"To the person in the Bell Jar, blank and stopped as a dead baby, the world itself is the bad dream."
I think that every person who has read this book comes out of the experience changed. Plath's tale of youthful depression reaches beyond the individual experiences of the her character - who, in many ways is actually a reflection of herself in her - and touches upon emotions and thoughts shared by a great many people. I say touch, but in reality this book reached into your heart and wrenches it out. You sympathize with this book you too, have been in the Bell Jar.
My won experience with this book was one of obsession. I did little by read for the few days it took to get through it, and I saw the world through Plaths eyes while I was at work during the day. What makes this tale so perplexing is that, rather than crying for the girl, one is suddenly caught in her dialogue. She becomes a heroine. Her rebellion is the rebellion of every unsatisfied soul, whose greatness is to big for this petty world we live in. You read and you understand.
If you've read this book, how about leaving a comment about your experience?
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Comments: 5
"I close my eyes and the world drops dead, I think I made you up inside my head. I should have loved a thunderbird instead, at least they come back......."
I read that book 17 years ago and to this day I rememer that poem and how it spoke to me. It did not say nice things to me. It was a very emotionally draining experience for me. I read that book when Sinead O'connor was singing Nothing Compares to you. That alone should have made me eligible for a lifetime supply of prozac. For some reason I equated Sinead O'connor with her in my mind. I've never really linked why.
So, great book - very very haunting.
I think that what makes the story so captivating is this bizzare sitation where the lead character has everything she ever wanted - but is miserable. Part of youth is actually experiencing what you think you want and determining its validity as a source of life long happiness.
The hard past is figuring what does make life good, something Plath sadly never found.