The reference to hooks conjures feelings of entrapment which operate in contrast to the lack of control the reader is feeling. The blood mouthfuls provide further links back to death as the overarching theme as the morbid imagery creates a link to the loss of blood. The poem’s links to death and suicide are debated further as many believe that the death in the poem represents the death of a less confident speaker. This can be seen with speaker saying “I unpeel” which could represent the rebirth of a new speaker. The quotation “Suicidal, at one with the drive into the red” could represent the death of the old speaker and the birth of a new personality. By the time Ariel was written Plath had twice attempted to take her life. This suicidal drive
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Heath (2005) states that a “Long Way Down” “isn 't really about suicide itself anyway” a view that has some merit. After the characters’ leave “Toppers House” the novel moves away from discussing the characters suicidal thoughts and focuses on how their general depressed feelings are to be dealt with. In doing this Hornby begins to focus more and more on the humorous aspects of the characters’ suicidal feelings. The dichotomy created by extracting humour from a bleak theme is common in Hornby 's work and helps to bring further contrast with Sexton and Plath. Hornby manages to create amusing situations however in more ways than making light of the characters’ dilemma . Mars-Jones believes that Hornby 's use of riffs are where most of the comedy stems from. There is merit to this idea as the characters’ ramblings take the reader away from the negative aspects of the story as they incorporate unrelated topics or absurd similes. Nowhere is this clearer than in the character Jess whose outbursts often add comedy to dark moments in the novel. “(JJ) wasn 't Ringo, though. He was more like Paul. Maureen was Ringo, except she wasn 't very funny. I was George, except I wasn 't shy or spiritual. Martin was John, except he wasn 't talented or cool.” Outbursts from Jess and others are an easy source of humour that takes the reader away from the sombre tones throughout the novel. I would argue that far more comedy is derived from the how feeble some of the characters’ actions are when confronted with their depression. This is cleared with Martin who attempts to brag about his desire to kill himself claiming “I got something like 21 out of 30 points” referring to Aaron T Beck 's Suicide Intent Scale. This ultimately does nothing to show how laughable his attempt at suicide is which can be seen as highly
Heath (2005) states that a “Long Way Down” “isn 't really about suicide itself anyway” a view that has some merit. After the characters’ leave “Toppers House” the novel moves away from discussing the characters suicidal thoughts and focuses on how their general depressed feelings are to be dealt with. In doing this Hornby begins to focus more and more on the humorous aspects of the characters’ suicidal feelings. The dichotomy created by extracting humour from a bleak theme is common in Hornby 's work and helps to bring further contrast with Sexton and Plath. Hornby manages to create amusing situations however in more ways than making light of the characters’ dilemma . Mars-Jones believes that Hornby 's use of riffs are where most of the comedy stems from. There is merit to this idea as the characters’ ramblings take the reader away from the negative aspects of the story as they incorporate unrelated topics or absurd similes. Nowhere is this clearer than in the character Jess whose outbursts often add comedy to dark moments in the novel. “(JJ) wasn 't Ringo, though. He was more like Paul. Maureen was Ringo, except she wasn 't very funny. I was George, except I wasn 't shy or spiritual. Martin was John, except he wasn 't talented or cool.” Outbursts from Jess and others are an easy source of humour that takes the reader away from the sombre tones throughout the novel. I would argue that far more comedy is derived from the how feeble some of the characters’ actions are when confronted with their depression. This is cleared with Martin who attempts to brag about his desire to kill himself claiming “I got something like 21 out of 30 points” referring to Aaron T Beck 's Suicide Intent Scale. This ultimately does nothing to show how laughable his attempt at suicide is which can be seen as highly