Lost Amongst the Stars
It is known fact that women have had their work overlooked in comparison to that of their male counterparts, especially in older times in which people held onto the foolish assumption that men were simply intellectually superior to women. By using astronomical and scientific symbolism in order to tie her ideas into a specific field of study, Adrienne Rich explains her views of the forgotten importance of women in science by relating them to the discoveries of astronomer Caroline Herschel in her poem, “Planetarium”.
In the opening stanza, Rich talks about how women are often viewed as less than a person, or in her words, as monsters which are not human at all. She writes, “A woman in the shape of a monster/ a monster in the shape of a woman/ the skies are full of them” (1-3). Rich was a highly regarded feminist who was known for her approaches to identity and the roles of women in the world. Having learned about Rich while studying feminist poetry in high school helped me to better understand her ideas and aided me in comprehending the references she uses to relate the studies of Herschel back to her own ideas. In these lines, she highlights her idea that men viewed women as less intelligent and capable while also alluding to Caroline Herschel’s field of study by referencing shapes in the sky. Also, this references the fact that her discoveries were also seen as less than those of her brother’s, William Herschel, who had discovered the planet Uranus. The following lines are a greater reference to Herschel’s involvement with astronomy, “A woman ‘in the snow/ among the Clocks and instruments/ or measuring the ground with poles” (3-6). Within these lines, Rich references an astronomical clock and also creates a mental image of a woman, hidden by the cover of white snow as she conducts her research. After realizing that the word “clock” had been capitalized, it became clear that there was a greater meaning behind this. The Oxford English Dictionary defines an astronomical clock as an “a clock that displays astronomical time” (OED Online), which relates this stanza even more to Herschel’s profession. The blizzard-esque image generates a feeling that Herschel, like many other women, has had her work lost in the whitewash brought about by the “better” discoveries of men. Rich then goes on to further discuss how women’s contributions to the world of science have been overlooked by men in their fields in the past, writing, “Galaxies of women/ there doing penance for impetuousness/ ribs chilled, in those spaces of the mind” (13-16). This alludes to Herschel’s discovery of undocumented nebulae while simultaneously addressing a more broad statement that worlds full of information and new data have been lost through the repeated ignorance of others who don’t qualify the work of women equal to the breakthroughs of those humans with one less rib to be chilled.
This stanza can be analyzed through a religious context as well. The reference to ribs can be viewed as a reference to Adam and Eve, as Eve was created by God after he had taken one of Adam’s ribs as he slept. The Catholic religion is often interpreted as an inherently sexist religion as it barred any women from taking roles of leadership or power as they were claimed “unfit” for these positions as they were preferred to serve as caretakers. Additionally, there were very few women who have been recognized for their contributions both to the foundation of the religion and its teachings and interpretations as well. The word “sexism” is described in the Oxford English Dictionary as “prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex” (OED Online). This reference to a stricter interpretation of the religion can be related back to the old world ideals which set the precedent that men were innately more capable than women.
This criticism of unfair male dominance over women in the world continues into the following stanza, in which Rich writes, “An eye/ ‘virile, precise and absolutely certain’/ from the mad webs of Uranusborg/ encountering the NOVA” (17-20). Rich’s word choice in this stanza is brilliant, as the use of the word “virile” to describe an eye that is scrutinizing all that it sees highlights the fact that Rich is fixed upon criticizing the men of this time period who believed they were intellectually better than women on account of their physical strength and ability to reproduce. Also, the made-up word “Uranusborg” is a double entendre, as it serves as a reference to her older brother William’s discovery of the planet Uranus and also refers to the Uraniborg, a Danish astronomical observatory. These two references enhance Rich’s relation of her argument to both the personal history of Herschel and the history of astronomical studies in general.
Rich then creates a feeling of fusion between Herschel herself and the subjects of her studies of astrology, bringing the poem totally full circle and eliminating the gap between Herschel’s past and her current ideas. She generates an mental image where Herschel is feeling herself mesh with the very essence of the stars, “Heartbeat of the pulsar/ heart sweating through my body/ the radio impulse pouring in from Taurus/ I am bombarded yet I stand” (29-33). Rich uses these words to fully establish the relation between Herschel’s specific case with her own ideas. With this word choice, she creates a feeling of cohesion which cements the links between the studies of the stars to women's’ discoveries being undervalued. In the earlier lines, the relationship between these two entities did not seem fully attached to each other, as they appeared to be loosely related through a handful of references in addition to symbolic imagery, but these words truly confirm the association of these ideas.
In the final stanza, Rich accentuates her idea that women have been so overlooked in the world of science for so long. She writes, “I have been standing all my life in the/ direct path of a battery of signals/ the most accurately transmitted most/ untranslatable language in the universe” (34-37). Rich creates an image of Herschel withstanding barrages of blows toward her own achievements and accomplishments, unable to interpret the reasons why she must endure these overwhelming hits of doubt from critics. The choice of the word “untranslatable” seemed very fitting in this space. It practically jumped out at me as it gave great insight to Rich’s interpretation of Herschel’s feelings. She was so unable to figure out the source of this “battery of signals” that she would’ve described it as a language that was impossible for someone in her position to understand, as little reason had been given to why men’s accomplishments were more highly regarded than those of their female counterparts. Rich concludes the poem by writing, “I am an instrument in the shape/ of a woman trying to translate pulsations/ into images for the relief of the body/ and the reconstruction of the mind” (41-44). Rich then summarizes the meaning behind her poem in the final three lines as she allows us to visualize Herschel’s life’s work and uses descriptive vocabulary to blend that image together with her own views. The first two lines in this grouping show how Herschel had dedicated herself to translating constellations and bits of rock hurdling through space into understandable information for the general public. The last line which reads, “and the reconstruction of the mind” (44), relates to Rich’s own intentions of changing the way the world views women in the world of science.