Rich’s fastidious writing style is evident in her powerful word choice in all her poems. Choosing words which connote so much more than they denote allows her to add layers of meaning to poems. For example:
„„‘bombarded’ (‘Power’)
‘bombard’ means to attack continuously with bombs, shells or other missiles, reminding us that Curie’s discoveries would later aid scientists develop the first nuclear bomb. It is also a scientific term that means to direct a high-speed stream of particles at a substance. By exposing herself to the radioactive elements of radium and polonium, that is exactly what Curie was unwittingly doing.
„„‘lies’ (‘Our Whole Life’)
Lies are something that most people find abhorrent. Lies are false and deceptive. By calling ‘the oppressor’s language’ a ‘knot of lies’, Rich emphasises how useless language is to articulate the experiences of those who did not create the language in the first place.
„„‘bombs’ (‘Trying to Talk with a Man’)
‘Bomb’ is a word that has the power to strike terror in our hearts. We see the word and think of explosions, deaths, terrorists and wars. There are no positive connotations to this word, and in the context of testing a relationship, this word suggests it will explode and cause emotional devastation.
