Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Madness Redefined: Plaths Demystification of Insanity in The Bell Jar

Engl 260/1 - King

Sylvia Plaths The Bell Jar depicts the mental-breakdown of a privileged and educated young woman in 1950s American society. To this day, the literary merit of the novel remains a topic of intense debate. The majority of critics seem to take the stance that its overall worth lies in the autobiographical nature of the novel, the implicit feminist undertones, or, merely in the subject matter itself. Thus, much of the debate surrounding the merit of The Bell Jar centers on how the novel should be read and, whether or not the novel is worth reading at all. Many critics argue that, because Plaths strengths lie in poetry and creating vivid images, her novel lacks certain stylistic elements of literature and is written more like poetry than prose. I would like to argue, however, that it is precisely Plaths use of poetic language and imagery that is able to alter the readers previous conceptions of madness. Plaths novel succeeds in creating an account of madness with a kind beatific innocence that urges both sympathy and understanding on the part of the reader. Thus, I plan to present an account of how Plath is able to - through the manipulation of language, structure, and style - alter the readers previous conceptions of madness by rendering it both more alluring and comprehensible. I plan to demonstrate why Plaths The Bell Jar should be celebrated for more than its autobiographical content or inherent subject matter but, rather, because of Plaths uncanny ability to - through the manipulation of language, structure, and style present a demystified account of madness that forces the reader to question what it means to mad. In the majority of todays criticisms of The Bell Jar, it is either regarded as an autobiographical work of Sylvia Plath, detailing her youth and suicidal tendencies, or, as a social commentary and critique of 1950s American society for women. Thus, the novel is, for the most part, appreciated as a memoir used to better understand Plaths plight, or as a feminist critique of the society to which she belonged. Despite the validity of such claims, it seems that, by solely focusing on the autobiographical or feminist nature of the novel, much of the magic and technical

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

skill behind Plaths writing, as well as the overall impact the novel has on the reader, is lost. In support of this thesis, it is important to note that The Bell Jar was originally published under the pseudonym of Victoria Lucas. Only after Plaths death did the novel become known as Sylvia Plaths work. Linda Wagner-Martin, in Sylvia Plath: The Critical Heritage, notes the striking contrast between the reviews of Victoria Lucass novel and Sylvia Plaths. She notes that, prior to the knowledge of Plaths authorship, the work stood on its own completely unknown feet, and yet, was favorably reviewed (Wagner-Martin, 1). However, she asserts, with Plaths suicide in 1963 and the discovery of her authorship, criticisms of the work took a striking shift and would never again be untouched by biography (Wagner-Martin, 1) Thus, upon discovering Plaths authorship, the majority of criticisms surrounding the work shifted into a discussion of the novels existence - which was said to be loosely based on Plaths life - as an autobiographical novel. This shift in criticism seems to do away with an appreciation for Plaths craft as a writer and, rather, utilize the novel as a means to gain insight on Plaths struggle with madness that would eventually lead to her suicide. In his work What is an Author?, Foucault ponders the nature and function of the author. He asserts that in novels narrated in the first-person (like Plaths The Bell Jar), neither the first person pronoun (I), nor the present indicative are identical to the writer or to the moment in which the novel was written. Rather, he claims, the narrator serves as a kind of alter ego whose distance from the author can vary (112). Thus, even if Plaths inspiration in writing the novel came from her own personal experiences, the protagonist should nevertheless not be viewed as an exact replica of Plath herself. In an interview conducted in 1962, The Poet Speaks, Plath herself states that, while much of her writing stems from her own sensory and emotional experiences, she nevertheless does not sympathize with these cries from the heart that are informed by nothing except a needle or a knife, or whatever it its. She continues on to assert that one should be able to control and manipulate experiences, even the most terrific, like madness, being tortured, this sort of experience, and one should be able to manipulate these experiences with an informed and

