In our poetry unit we read "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" by Adrienne Rich. I found myself very attracted to this poem. I found the use of language smooth and comprehendible, and I didn't have to dig too far for the meaning. I also noticed the poem was structured in a way that the authors comparison was evident. I appreciated the use of imagery to highlight the qualities and differences between the speaker's Aunt Jennifer and a group of tigers.
             There aren't any difficult words or hidden meanings in this poem to complicate things. In some poems I often find myself searching excessively trying to decipher the wordiness. This poem was not the case; I easily skipped to analysis after reading it once.
             I immediately noticed that the speaker begins the first two stanzas in the same fashion. The first line begins with "Aunt Jennifer's tigers..." followed by a description of the tigers. The first line of the second stanza is nearly identical; "Aunt Jennifer's fingers..." followed by a description of the woman's hands. By making these stanzas begin the same way it shows the readers that there is a comparative link between the two.
             These stanzas have an A,A,B,B rhyme scheme which helps the poem flow, and makes the 12 line poem seem even shorter.
             The speaker does not refer specifically to Aunt Jennifer. Instead she speaks of the woman's hands and fingers. She is simply using the reference of the hands to symbolize Aunt Jennifer as a whole. Twice in this poem the speaker refers to Aunt Jennifer's wedding band, and how it has her "ringed with ordeals" The speaker has Aunt Jennifer symbolized by hands because of how significant they are in having someone's hand in marriage, which is the underlying issue in the poem.Imagery was used extensively in this poem. The speaker paints a very vivid picture of a group of tigers saying they "pace wit...