PlotOverview

AbouttheAuthor

Briefly,butusingtheentirespace,discusstheplot,
conflict,andrisingactiontosummarizetheplot.
Useyourownwords.

EstherGreenwoodisayounggirlfrom
Massachusettswhoreceivesafullridescholarship
toacollegeandmovestonewYorktoworkina
magazineindustryforamonth.Whilebeingthere,
shedoesnotfindherselfashappyorexcitedasthe
othergirlswithherlivinginTheBigApple.She
looksateveryothergirlanddescribesherselfbeing
theexactopposite.Herclosefriend,Betsy,
attemptstocheerherupbutEsthercannotget
herselftoreact.Shedidnotlikegoingoutatnight
topartiesorhangingaroundwithfriends.Her
collegeboyfriend,Bussy,getstuberculosisbuttells
Estherhewantstomarryherrightafterhe
recovers.Sheisunsureifthedecisionandendsup
leavinghimwhenheconfesseshavinganaffair
withanothergirl.Esthergoestostaywithhermom
forawhileonesummershesignsupforacollege
summerclassandreceivesaletterstatingshehas
notbeenacceptedandcannotjoin.Sheis
devastatedatthisnewsandafterhisfallintodeep
depressionandinsanity.Hermomrecommendsher
toapsychiatristtotalkoutherproblems,butshe
feelslikehedoesnothelpherimproveatall.This
situationwasbasicallythelaststrawforherand
sheattemptstocommitsuicide.Shestartsby
cuttingherself,andthentriestohangherselfbut
cannotfindanywheretohangtherope.Oneday
shegoestothebeachwithherfriendsandtriesto
drownherselfbutshekeptfloatingbackup.Then
onedayshelocksherselfaroomandtakesseveral
pills,onlytowakeupandrealizesheisinahospital
room.Againsheissenttotherapyinordertoletout
herfeelingsandgettreatment.However,doingthis
justgiveshermoreofamotivetokillherself.

SylviaPlathwasborn1932inBoston,
Massachusetts.ShegraduatedfromSmithCollege
in1955andwonaScholarshiptoCambridge
University.Notonlydidshewrotebooks,butshe
alsowrotepoetrysuchas
Ariel,TheColossus,
WinterTrees,
and
CrossingtheWater
.
TheBellJar
happenedtobeheronlynovel.Shemarriedapoet
namesTedHughesandtheyhadtwochildren
together.Shediedin1963inLondon.

NovelNotes

TheBellJar

SylviaPlath

YasmeenCasillas

3/16/16

HistoricalContext

TheBellJarw
asfirstpublishedinLondonby
WilliamHeinemannLimitedinJanuary1963.The
BellJararebasedonthethemesofPlathsearly
life.ShefacedseveralhardshipsandTheBellJar
basicallyrevolvesaroundeverythingsheactually
wentthrough.Shefirstconcentratedonpoetryand
teaching,butitissaidthatatthistimeshealready
hadaversionofTheBellJarbeforeshepublished
it.

EssentialQuotes

Whereverisatonthedeckofashiporatastreet
cafeinParisorBangkokIwouldstillbesitting
underthesameglassbelljar,stewinginmyown
sourair(Plath185).

Tothepersoninthebelljar,blankandstoppedas
adeadbody,theworlditselfisabaddream(167).

AddWorkCitedHere:

Plath,Sylvia.
TheBellJar
.NewYork:Harper&Row,
1971.Print.

CharacterAnalysis

Themes

Identifyeachmajorcharacterinthenovel.
Describethemostimporttraitsthatcharacterize
thisperson.(
S
peech,
T
houghts,
E
ffectsonother,
A
ction,
L
ooks)

EstherGreenwood:Thenarratorofthebookand
theprotagonist.Sheisayounggirlattending
collegeinNewYork.Thoughherchildwasfilled
withhappymemories,shebeginstofallinto
depressiononcesheattendsschool.Throughout
thebook,sherevealsherfeelingandfallsinto
insanity.ShegrewupintheBostonsuburbswith
hermotherandbrother,herfatherdiedwhenshe
wasnineyearsold.Sheisintelligentandtalented,
yetshefeelsasifeverythingaroundherisunreal.
Doreen:DoreenisEsther'sfriendfromcollege.
Theyformtogetherandarefairlyclose.Esther
envysDoreenabit,becausesherebelsagainst
othersandEstheradmiresthat,butcannotdoit
herself.EstherandDoreenareinthesame
magazineindustryandbotharewriters.
BuddyWillard:HeisEsther'scollegeboyfriend.
Theyhardlygettoseeeachother,butEstherstill
triststheirlongdistancerelationship.Heisagood
lookingmanwhograduatedfromYaleandattended
medicalschoolrightafter.
JayCee:JayCeeisEsther'sbossinthemagazine
company.ShesometimesgivesEstherahardtime,
butisstillverykind.SheencouragesEsthertobe
ambitious,butEstherdoesnotherselfachieving
this.
Mrs.Greenwald:Esther'smother.Whenshesees
Esther,sheworriesforhersinceshedoesn'tactas
thesamegirlssheusedtobe.Shestillfeelsalittle
depressedoverherhusband'sdeath.Shetakesa
jobasateacherforshorthandtyping.

Identifyandanalyzesomeofthesignificantthemes
inthenovel.

GrowththroughpainThroughoutthewhole
novel,Esthergetsconflictsthrownatherthat
shehastoovercomefromherjobandschool.
Despiteeverythingshefaced,shewasstillable
tomanageeverythingandtheseexperiences
helpedhergrowandlearnfromhermistakes.

Roleofwomeninthe1950sAroundthetime
ofthebook,therightsofwomenwere
restricted.Estherlovedwritingpoemsbutwas
tornbetweenfollowingherdreamsand
followingtheroleofwomenasitwasexpected.
Shehadahardtimewithotherpeoplesince
societyexpectedwomentosettledownand
havefamilythoughshedesirestowrite
instead.

MotifsandSymbols

Identifyandinterpretsomeofthemajormotifsand
symbolsinthenovel.

TheBellJarthisrepresentsmadness.Esther
atthebeginningfeelstrappedinsidethejarby
everyonebuttowardstheendthejaropens
andsheisabletoletouteverythingshehad
insideofher.

Bloodthebloodrepresentssacrificefromher
cuttingherowncalfsforpractice,tohittinga
maninthenoseinordertoprotectherself.

MirrorsAsthestoryprogresses,Estherlooks
atherselfindifferentmirrorsandcannoteven
recognizethereflection.Whenshegoestosee
thepsychiatrist,thereisamirrorandthewhole
timeshethinkstheladyinthereflectionis
someoneelsestandingontheotherside/in
frontofher.Themirrorssymbolizesher
insanity.