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

an intelligent mind, and that, while personal experience is very important, it should not be a kind of shut-box and mirror looking, narcissistic experience, it should be relevant, and relevant to the larger things, the bigger things (Orr, 1962). From this, it can be deduced that, despite any similarities between Plaths protagonist, Esther Greenwood, and herself, she should neither be regarded as an exact replica of Plath, nor should her story be interpreted as an identical account of Plaths own experiences. It seems, rather, that while the novels protagonist and events may have been inspired from Plaths own personal experiences, she nevertheless manipulated the language and action in such a way as to convey an overarching feeling or impression in the readers mind. In other words, the events in the novel should not be regarded as direct manifestations of Plaths experiences, but as reformulations that are selected for the purpose of more effectively capturing the intended feelings and transferring them into the realms of the readers understanding. The merit and overall worth of the novel is often discredited by the argument that the novels appeal lies solely in the subject matter itself. In A Ritual for Being Born Twice: Sylvia Plaths The Bell Jar, Perloff contends that the novels enormous popularity, it would seem, has less to do with any artistic merits it may have than with its inherently titillating subject matter that chronicles the mental-breakdown of Esther Greenwood, a well-educated, privileged, and successful young woman (Perloff). Furthermore, she argues that the novels popularity among adolescents stems from its subject matter that has become the archetypal novel that mirrors, in however distorted a form, their own personal experiences (Perloff). Despite the severity of Esthers breakdown, the general concerns depicted closely mirror the concerns of most adolescents: a quest to forge identity in a world full of expectations. Thus, Perloff argues, Esthers experiences and disillusionment differ in degree rather than kind. In line with this thought, Jo Gill, in The Cambridge Companion to Sylvia Plath, professes that the novel has become a teenage rite of passage (Gill, 132). Such arguments seem to suggest that readers are drawn to the novel simply because of the novels inherent subject matter and expression of concerns that closely mirrors their own. However, it seems to be precisely this representation of

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

Esthers descent into madness a representation that is effectively able to portray her descent in such a way that coincides with the universal concerns of others that makes the novel so endearing. Plath is able to express the inner workings of a mad womans mind in an understandable manner, which ignites sympathy and compassion on the part of the reader. Nonetheless, Plaths novel still stands as a target for further criticism surrounding the value of her writing. Many critics argue that Plaths novel lacks any real literary merit in that, because Plath drew heavily on her own personal experiences and emotions, the novel lacks any true originality or creative purpose. In Waiting for the Voice to Crack, Saul Maloff states that the novel is merely a journal done up as a novel, which was merely recorded rather than imagined(Maloff, 1971). However, prior to the knowledge that the novel was both written by and about Plath, reviewers had been discussing The Bell Jar in a much more favorable light. In an unsigned review, Under the Skin, the reviewer applauds Plath (Lucas) for her ability to effectively create a different world for the reader to inhabit (Wagner-Martin, 52). The reviewer further asserts that she has the gift of being able to feel and yet waken herself: she can feel the dissolution and yet relate it to the landscape of everyday life (Wagner-Martin, 52). Similarly, in New Novels, listener, Laurence Lerner commends Plaths writing for much the same reasons. He declares that, from satirist she (the protagonist: Esther Greenwood) becomes a patient, yet so imperceptibly that after realizing she is sick we do not feel at all tempted to discount her previous shrewdness, or even cease to find her funny, in a rather frightening way (Lerner, 1963). He further asserts that the language in the novel is sharp, pungent, brittle, with images that catch at almost indescribable states of mind for an instant, then shift restlessly to catch others and, moreover, is written with a kind of poetic delicacy of perception that nevertheless manages to remain readable (Lerner, 1963). Despite such previously compelling reviews, the novels artistry is forgotten with the discovery of Plaths authorship. It seems almost irrelevant whether or not the events in the novel were based on Plaths own experiences, for her writing still manages to reach

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

out and provide a new world for the reader to inhabit. Whether or not the events were imagined should be extraneous, for it was never her creativity that was praised to begin with, it was her uncanny ability to simulate such seemingly personal feelings and experiences in the mind of the reader. It seems precisely because of Plaths poetic nature that she is able to convey such striking emotional images that effectively reach the reader on a personal level. In her creation of the sensuous and emotional experiences of the character, Plaths narrative is able to reach out to each individual reader through common experience. The detailed images presented in the novel have the qualities of being both subjective and objective simultaneously. In other words, she creates images that reflect a particular emotion, but do not necessarily fall into the category of a wholly personal emotion, unique to the speaker alone. In one of her journal entries (1956), Plath emphasizes her desire to present certain personal experiences in a universal light: be stoic when necessary and write you have seen a lot, felt deeply and your problems are universal enough to be made meaningful (J. Plath, 569) Likewise, Plath also reveals (in her journals) her desire for The Bell Jars narrator to exist as a statement of her generation (J. Plath, 289). Thus, by depicting her protagonist in such a way that embodies the qualities of her generation, she ultimately forms a connection between herself, as a representative figure, and the reader. Herein lies a key aspect of Plaths craftsmanship, the ability to express general subconscious images that are so vivid they appear to be, at first glance, wholly personal. This technique enables Plath to instill the precise feeling she wants to convey, while still presenting an image that is objective enough so that the reader can conceptualize the feeling to his or her own understanding. This technique, combined with the stream-of-consciousness style of narration in which the speakers thoughts and feelings are presented as they occur - provides the illusion that the reader is given unrestricted access into the characters mind, while nevertheless framing the discourse in such a way that the reader can attribute his or her own meaning to the sentiment. Such a depiction of Esthers mental experience (in a seemingly personal, while consequently

