Jar

ever wanted; the opportunity to spend a month in NYC editing a national magazine. One might ask what in the world possibly be the same about them? The main characters in the novels The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger be similar than thought possible. Both Ester from the Bell Jar and Holden from The Catcher in the Rye face many trials that helps them to develop their own views on protection of innocence, mental illness and death which results in them…

Dr. Seuss once asked: “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?”, a question still relevant today. Why should we conform to society’s expectations when we were born to escape them? In The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, Esther Greenwood suffered from depression but suppressed how she really felt in hopes of fitting in, which caused her to sink into a further depression. Only when Esther grew out of her desire to fit in was she able to find a way out of her depression. This brought on a valuable…

Elements of Voice: The Bell Jar The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath is a timeless literary classic. One reason that this novel has transcended the ages since the 1960s is Plath’s expert use of the elements of voice. Few novels may stand the test of time. A vast knowledge of author’s craft is necessary to create a story that is intricate and detail-oriented without becoming overly specific and unrelateable. Sylvia Plath suffered from depression throughout her life, which led to her poetry and novels…

One integral metaphor within The Bell Jar is that of the fig tree, which Esther uses to describe her life. She envisions her life as a fig tree spreading out its branches into various futures she could have. One branch symbolizes what society expects of her: to have a husband, children, and a “happy home” (Plath 84). Other branches symbolize a combination of what society expects of her and what she expects of herself: to be a “famous poet,” a “brilliant professor,” or an “amazing editor” (Plath…

Sylvia Plath’s 1963 novel “The Bell Jar”, briefs the story of an amazing, gifted poet, Esther Greenwood, whose falling apart piece by piece due to the pressure of society. Throughout the novel Esther gave many signs on how she's slowly falling apart. When working for the Ladies’ Day magazine in New York, Esther develops a mental illness. An illness that makes her unable to sleep then leads to her not being able to read and write. She then tries to commit suicide multiple times due to the lack of…

The connotation associated with insecurities is that they are rooted from uncertainty of society’s views. This is interesting because society’s opinions can also be deemed unstable. Sylvia Plath comments on this relationship in her novel, The Bell Jar. By telling the relatable story of a protagonist, Esther, who faces society-induced depression, the author highlights the idea that words tend to make an impression on people. Esther cares what people think, being a breath of fresh air compared to…

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath relies heavily on shift in tone and topic to portray the ongoing descent into depression that is the basic story arch for the main character Esther Greenwood. Plath employs a large arsenal of techniques to convey the necessary shifts in the novel. One of the most obvious methods is a direct statement of shift by a character. The direct shift is combined with hints through typical behavior, such as crying. Plath also uses contrasting statements both through Esther…

In the following novels, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath and Breakfast At Tiffany’s by Truman Capote, the stories are both told in the past about important parts in the narrator’s lives. The central characters in both novels are having a hard time in the search for their own identities. In The Bell Jar, the narrator, Esther Greenwood, is very unstable and has a hard time finding herself due to intrinsic problems. In Breakfast At Tiffany’s, the central character, Holly Golightly, is having trouble…

Society, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “a social circle or a group of social circles having a clearly marked identity.” Obtaining a clearly marked identity is easier said than done. The Bell Jar, written by Sylvia Plath, is a novel about nineteen year-old Esther Greenwood struggling to find her place in society. In her struggle, Esther falls into a deep depression and attempts suicide, causing her to be admitted to a mental hospital. Societal expectations of everyone, women…

“The Bell Jar” by Victoria Lucas (Pseudonym of Sylvia Plath) was first time published on 14 January 1963 in the U.S of America after her death in a same year. This book was written as novel by Sylvia Lucas, but in comparison with her life before this book, we can clearly say that it is autobiographical book, where the author tries to wright her personal story but under different name, Plath choose Esther Greenwood as her protégé in the book. Both of them had experience with magazines and…