The Bell Jar: A Novel (Perennial Classics)
by Sylvia Plath

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Book Reviews of The Bell Jar: A Novel (Perennial Classics)

Book Review: Very well written book
Summary: 5 Stars

With this in mind from the first chapter it is easy to see that the author felt separate from her "healthy" counterparts. I think most of us feel that at some time, however her disassociation became more complete. I was wishing, I had had a sense of what she was like before this began. Was this an extreme change or did she often feel set apart, when she was technically healthy.

What is frightening about this book is that while you are in her head with the writing, none of her thoughts or feelings seem so outrageous. In the afterward it indicated she pondered rewriting the whole story from the outside perspective, from her mother and associate's point of view. There were some references that were startling, as the not changing clothes and bathing that were not apparent to the reader that she adds in occasionally. This gives you a sense of a disconnect between the inside and the outside that she was feeling. This outside perspective would have added much to understanding the why for her mother's first suggestion to seeing a doctor, as from "Esther's" view this seemed unnecessary. Ironically, the character never really questioned the need for either the doctor's visit or the electroshock therapy. This shows the character's ability to comply, regardless of how she felt. Authority and other's measurements of her, as most good student's played a very strong part in her personality.

Later on, when she is recovering in the asylum, her relations with other people improve, however, she does not appear to the reader to be so different in thought. It appears that the measurement of success is entirely based on the patient's relation to the outside world. As there were no more references to poor hygiene or suicidal thought, this apparently was the mark of wellness. From the reader's perspective this does not necessarily make the transition from a lack of mental health to one that is acceptable, so obvious. It also apparently does not give the patient a framework to work with. This is evident by the fact that she did go on to successfully commit suicide years later.

This is a coming of age story that many people have faced in one sense, though not to that extreme, when they get to an age of moving from the teenage world to that of an adult. Often this is triggered by moving from the academic setting to that of the working world. There a disconnect that happens there. The high achieving student that Sylvia Plath was, was apparently unprepared for the shift in priorities that happens during this shift. She lost her footing and until her behavior became extreme, no one noticed..

As this is the second time I read this book, it is evident, I hold it in high regard. It is easy to empathize with the character of Esther and her dilemma's. In some ways too easy. I think most of us when we are troubled disassociate ourselves with the world around us and become very egocentric. This book may serve as blue print for testing yourself to see how well you are doing. I also think this is a good book for young people at this stage to read. It will give them some sense that someone has been there and done that and maybe it can get them to ask for help before they get to the point she did.

Summary of The Bell Jar: A Novel (Perennial Classics)

The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under--maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that Esther's insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experiece as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.

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