The nineteen fifties and sixties were a troubling time for Americans. Although the nation was prospering, a constant threat was hanging over the heads of every citizen. Oppressed classes found that they had more to fear than active members of society. Not only did they live in fear of attacks from another nation, but also attacks from fellow citizens of the United States. Women in America were subject to objectification from the men with whom they lived, and in turn began to question the purpose of existence. Neo-romanticism became a popular ideology once again, leading women to yearn for a life outside of the ones that they were living. The late fifties and early sixties reintroduced several radical ideologies such as: feminism, existentialism, and romanticism, all of which proved fatal for Sylvia Plath. Plath was born in the seaside town of Winthrop, Massachusetts during the year of 1932. In her first eight years of life, Plath was troubled with the birth of a new sibling, the death of a parent, and the start of a war. These eight years were the calm before the stormy life of Sylvia Plath. As an only child, Plath felt threatened by the new baby in the family. Her new sibling, Warren, sparked a disdain for children that Plath would harbor for the rest of her life. In 1940, Plath’s father died and essentially robbed the children of a proper relationship with their mourning mother. The family moved inland where Plath focused on writing poetry until she began to attend Smith College in 1950. While at Smith, Plath received many awards in regard to the poetry that she had written. After winning the Mademoiselle fiction contest, the popular magazine offered Plath a place on their editorial board. While working with Mademoiselle, Pla... ... middle of paper ... ...Sink wrote a very in-depth analysis of the feminist movement in this essay. The general ideas behind feminism helped to organize a basic understanding of how the women’s movement affected Sylvia Plath. “The Romantic Era.” The France of Victor Hugo. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. https://www.mtholyoke.edu/courses/rschwart/hist255/index.html This page provides a general description of the Romantic movement. It was useful in the sense that it formed an understanding of how basic themes of the movement affected Plath’s life and works. Wagner-Martin, Linda. “Sylvia Plath (1932-1963).” Cengage Learning. Web. 21 Feb. 2014. http://college.cengage.com/english/heath/syllabuild/iguide/plath.html This website provided useful information about Sylvia Plath. Wagner-Martin has composed a comprehensive lesson plan that can be used to either teach or study the methods with which Plath wrote.
In American society, the common stereotype is that the father has the role of the dominant figure in the household. Sylvia Plath and Sharon Olds may come across as two seemingly different poets, however, they are really quite similar, especially in their driving forces behind their writing styles in poetry. The lives of Plath and Olds are both expressive of the realities of a father-dominated family, in which both of these poets lost their fathers at a young age. This is significant because both poets have faced a similar traumatic event that has had everlasting effects on their adult womanhood, which is reflected in their writings. For both these woman, their accesses to father-daughter relationships were denied based on life circumstances. Ironically, their fathers were their muses for writing and are what made them the women they are today.
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Sylvia Plath (American author)." 23 September 2013. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 9 April 2014 .
Emily Dickinson is regarded as “America’s most original poet” and was born on December 10th, 1830 (CITATION1). During her life, she spent most of her time alone in her house, spending time with only herself and writing poetry. When she died at the age of fifty-five, her sister decided to publish the 1,800 poems Emily had written. Before her death, Emily had only published ten of her poems. Because of this, she was not widely known before she died, unlike Sylvia Plath. Sylvia Plath, on the other hand, is a well-known author and poet. She even won the Pulitzer Prize award for Poetry in 1982 (CITATION2). Sylvia was similar to Emily Dickinson in that she was not an outgoing person. In fact, she was often depressed, and eventually took her own life in 1963 (CITATION3). While unfortunate, Sylvia Plath had written many popular poems, such as “Daddy”, short stories, and a semi-autobiographical novel called “The Bell Jar”.
Born on October 27, 1932, in Boston, Massachusetts, Sylvia Plath was the daughter of Otto and Aurelia Plath. Growing up during the Great Depression, the family lived under Mr. Plath's care until he became sick with diabetes, dying shortly after Sylvia's eighth birthday. In spite of her father's death, Plath's childhood seemed to have been relatively mere (Austin). It is said that, “Sylvia conformed to the notion of the model child--excelling in school and whatever intellectual activities interested her, being docile and responsive to her family's wishes, and aiming steadily for honors and success in the American tradition of the 1950s” (Wanger). However, beneath the surface of her seeming perfection laid some grave troublesome problems, brought on by the death of her father. To rid some of the stress because of the recent death in the Plath’s life, Aurelia moved the family to Wellesley, Massachusetts. Aurelia enrolled Sylvia in a new school, feeling that studying and being with children Sylvia’s age would console her (Alexander 21). On the contrary it is said that, “Sylvia was still confused and angry about her father’s death…Her strong and conflicting emotions of love, hate, anger and grief at the loss of her father were to affect Sylvia for the rest of her life” (A...
