Gender Roles In Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

In Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, gender roles are presented as barriers that stop female characters from reaching their full potential and from being in control of their own lives. The novel relates to the Feminist Phase of Second Wave Feminism which is focused on the oppression of women and the roles of women within a society.

It could be argued that Esther’s descent into mental illness was triggered by the oppressive situation she finds herself in when her date attempts to rape her. During a dance she realises, “It doesn’t take two to dance, it only takes one,” which suggests that a man is in complete control of her life, therefore women are subjugated and oppressed by men because they have very little freedom or choice. The use of the word

However, Esther begins to think negatively of Buddy when she finds out that he has slept with another woman and is no longer a virgin. Esther claims that “he had been pretending… to be so innocent,” and that Buddy’s illness was “a punishment for living… [a] double life.” Esther is understandable angry because she as a female is expected to be pure and innocent whereas men can sleep with many other women without consequences. According to Kirsty Grocott of The Telegraph, Plath creates a double standard between men and women “by littering the book with brutal, ignorant or ineffectual males, men that enjoy freedoms that women can only dream of.”# Plath may have included this to demonstrate how damaging this double standard can have on young women.

In addition, Plath demonstrates the effect that this double standard can have on young women’s emotions when she Esther becomes extremely mindful of her own virginity, “that weighed like a millstone around my neck.” The simile of a “millstone” reflects the weight of these thoughts that are dragging her downwards into depression, and since they are “around [her] neck,” this prevents her from escaping the damaging

Therefore, this could imply that ironically, gender stereotypes push women to be their true selves instead of what is expected of them because they choose to rebel against the expectations of them. In consequence, women are not oppressed and are instead more free to be their true selves.

On the other hand, Dodo Conway, who is evidently a housewife, “raised her six children” and is happy in the role, since a “serene, almost religious smile lit up the woman’s face.” This contradicts Esther’s views that women are being “brainwashed.” Dodo is happy in her traditional role in staying at home and raising her children. Plath could have included this character to suggest to women that they could be happy being a housewife but that should not be their only option should and they can choose another lifestyle if they wish to do