1. Can you think of any books or films with a plot about diving for treasure/sunken ships? Name as many as you can.
2. Why do you think people have a fascination with underwater exploration?
3. Journeys of any description are often metaphors for self-discovery. Think of the names you came up with for question 1. Do any of those books/films match this description?
COMPREHENDING AND RESPONDING
1. Having read stanza one, do you think that the speaker has prepared herself properly for this expedition? Refer to stanza one in support of your answer.
2. What do you think is the significance of the ladder in stanza two? Support your answer with reference to the poem.
3. Why do you think Rich repeats the line ‘I go down’ in stanza three? Support your answer with reference to the poem.
4. Do you think Rich’s use of simile in stanza three is effective? Refer to this simile in support of your answer.
5. What point do you think Rich is making about power in stanza four? Refer to this stanza in support of your answer.
6. The speaker explains why she has come to this place in stanza six. In your own words, outline what this is.
7. How do you think the wreck and the story of the wreck might differ (stanza seven)? Support your answer with reference to the poem.
8. What image do you form of the wreck when you read the lines: ‘worn by salt/ and sway into this threadbare beauty/ the ribs of the disaster/ curving their assertion/ among the tentative haunters’?
9. What point do you think Rich might be making about gender in stanza eight? Support your answer with reference to this stanza.
10. Do you think it is ‘cowardice or courage’ for the speaker in the poem to have made this dive? Support your answer with reference to the poem.
11. Explain this line in your own words: ‘a book of myths/ in which/ our names do not appear.’
12. What theme or themes can you find in this poem? Refer to the poem in support of your answer.
CREATING
1. Design a book cover for The Collected Poems of Adrienne Rich. 2. Write a descriptive essay about an exciting journey or expedition.
3. Write a personal essay about the things in life you would most like to experience in the future, even if you are scared.
