Smith College

He is smart and pretty college boy. Esther believes that she has to marry him because that is what society expects from her. In reality Esther does not want to marry Buddy and she tries to her best to get him out of her life by trying to date other men. Buddy Still is part of Esther

Sylvia Plath suggests that in certain cases there are gaps in what people expect of a person and what that person actually experiences; add that with depression and the expectations of women in the 1950s, and there will be certain distortions in individual thoughts. Esther, the narrator of the The Bell Jar, contradicts every aspect of what is expected of a women in this time period. Society and the way it works seems to drive Esther mad, possibly claiming what is expected of certain groups can ,perhaps

Sylvia Plath, a very talented writer and poet, focuses on two very prominent themes in her works: death, specifically suicide, and suffering. In her only novel, The Bell Jar, the protagonist, Esther Greenwood, takes the reader on a journey that explores the life and struggles of a young female poet and a tragic heroine. Esther's experiences reflect those of Sylvia Plath's. Plath describes her life as she saw it, confessing her thoughts and feelings to her audience. In her poems, "Perseus", "Lorelei"

Sylvia Plath’s wit, sarcasm, and myriad of emotions in The Bell Jar are all shown throughout. Esther Greenwood, whom represents Plath in the novel, feels trapped in a bell jar that is society. Esther never truly learned how to be an independent individual herself, so she is simply dependent on others and follows their way of life being that she is highly indecisive. Esther Greenwood’s insanity is influenced by her role within the society of the 1950s and by the dominance of males which she had to

Esther mentions that Doreen “made [her] feel [she] was that much sharper than the others” (Plath 5) and initiates a feeling of superiority in Esther. Esther’s experience at college “is simply a stylized or heightened version of her quest to forge her own identity” (Marjorie 1). Her first time holding her own sense of freedom and facing the world by herself greatly impacts Esther. However, she differs in an inexplicable way from

In the novel The Bell Jar, Plath represents a great theme of a myth of death and rebirth. The main character, Esther, in the beginning of the novel is represented as a clever nineteen year old who gets an internship at a famous women’s magazine in New York City. Regardless of her aspiration and bright future, she finds herself feeling disconnected from society, and not being able to fit the time period’s social expectations. This leads her to find herself hopeless to be constantly happy and face

the second factor that led to her withdrawal and collapse. Her flawless academic tract record which are highlighted on the article by California State University, Stanislaus include first place in Boston Globe contest, full scholarship to Wellesley College, Full Bright scholarship in Mademoiselle Fiction Contest, and other grants and private scholarship truly suggests that Esther Greenwood sets an extreme standard of herself leaving no room for possibility of failure. Based on an article by Ernest Shulman

Essential and effective rhetorical strategies, used repetitively throughout by Plath, was simile and metaphor. With the use of these strategies, the reader was able to sincerely understand the complexity and obscurity of Esther’s mindset. For example, Plath creates a very straightforward statement in the form of a simile to capture Esther’s emotions in that exact moment in time “I felt like a hole in the ground”. This certain sentence was meant to express Esther’s feelings, which during this point

Water; something seen as simplistic as it only consists of two elements, yet it is capable of removing even the deepest of stains. In The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath looms over the idea of suffering and how purity equals perfection, though any iniquities can be remedied with a simple fixture of water. Esther views water as being a sacrosanct object that can be used as an oasis from suffering and a cleansing towards corruption. Esther faces many variables that taint her idea of purity, and her way of coping

Marilyn Monroe is an example of a a real life Esther Greenwood. Though Plath essentially based the character off of her own life and experiences, the Bell Jar was a commentary on women’s roles in the 50’s era. Many could relate to the themes of the book, including women’s sexuality and roles in society, as well as the way that mental illness was handled back in that time period. Marilyn Monroe is a classic example of how these issues were ignored or considered normal in that time period. Much like