In Chapter 5 “Rhetoric, Poetics and Poetry” by Jonathan Culler, Culler has discussed the relationship between rhetoric, poetic and poetry, and introduced various poetic and rhetoric techniques. In the very beginning of the chapter, Culler mentions that poetics has effects on literary works by explaining the conventions and reading operations that make them possible. On the contrary, rhetoric is considered as the technique which is able to construct the effective discourses on literary works. Culler introduces four master tropes which are metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche and irony. By reading the poem called “Diving into the wreck” by Adrienne Rich, the predominant rhetoric used across the poem is metaphor. According to Culler, “Metaphor treats something as something else.”, it functions powerfully and succeed in conveying the author’s emotions and meanings. Take the title as the example. Rich compares the difficulties for fighting for women’s rights to wreck, which catches reader’s attention to wonder what exactly the wreck is, what does it represent for. It provides imaginations to readers and impresses them with various vivid pictures in their mind. But at the same time, it also express the feeling to readers. The second paragraph of this poem, “There is a ladder. The ladder is always there. hanging innocently. close to the side of the schooner.”, Rich compares the ladder to the silence and the failure for fighting for their rights. It signifies helplessness. They tried so many times in order to change the situation, however, it failed. There is noting  they can do, only be silent.

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