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Daddy
by
Daddy
By Sylvia Plath
You do not do, you do not do
Any more, black shoe
In which I have lived like a foot
For thirty years, poor and white,
Barely daring to breathe or Achoo.
Daddy, I have had to kill you.
You died before I had time——
Marble-heavy, a bag full of God,
Ghastly statue with one gray toe
Big as a Frisco seal
And a head in the freakish Atlantic
Where it pours bean gre ...more
By Sylvia Plath
You do not do, you do not do
Any more, black shoe
In which I have lived like a foot
For thirty years, poor and white,
Barely daring to breathe or Achoo.
Daddy, I have had to kill you.
You died before I had time——
Marble-heavy, a bag full of God,
Ghastly statue with one gray toe
Big as a Frisco seal
And a head in the freakish Atlantic
Where it pours bean gre ...more
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3 pages
Published
(first published 1965)
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in this poem Sylvia Plath used some metaphors and imagery to show how she was a victim of her father or perhaps her husband.
by using some German words the speaker is showing that her German father is like a Nazi and therefore she is a Jew. At the end of this poem, the metaphor for the speaker's father and husband, and potentially all men, shifts from Nazis to vampires.The vampire has sucked the narrator's blood for seven years, probably the length of their marriage. This is a vivid metaphor for ...more
by using some German words the speaker is showing that her German father is like a Nazi and therefore she is a Jew. At the end of this poem, the metaphor for the speaker's father and husband, and potentially all men, shifts from Nazis to vampires.The vampire has sucked the narrator's blood for seven years, probably the length of their marriage. This is a vivid metaphor for ...more

This is the first time I'm reading Plath with full dedication and it blew me away. A poem which ranges from innocent child-talk to dark, disturbing Holocaust images leaves you emotionally drained, and rightly so. Such is the passion and brutal honestly which comes across. Plath does not shy away from wrapping the whole poem in a blanket of somberness, leaving you no way to escape. You feel the weight of her love, hatred, and helplessness as your own. A gem of a poem.
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an incredibly beautiful, yet heart-wrecking tale of fear, hatred and release.
Sylvia Plath tries in this marvellous poem to forgive her father for what he has, or has not, been for her...
He died when she was 10, but she still remembers his figure, the fear he used to instill in her, so much so that she would never learn German, her mother tongue, because when he spoke it, it meant that something bad was going to happen.
But fear is not the only sentiment this poem arouses. Anger and hatred are d ...more
Sylvia Plath tries in this marvellous poem to forgive her father for what he has, or has not, been for her...
He died when she was 10, but she still remembers his figure, the fear he used to instill in her, so much so that she would never learn German, her mother tongue, because when he spoke it, it meant that something bad was going to happen.
But fear is not the only sentiment this poem arouses. Anger and hatred are d ...more

This is one of the many Plath poems I studied in my final year of high school, and undoubtedly one of my favourites. Every time I re-read it, I find new meaning and symbolism, which I absolutely love in poetry. I was inspired to pick this up again after watching a documentary about the life of Ted Hughes, in which Plath is heavily featured.
The running metaphor of comparing her father/husband to vampires is brilliant.
"If I've killed one man, I've killed two--
The vampire who said he was you
And d ...more
The running metaphor of comparing her father/husband to vampires is brilliant.
"If I've killed one man, I've killed two--
The vampire who said he was you
And d ...more

I really liked this poem. It paints a hierarchal authority figure in her life that casts a shadow over her. Throughout her life, Plath has had to struggle on her own and like "Lady Lazarus", she comes out in a state of power, "You bastard, I'm through".
Update: I have read this poem just again and I love it even more; it is the poem I read the most to the point where I am on the verge of cementing it to memory. ...more
Update: I have read this poem just again and I love it even more; it is the poem I read the most to the point where I am on the verge of cementing it to memory. ...more

"I’m through."
...more

"Daddy, I have had to kill you.
You died before I had time.."
...more
You died before I had time.."
...more

"At twenty I tried to die
And get back, back, back to you.
I thought even the bones would do.
But they pulled me out of the sack,
And they stuck me together with glue." ...more
And get back, back, back to you.
I thought even the bones would do.
But they pulled me out of the sack,
And they stuck me together with glue." ...more

I read this millions of times. And every time i read it feels like the first time.. Sylvia just brought me to tears When i listened to it by her voice. omg.. If u haven't listened to it please do!! idk what to say. I really dont. Crying off my face again. I wish Sylvia was here so I could tell her: " i feel u Sylvia. I immensely DO...."
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it's ok. eh
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Slightly disturbing poem about Sylvia's father. Sounds like he abused her, esp since she committed suicide at the age of 30.
...more

yes i'm logging this to cheat my goodreads goal but it's important that you listen to sylvia read this herself if you haven't it will CHANGE YOUR LIFE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hz1a...
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Sylvia Plath was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer. Known primarily for her poetry, Plath also wrote a semi-autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar, under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas. The book's protagonist, Esther Greenwood, is a bright, ambitious student at Smith College who begins to experience a mental breakdown while interning for a fashion magazine in New York. The plot parall
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