Response to Adrienne Rich's "Women and Honor: Some Notes on Lying"

Pay Equity and Discrimination - Chronogram

Adrienne Rich’s “Women and Honor: Some Notes on Lying” was originally read at the Hartwick Women Writers’ Workshop in 1975. Rich was a popular essayist, poet, and feminist of the time and was called “one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century” by the Oxford University Press and the Los Angeles Times. Her speech-turned-essay discusses the how’s and why’s of lying among women, “within the context of male lying, the lies of the powerful, the lie as a false source of power.” The feminism in this piece is very clear, as she writes about the power of the male and how women must lie for survival in the face of that power. Today, this sounds a bit extreme, but the farther back in time one goes, the more sense this statement makes. Historically, women have always been dependent on men, and while we are becoming more independent, men and women still aren’t treated as equals. For example, in 2013 women earned only 78 cents for every dollar earned by men according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.
Also, the prose of this speech-turned-essay is also noteworthy. As one reads, it is obvious that the piece is meant to be read aloud in the way that the words flow, almost like a poem. Rich writes, “In the struggle for survival we tell lies. To bosses, to prison guards, the police, men who have power over us, who legally own us and our children, lovers who need us as proof of their manhood.” The second sentence isn’t an independent clause, but the flow and beat of it works well with the rest of the essay. This is an example of an asyndeton and an enumeratio, both of which make the list seem longer. In addition Rich writes, “It is important to do this because it breaks down human self-delusion and isolation. It is important to do this because in so doing we do justice to our own complexity. It is important to do this because we can count on so few people to go that hard way with us,” each in its own line/paragraph. This anaphora helps show the components and highlight the importance of “it” (love).