Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Adrienne Rich's poem "Mathilde in Normandy" reflects on historical and personal experiences through the lens of tapestry weaving, drawing parallels between the past and present, the personal and the collective. Rich uses the imagery of the Bayeux Tapestry to explore themes of memory, history, and the roles of women in different epochs.

The poem begins with a vivid description of the Bayeux Tapestry: "From the archaic ships the green and red / Invaders woven in their colored hosts / Descend to conquer." This scene sets the stage for the Norman invasion, depicted in the tapestry’s intricate embroidery. The "green and red invaders" symbolize the vivid and violent historical events immortalized in thread.

Rich continues to describe the tapestry's detailed imagery: "Here is the threaded headland, / The warp and woof of a tideless beach, the flight, / Recounted by slow shuttles, of swift arrows, / And the outlandish attitudes of death / In the stitched soldiery." The terms "warp and woof" refer to the fundamental components of weaving, emphasizing the meticulous craftsmanship that captures the chaos of battle. The contrast between the "slow shuttles" and the "swift arrows" highlights the juxtaposition of the painstaking process of creation and the rapid, brutal reality it represents.

The poem reflects on the broader significance of these historical depictions: "That this should prove / More than the personal episode, more than all / The little lives sketched on the teeming loom / Was then withheld from you; self-conscious history / Copyrighted me / That writes deliberate footnotes to its action / Was not of your young epoch." Rich suggests that the historical importance of these events was not fully understood by those living through them. The idea of "self-conscious history" writing "deliberate footnotes" implies a later generation's tendency to analyze and interpret past events with a degree of detachment and intellectualism that was absent in the original context.

Rich then shifts focus to the women who created the tapestry: "For a pastime / The patient handiwork of long-sleeved ladies / Was esteemed proper when their lords abandoned / The fields and apple trees of Normandy / For harsher hunting on the opposite coast." The tapestry’s creation is depicted as a respectable and feminine activity, undertaken while the men were away. The image of "long-sleeved ladies" engaged in "patient handiwork" evokes a sense of dutiful creativity and resilience.

The poem continues to explore the emotional landscape of these women: "Yours was a time when women sat at home / To the pleasing minor airs of lute and hautbois, / While the bright sun on the expensive threads / Glowed in the long windless afternoons." The tranquil domestic setting is contrasted with the underlying anxiety: "Say what you will, anxiety there too / Played havoc with the skein, and the knots came / When fingers' occupation and mind's attention / Grew too divergent, at the keen remembrance / Of wooden ships putting out from a long beach, / And the grey ocean dimming to a void, / And the sick strained farewells, too sharp for speech."

Rich emphasizes that despite the outward calm, the women experienced deep emotional turmoil. The "knots" in their weaving symbolize the disruptions caused by their anxiety and the painful memories of farewells and uncertainties about their loved ones' fates. The "grey ocean dimming to a void" and "sick strained farewells" capture the profound sense of loss and separation.

"Mathilde in Normandy" by Adrienne Rich poignantly intertwines the historical with the personal, illustrating how the meticulous work of women in creating the Bayeux Tapestry is laden with the emotional weight of their experiences. Through rich imagery and reflective narrative, Rich honors the resilience and creativity of these women, while also acknowledging the deep anxieties that accompanied their seemingly tranquil lives. The poem invites readers to reflect on the enduring human emotions that connect past and present, transcending the specificities of time and place.

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