"About." Personal Blog, n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2015. [When finding an explanation for the similarities between the writers, it is important to play close attention to biographies. In case the psychoeconomic factors that Ruonco describes are true, then biography constitutes most of the development of the Sylvia Plath affliction. Moreover, the biography provides an insight into the views of the author for a better and more accurate understanding of her poetry. Furthermore, it is imperative to use her auto-statement since she referres to her "muse" as something out of her control which can be traced to Kaufman's
Sylvia Plath is a twentieth century award winning poet and novelist of The Bell Jar. Plath was born on October 23, 1932 in Jamaica Plain Massachusetts. She suffered from depression for most of her life, starting when she was eight years old after her father died. Plath’s depression is reflected in her works, as she strongly relies on her own feelings to create similar moods, tones and themes in her poems and novel, The Bell Jar.
Throughout the life of Sylvia we was hard times and issues that no one should have to tackle alone. By going through these obstacles she was able to bring to us poerty and a novel that will not soon be forgotten. Her work made a huge step forward for feminists and women for that matter. Sylvia changed the literary world for the good. She is proof that just because you are delt a bad hand, you can make something of yourself. Sylvia also beat the annotation that when you die your fame and work goes with you. It remains clear that this is far from true concerning this young writer. Sylvia Plath was a great writer, one that will remembered for her perseverance and writing style. This great American author will go down in history as a woman who took a stand.
Plath was exceptionally smart and a very talented writer. Plath had published over fifty short stories and poems in magazines and newspapers while she was still in her teenage years. Her first publication was in the Christian Science Monitor, which was published right after she graduated from high school. Upon graduating from high school, Sylvia attended Smith College on a writing scholarship and continued to excel, publishing many works.
Giles, Richard F. “Sylvia Plath.” Magill’s Critical Survey of Poetry. Ed. Frank N. Magill, b. 1875. Pasadena: Salem Press, 1992.
...lmsheimer, Lonna M. "Sylvia Plath." American Writers. Ed. Leonard Unger, A. Walton. Litz, Molly Weigel, and Jay Parini. Supplement 1 Part 2. New York: Scribner, 1974. 526-49. Print.
Sylvia Plath was born on October 27, 1932 in Boston, Massachusetts. Sylvia Plath was one of the greatest poets of her time, but she was very troubled, and struggled with mental health issues her entire life. Plath’s poetry style is known for being confessional, which is: “ Private experiences with and feelings about death, trauma, depression and relationships” were addressed in this type of poetry, often in an autobiographical manner (Poets.org). As a young child, Plath began her writing in journals. Sylvia Plath had a lot going for her, she was popular, smart, and got a scholarship to Smith College, but what was underneath the surface was a dark, and depressed young girl. During her junior year of college she attempted suicide for the first time. Plath was able to recover from her deep depression, and in 1956 she married Ted Hughes (Poethunter.com). At first, their love was strong, and the two writers wrote many poems, and stories together. In 1961 Hughes, and Plath rented their flat at chalcot square to a woman named Assia Wevill. Plath discovered a year later that her husband, Ted Hughes has been having an affair with Assia Wevill. The couple separated in september, and Plath yet again, tried committing suicide (New York Times). Plath decided to move back to London, and figured that the best way to get back at her ex-husband was to write about him. In the winter of 1962-1963 Sylvia’s life hit rock bottom. She was a single mother raising two children, ill with the flu, and low on money. She was at home all day, writing poem after poem. These poems were more darker, and deeper than ever before. January in 1963 the winter was brutal, and it caused her depression to get even worse. Plath put her children to sleep, stuffed a towel ...
October 27, 1932 is the exact date that the one and only Sylvia Plath was born on. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She kept a journal of her poetic work that she started at an early age. As she grew older and wiser, she worked at Mademoiselle magazine as a guest editor while she was attending college. She found her self in a rough obstacle during that time and tried to take her life by overdosing on sleeping pills. After getting the proper treatment at a mental health facility, she went back to school to finish her degree in 1955. “Plath herself had suffered a serious breakdown and attempted suicide between her junior and senior years in college”(Baym). She met Ted Hughes, who she married in 1956, at Cambridge University in England.
Plaths Poetry can be understood through the psychoanalytic model. The motifs of oral fixation, sadomasochism and the desire to return to primary narcissism are consistent throughout Plaths Poetry. Overall these motifs represent the desire to return to the state of primary narcissism and to be reunited with the incestuous love object.
Plath’s father died early in her life leaving her with unresolved feelings, and this brought a lot of troubles later on in life. Sylvia was a great student but when she was overwhelmed with disappointments after a month in New York, she attempted suicide (“Sylvia Plath”). After receiving treatment and recovering, she returned to school and later moved to England where she met her future husband, Ted Hughes (“Sylvia Plath”). Their marriage with two children didn’t last when Ted had an affair. They separated and Ted moved in with the new woman, leaving Sylvia and their two children. Battling depression during this time, Sylvia soon ended her life. She left behind numerous writings that many might see as signs of her depression and suicide attempts.