The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

Sylvia Plath was a famous American poet and novelist. Plath’s first and only novel, The Bell Jar, is a work of semi-autobiographical fiction. She wrote the novel under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas, and it was published in 1963. Unfortunately, 1963 was also the year that brought about Plath’s final and successful suicide attempt, at the age of 30. The novel was not re-published under her own name until 1967.

This novel is a haunting, elegiac, and powerful work of fiction that explores mental illness. Plath invites her readers to indulge in the overwhelming sense of anxiety created by the pressure of ‘being perfect’. The existential crisis and anxieties that plague 20-something-year-olds when faced with decisions of who they want to be and how their choices will affect the rest of their lives, saturates Plath’s novel. Plath’s narrator Esther Greenwood is a bright young women, who has maintained straight A’s throughout her entire academic career, has won various scholarships, and was granted a prestigious summer internship in New York City as an editor’s assistant. As readers, we follow Esther’s journey into and through depression.

Plath’s choice in narration allows readers inside Esther’s head, so that the reader can see her thought processes. Her musings over suicide do not romanticize or demonize depression. Esther’s anxiety surrounding her future and the ‘point of life’ are relatable. Esther explains that life is like a fig tree, and that every fig on the tree represents a different path in life. Once you pick a fig, you cannot choose another. But the longer you hesitate to choose one, the more likely they are to shrivel up and fall off. These figs represent paths in life, and opportunities granted. They don’t last forever, and you may only have a short period of time to decide whether to take it. Every decision you make in life will change, shape, and affect your future. This is existentially terrifying. The future is daunting, and this anxiety of choice is what drags Esther down. This novel deals with delicate discussions about suicide, which can be triggering for some readers.

The book is not without it’s problematic elements. Esther uses outdated and inappropriate terminology when describing certain groups of people. As a narrator, Esther is shaping the way in which we see her world, and for her to use racist language casually is problematic, because it suggests that this language is natural and inevitable. When reading classic novels, we must be able to deconstruct such language and recognize that it so as not to perpetuate the idea that these terms are acceptable and okay to use in every-day life, which they are not. If we can recognize these troublesome elements, such as blatant and inappropriate racist language, then we can fully engage with the novel, and approach the progressive attempts that the novel undeniably makes.

How can we talk about depression without glorifying or demonizing it?

Plath allows us to understand mental illness through her beautiful use of imagery and symbolism. Her personal experience and struggles with depression support her accurate descriptions and similes. Plath invites the readers to understand what it feels like to struggle with depression and anxiety. Plath does not use flowery language to dress up or romanticize the struggle, nor does she choose language that might cast the illness in a biased and villainous light. Plath uses her skills of imagery to display honesty. She wants people to understand what it feels like. The novel feels confessional, not performative. Plath may have been working through understanding her own struggles with her mental health, through the character of Esther, and that is why many believe the novel is semi-autobiographical.

What is ‘the Bell Jar’?

Plath’s imagery and use of metaphors is brilliant because it allows the readers to imagine what it feels like to be Esther. Esther explains that her depression feels like living inside a bell jar. She says that she feels trapped, and that she can only continue to breath in her own toxic air. She wishes that she could find a way to lift the jar, even just a little, so as to let fresh air in, and to let some of her toxic air escape. She explains that depression can feel like a slow suffocation or poisoning, and that you feel trapped, with no way out. A bell jar is also a beautiful (or cruel) way to preserve what is inside, while maintaining that the inside item is on display. When Esther mentions that her depression is like living in a bell jar, it is a nonchalant comment, and that is what makes it brilliant; readers may not have fully realized the significance of the title until Esther’s explanation. The symbolism of the bell jar is significant, because it is understandable and relatable. The clever comparison between the bell jar and depression displays Plath’s effortless control and mastery of language.

How can we lift the jar, even just a little?

Plath ingeniously and subtly suggests that there is no magical cure for depression. Her character Esther continues to struggle with her depression throughout the entirety of the book, and *SPOILER* is never fully ‘cured’. Esther is continually trying and struggling to overcome her depression and her longing to end the pain. Plath allows her readers to see Esther struggle time and time again, as she tries talking to different people, different doctors, is given various treatments in various institutions, all to no avail. This is not meant to say that there is no cure for depression, but to say that there is no one cure for depression. If you are living with depression, it is a constant journey, with good days, dark days, and really bad days. Plath humanizes depression by building empathy between her readers and Esther. Her fears are founded, and her arguments and analogies make sense. Neither Esther, nor Plath herself, are ‘crazy’. They are human. They possess the ability to think, to worry, to stress, to dwell on, and to ‘get stuck on’. Plath’s intentions are not for you to pity or sympathize with Esther, but to understand why she feels the way that she does. And for this, Plath’s work is truly beautiful.

This book can be a beneficial tool to approach topics of mental health, of the anxieties felt growing up, and would be beneficial to students at a high school age. This must be approached delicately though, because it does contain problematic and triggering elements. Educators should be aware of the racist language used in the novel, and be prepared to tread carefully through discussions of depression and mental illness. Of course this should not deter teachers from Plath’s book, as it allows us to connect to an intelligent, independent and relatable female character. Plath’s reader’s can recognize Esther’s strengths, her weaknesses, and her growth as a person. Individuals of all ages can learn and understand what it feels like to live in a bell jar of self-doubt, anxiety and depression.

Sonic Approved