm Warnings." Atmos.umd.edu. Web. .
is that one cannot prevent bad things from happening, but some of the time, one is able to stay out of the path of less than desirable situations. “Storm Warnings” is also composed of physical contrasts, such as the contrast between inside the house and outside of the house. This ties into the main idea of internal paralleling external, as well. Although the author is writing about and even describing a literal storm, what she is also writing about are her internal and emotional struggles and conflicts.
In the third stanza, the poem refers to the “mastery of elements” (Line 2), speaking of a change in the weather, which also relates to the fact that humans are unable to change or avoid similar changes. The poet describes the fact that she can only watch the storm in the first stanza. This relates to when she talks about how humans are helpless on the inside and only able to “close the shutters” (21). The whistle of the wind, or “whine” (23) as Rich uses, cannot be stopped. The “zone of gray unrest” (4) in the first stanza is made black by the fourth stanza and readers realize that the storm’s threat is not only a physical one, but it threatens her mood. She remains calm even as the storm reaches its climax. The poet comes to realize that in certain, extreme circumstances, a storm may break glass, externally, but internally, she comes to find that storms in the mind have the ability to break as well. Though she is physically safe inside her house and protected from the storm outside, despite the dark atmosphere inside, the howling wind outside still disturbs her. This suggests that individuals do not have much power over the storms that occur and the moods they fall into, except for the ability to endure them, despite the possibly disturbing atmosphere they
create. Despite the disturbing storm, the poet’s spirit stays calm. As the wind is “walking” (3), the poet “simply leaves the book” (5) on a pillowed chair. This is an example of imagery like the authors refer to in the textbook. The speaker begins to think for the next couple of stanzas. In the final stanza, she draws the curtains, lights a candle, and is now ready to sit out the storm. Despite feeling disturbed by the powerful and seemingly destructive storm, she is able to keep her emotions regarding the storm under control. Despite a mood change, which is made apparent when she mentions, “the weather in the heart,” (13) she remains in control due to specific procedures she appears to have learned from past storms. “ “Storm Warnings” challenges the natural instinct to reject rather than confront change.” (Marriner) As a storm rolls in and begins to rage, the character is brought out of the comfort of her “pillowed chair” (5) and must leave behind her book and the fantasy in it to deal with the less than ideal situation at hand. She is still anxious, fully aware of the change that is occurring and knowing there is nothing she can do to avert it. Although the shutters are closed and the curtains drawn, the “keyhole draught” (24) continues to acknowledge the whine of the wind, revealing that the protagonist cannot completely separate herself from the storm. In Adrienne Rich’s poem, “Storm Warnings,” the speaker makes it clear that regardless of knowing that something is going to happen or not, people are not able to change the fact that it is going to happen. In “Storm Warnings”, Rich relates the unpredictability of and the lack of control humans have over the weather, to the fact that pain and hurt, emotions in general, can be the same. Humans are not able to control what happens to them, nor their innate responses to situations, but by perhaps taking measures of separation to circumstances, the end results will not be as harsh. Works Cited
Johnson, Greg, and Thomas Arp. "Reading the Poem." Perrine 's Literature: Structure Sound & Sense. 12th ed. Belmont: Wadsworth, 2010. 700. Print.
Marriner, Katy. "Analyzing a Poetry Reading by Adrienne Rich." Insight Publications. Insight Publications, 1 Jan. 2006. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. .
Rich, Adrienne. "Storm Warnings." Atmos.umd.edu. Web. .