The Bell Jar in Never too Late to Read Classics

Jan 27, 2018 Josh Caporale rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars

I never thought I would be reading as much from Sylvia Plath as I am reading now. I was introduced to her through the Confessional Poetry unit that summed up my American Literature II class and she was certainly over the top with the way she conveyed herself. I did not like her poems "Daddy" and Lady Lazarus" by any means, for I felt that she was taking sympathy from people that were in far worse situations than hers. I have expressed my distaste for both of these poems on Literary Glad 3.5 stars

I never thought I would be reading as much from Sylvia Plath as I am reading now. I was introduced to her through the Confessional Poetry unit that summed up my American Literature II class and she was certainly over the top with the way she conveyed herself. I did not like her poems "Daddy" and Lady Lazarus" by any means, for I felt that she was taking sympathy from people that were in far worse situations than hers. I have expressed my distaste for both of these poems on Literary Gladiators against the opposing views of the others on the panel and, sure enough, these episodes received strong viewership. This led me to incorporate a Sylvia Plath work on each season and I have realized that "Cut" and "Tulips" were quite fascinating in their nature, especially with how "Tulips" presents the point of view of being in an institution. It has also been cited as the point where Plath's writing became dark and what Ted Hughes described as what "was the first sign of what was on its way" (from a biographical note by Lois Ames).

Then I decided to approach The Bell Jar. This is the only novel that Sylvia Plath has written and is deemed as one of the closest views we can get of Plath's very own struggles and this, perhaps, would help us learn more about why she was the way she was. While the struggles of Esther Greenwood run a few parallels to Plath's very own life, this is still a work of fiction that takes a different direction to some capacity. Esther starts out in New York City engaged in a summer internship at Ladies Day magazine. She is also involved in plenty of evening festivities that she does not seem to enjoy as much as the others, not to mention a more "off the beaten path" outlook of her surroundings. She also looks back on her relationship with Buddy Willard, who wants to become a doctor and marry a woman that will take on traditional, womanly attributes and duties (which Esther does not possess), but life's circumstances cause Buddy to change his course and this creates a strain between Esther and Buddy's relationship.

Upon returning to Massachusetts to stay with her mother and engage in the opportunities that await while she is there, things begin to fall through for Esther and she begins to enter a state of depression that turns into a loss of her sanity that requires medical care. Throughout the novel, we follow Esther through her inconsistent state of affairs and how one moment things are calm and sound and in the next, things start to tick and she is required to stay at an even more restricted institution. With the story being told from Esther's first person account, we follow her along through the moments of her life and the struggles that take place within this life of hers.

The Bell Jar was a somewhat complicated reading experience, which I feel it is supposed to be. Esther is not the most reliable narrator to say the very least in where she leaves out specific details regarding how she gets from one point to the next, which I feel is primarily intended, though it leaves us with an execution that creates a slight strain on me the reader. The execution in general can be a bit burdensome in my and other people's experience in reading this novel. There are also plenty of moments that lead me to think, "why the heck did she just do THAT?" Some of the inconsistencies come with the deterioration of one's mental state, but the way in which it was conveyed could have been a little less blurry.

HOWEVER, I think that this is a novel that I will continue to think about and there is a lot to explore and talk about within the text. It is challenging to pinpoint technicalities within this text, for I feel it was not Plath's priority in putting forth this novel that was essentially telling her story on a fictional canvas. I think that if Plath's intent was to make you think beyond the text for any given reason, then I think she succeeded. If you want to learn more about mental conditions, insanity, the deterioration of the mind, and are looking for something different, this is a book for you. If you want something organized, consistent, and reliable, this is by no means the book you should be reading.

This definitely tied my brain up in a few knots, but I would not expect any less from Sylvia Plath.

You can find the Literary Gladiators discussion about this book (containing spoilers) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clJWq... ...more

27 likes · Like · see review