Ester's Search in Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

502 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Sexuality in literature

Ester's Search in The Bell Jar

“I couldn’t stand the idea of a woman having to have a single pure life and a man being able to have a double life, one pure and one not” (Plath
66). Ester is against the conventional attitude of what a woman’s place in society is and expresses this in a number of ways throughout the book.
Ester tells us her views on the sexual relationship between a man and a woman, motherhood, and the kind of career that is considered practical.
Ester’s view on purity is described in the above quote, and as a result she feels the need to lose her virginity. Ester claims not to want to do this because of Buddy’s affair with the waitress, but just to even up the score. When she was nineteen Ester looked at people as those who hav...

Show More
Related

  • The Role Of Frank And April Wheeler In Revolutionary Road

    1398 Words  | 3 Pages

    In individual searches to find themselves, Frank and April Wheeler take on the roles of the people they want to be, but their acting grows out of control when they lose sense of who they are behind the curtains. Their separate quests for identity converge in their wish for a thriving marriage. Initially, they both play roles in their marriage to please the other, so that when their true identities emerge, their marriage crumbles, lacking communication and sentimentality. Modelled after golden people or manly figures, the roles Frank and April take on create friction with who they actually are. Ultimately, to “do something absolutely honest” and “true,” it must be “a thing … done alone” (Yates 327). One need only look inside his or her self to discover his or her genuine identity.

    Read More

  • Non-Traditional Relationships in The Storm and A Doll´s House

    1731 Words  | 4 Pages

    Finally, even though, for a long time, the roles of woman in a relationship have been established to be what I already explained, we see that these two protagonists broke that conception and established new ways of behaving in them. One did it by having an affair with another man and expressing freely her sexuality and the other by breaking free from the prison her marriage represented and discovering her true self. The idea that unites the both is that, in their own way, they defied many beliefs and started a new way of thinking and a new perception of life, love and relationships.

    Read More

  • Nationalism During the Space Race

    908 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Space Race is remarkably similar to that of the arms race because of the parallel between the creation of the atomic bomb and the goal of reaching the moon. The United States’ bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki effectively established its place as the technologically superior nation; however, major milestones in space achieved early by the Soviets damaged America’s reputation. In 1957, Soviet scientists shocked the world by successfully launching the Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, beyond the Kármán Line (the boundary of space). This amazing breakthrough “rattled American self-confidence. It cast doubts on America’s vaunted scientific superiority and raised some sobering military questions.” This blow to national pride along with the fear that the Soviets could potentially launch ICBMs from space led to “Rocket fever”. The sudden wave of nationalism and the desire to build a space program worthier to that of the Soviet Union led to the...

    Read More

  • A Comparison of Joan Gilling and Esther Greenwoods in Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

    1217 Words  | 3 Pages

    Have you ever heard of the term “doppelgănger”? If not, it means “double” in German. To say that the character, Joan Gilling, is Esther Greenwoods “double” in the novel “The Bell Jar”, by Sylvia Plath, would be an understatement. Esther and Joan are one in the same. Joan and Esther endure many of the same obstacles throughout the novel. Joan’s actions to these struggles ultimately make Esther come to terms with reality. Either change her ways, and move on with her life, or end up like Joan, dead.

    Read More

  • Sylvia Plath and the Bell Jar

    1115 Words  | 3 Pages

    "The bell jar hung, suspended, a few feet above my head…” For most people, when the name Sylvia Plath comes to mind, the word “psychotic” is the word that follows; however, there was more to Plath than her demented works. Throughout her shortened life, Plath had a variety of titles bestowed upon her: daughter, sister, student, wife, mother, teacher, author, and poetess However, Sylvia Plath was a haunted soul, as she also had the labels of “manic depressive” and “bipolar.” Her constant struggles with her mental illnesses are evident in her writing, especially her semi-autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

    2556 Words  | 6 Pages

    “Perhaps when we find ourselves wanting everything, it is because we are dangerously close to wanting nothing.” ( http://thinkexist.com/quotes/sylvia_plath/)

    Read More

  • Suerveillance and Repression

    1626 Words  | 4 Pages

    the thought police. In today’s society if a women gives into sexual intimacy with another person

    Read More

  • The Ethical Dilemma of Assisted Suicide for Nurses

    863 Words  | 2 Pages

    In today's society, one of the most controversial health-care-related ethical issues is assisted suicide for terminally ill patients. Assisted suicide is not to be confused with ethically justified end-of-life decisions and actions. Nurses have a responsibility to deliver comprehensive and benevol...

    Read More

  • Compassion Fatigue And Caregiver Burnout

    1238 Words  | 3 Pages

    Espeland, K. E. (2006). Overcoming burnout: how to revitalize your career. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 37(4), 178-184.

    Read More

  • Native American Alcoholism Essay

    1347 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...were forced to assimilate European culture, often through violent means. The trauma caused by the violence and cultural loss have led Native Americans to use alcohol as a coping mechanism. Finally, their genetic predisposition is also a disadvantage, and unfortunately, it has only served to strengthen their addiction to alcohol.

    Read More

  • Sexual Fulfillment in Chopin's Awakening

    886 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ng in their relationship, but cannot deny something that her newly awakened sexuality craves. It is her way of rebelling against society and fulfilling many suppressed wants and desires. It leaves her empty, however, as this passion did not come from love.

    Read More

  • The Little Mermaid Deconstructed

    2844 Words  | 6 Pages

    It is important to note that I am viewing and analyzing this text from the positionally of a Caucasian, lower-class, female. Not only do I identify as female, but I also consider myself to be a feminist, which is one of my reasons for choosing the feminist framework. I also feel that it is critical to state that I identify as heterosexual, but consider myself an ally to the LGBTIQ community. Therefore, my views on gender may extend to my views on sexuality, since they often go hand-in-hand.

    Read More

  • Esther`s Suicide Attempts in Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

    1129 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the main reasons why Esther tried to commit suicide was the way she perceived her mother's actions, and the fact that she hates her mother:

    Read More

  • How Sexuality is Socially Constructed

    2048 Words  | 5 Pages

    As Tamsin Wilton explains in her piece, “Which One’s the Man? The Heterosexualisation of Lesbian Sex,” society has fronted that heterosexuality, or desire for the opposite sex, is the norm. However, the reason behind why this is the case is left out. Rather, Wilton claims that “heterosexual desire is [an] eroticised power difference [because] heterosexual desire originates in the power relationship between men and women” (161). This social struggle for power forces the majority of individuals into male-female based relationships because most women are unable to overcome the oppressive cycle society has led them into. Whereas heterosexual relationships are made up of the male (the oppressor) and the female (the victim who is unable to fight against the oppressor), homosexual relationships involve two or more individuals that have been freed from their oppressor-oppressed roles.

    Read More

  • Innovations Needed for Deep Space Exploration

    2718 Words  | 6 Pages

    It is within man’s blood and nature to explore, and space is our next New World. Man’s first achievement in space travel was the launch of the Sputnik on October 4, 1957. For the next decades, space travel was roaring like a rocket, fueled by man’s desire to explore, man’s desire for knowledge, and man’s desire to beat his enemies. However, these impulses have died out as the well of government funding has been diverted to wars and debts, and the interest of the American people has been diverted to wars and debts. Amidst all these issues it is debated as to whether or not space travel is worth the money and the attention of scientists, particularly since humanity faces so many issues on earth currently. However, because of the past inventions, current services, and future benefits, space travel is indeed worth the money and attention of governments and people. It is within our hands to control man’s advancement, and space travel is the next venue to do so.

    Read More

More about Ester's Search in Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar

Open Document