This Norton Critical Edition includes:* Generous selections of poetry and prose from the entire oeuvre of one of America's most influential poets.* An introduction and explanatory annotations by Barbara Charlesworth Gelpi, Albert Gelpi, and Brett Millier.* Fifteen reviews and critical commentaries, nine of them new to the Second Edition, carefully chosen as a guide to Adrienne Rich's poetics--and to her poetics as related to politics--ranging from W. H. Auden's 1951 response to her first book to critics' reviews of the magisterial Collected Poems in 2016.* A Chronology, a Selected Bibliography, and an Index.About the SeriesRead by more than 12 million students over fifty-five years, Norton Critical Editions set the standard for apparatus that is right for undergraduate readers. The three-part format--annotated text, contexts, and criticism--helps students to better understand, analyze, and appreciate the literature, while opening a wide range of teaching possibilities for instructors. Whether in print or in digital format, Norton Critical Editions provide all the resources students need.
Adrienne Rich Book order
Adrienne Cecile Rich was an American poet, essayist, and feminist whose early work established her as an elegant, controlled stylist. She underwent a dramatic shift in the 1960s, embracing political and feminist themes and engaging in stylistic experimentation. Her poetry consistently explored women's experiences and aspirations through a feminist lens, often pushing formal boundaries. Rich also published numerous essays on poetry, feminism, motherhood, and lesbianism, leaving a profound impact on both literature and feminist thought.






- 2018
- 2013
The Dream of a Common Language: Poems 1974-1977
- 96 pages
- 4 hours of reading
“Certain lines had become like incantations to me, words I’d chanted to myself through sorrow and confusion” —Cheryl Strayed, Wild “The Dream of a Common Language explores the contours of a woman’s heart and mind in language for everybody—language whose plainness, laughter, questions and nobility everyone can respond to. . . . No one is writing better or more needed verse than this.”—Boston Evening Globe
- 2012
Tonight No Poetry Will Serve: Poems 2007-2010
- 96 pages
- 4 hours of reading
This collection features a National Book Award-winning poet's diverse range of verse, showcasing intimate explorations in "Axel Avakar," dark humor in "Quarto," and the underground journey in "Powers of Recuperation." The poems reflect the author's unique voice and thematic depth, offering readers a captivating experience through various styles and subjects.
- 2009
Adrienne Rich's latest collection showcases her unpredictable and evocative style, featuring a range of thought-provoking titles such as "rhyme," "Letters Censored, Shredded, Returned to Sender or Judged Unfit to Send," and "Draft 2006." The poems explore themes of communication, censorship, and the complexities of expression, reflecting Rich's keen insights into personal and societal issues. This volume promises to engage readers with its rich language and profound themes.
- 2002
Exploring the intersection of poetry and social consciousness, Adrienne Rich's essays reflect her deep engagement with societal issues and personal introspection. She navigates themes of imagination, political disillusionment, and the transformative potential of art. Rich's work challenges readers to envision alternatives to a flawed system, blending poetic vision with social justice. This collection features essays from the late twentieth century, including her rationale for declining the National Medal for the Arts, and showcases her thought-provoking conversations.
- 1980
At issue are the politics of language; the uses of scholarship; and the topics of racism, history, and motherhood among others called forth by Rich as "part of the effort to define a female consciousness which is political, aesthetic, and erotic, and which refuses to be included or contained in the culture of passivity."
- 1980
On Lies Secrets and Silence. Selected Prose 1966-1978
- 310 pages
- 11 hours of reading
At issue are the politics of language; the uses of scholarship; and the topics of racism, history, and motherhood among others called forth by Rich as "part of the effort to define a female consciousness which is political, aesthetic, and erotic, and which refuses to be included or contained in the culture of passivity."
- 1977
A blend of memoir and history which investigates women's role as mother. Drawing on anthropology, medicine, psychology, literature and her own experience, the author explores the contradictory pleasures and pains of motherhood.
- 1977