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

objective way) may, at least in part, provide explanation for how Plath creates a persona that seems to have one layer too little of skin; whose interior being becomes alarmingly visible, that becomes a voyeuristic spectacle for our gratification but also as a means to our self-recognition (Gill, 81) Thus, through her manipulation of language, Plath is able to conceptualize of a speaker whose thoughts, much like the way in which Esther describes Doreens intuition, are like a secret voice speaking straight out of (our) own bones (Plath, 7). Plaths writing predominately focuses on exemplifying the nature of the mind and the way it deals with extreme circumstances (Uroff, 1977). Thus, rather than focusing on the underlying meaning behind certain experiences, Plath seems more focused on illustrating the way in which the mind responds and contains feelings and thoughts. By placing her focus on how the mind reacts and copes with undesirable situations, she is able to ignite sympathy in the reader by touching on those general inclinations of human mentality. Due to her poetic nature and manipulation of language, she is able to portray the inner workings of Esthers mind so convincingly that it sometimes becomes difficult to discern between madness and sanity. The figurative language surrounding the feelings depicted in The Bell Jar is so forceful that Plath is able to capture near inexpressible states of mind, in the form of stunning mental images of the senses or sensory experiences. In discussing the methods behind Plaths poetic craftsmanship, Hughes asserts that her method was to collect a heap of vivid objects and good words and make a pattern that would be projected from somewhere deep inside, he describes her method as almost painterly (Hughes, 95). Thus, this assertion reflects Plaths tendency to depict emotion through the sensory experiences. An example of this painterly aspect Hughes describes occurs early on in the novel, when Esther watches her friend Doreen jitterbug with Lenny, a man whom they had only just met earlier that evening. When Esther, the only other person in the room, is left to watch the two of them dancing she reflects on her feelings on the matter and states, I felt myself shrinking to a small black dot against all those red and white rugs and that pine-panelling. I felt like a hole in the ground (Plath, 15). Such a description of Esthers inner-

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

feelings effectively captures the present nature of her mind by creating an image of her as a small black dot that is shrinking against the bright colors of the red and white rugs. The manifestation of Esthers current feeling through metaphor provides an external, or discernable image that allows the reader to visualize the feeling internally. Hence, by providing the reader with a metaphorical depiction of the emotion, Plath is able to instill the feeling in the mind, while simultaneously creating an image that is objective enough to allow the reader to internalize the feeling in a way that he or she can make sense of. Plaths use of a stream-of-consciousness narrative style succeeds in thrusting the reader into Esthers world as she sees it, thus creating a world in which all of Esthers externals are filtered through her own interpretations of them. In other words, the reader is provided insight into this other world, but is only able to perceive of things through Esthers eyes. Therefore, Esthers overall tone in her observations becomes a crucial aspect in the way in which the reader responds to the events presented. Esthers persona maintains a certain level of detachment, and often indifference, throughout the entirety of the novel. This level of detachment both highlights the level of Esthers mentality, while also allowing Plath to create a persona who is able to both feel and observe herself as an outsider. This aspect of Esthers persona almost places her on the level of the reader she has insight into her feelings, thoughts, and reactions (just as the reader does), but seems to, at the same time, observe these reactions objectively. Esther constantly refers to herself as I when discussing her feelings and thoughts, however, when it comes to actually conceiving of herself in any sort of tangible way, with a fixed identity, she withdraws and subsumes the role of the observer. This is most apparent in her interpretations of her own reflection (a tangible, physical body that unifies a persons existence). When Esther returns to her room after leaving Lennys apartment (where she watches her friend Doreen grow more and more enamored with Lenny), she glimpses into the mirror and states, the face in it looked like the reflection in a ball of dentists mercury (Plath, 18). She seems to take herself out of the situation entirely and expresses no sense of personal identification with her reflection. Immediately after

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

this she proclaims, I thought of crawling in between the bed sheets and trying to sleep, but that appealed to me about as much as stuffing a dirty, scrawled-over letter into a fresh, clean envelope (Plath, 18). Thus, immediately after objectifying herself and her face (by referring to it as the face), she subsumes her previous state referring to herself as I. Plath has consequently created a persona that is both intimate and detached; she has succeeded in delving into Esthers innermost concerns with striking detail, while also presenting these feelings in such a way that relates them to the perceptions of the external world. In other words, Plath has conceived of a persona that embodies the intensity of desolation and yet is in tune with the framework of everyday discourse. Furthermore, the detachedness of Esthers tone when describing her seemingly strange behavior and feelings seems to impart this detachment on the part of the reader as well. The portrayal of Esthers emotions in this detached manner downplays the severity of them, thus the reader is inclined to react to them in much the same way there is nothing in Esthers tone to suggest that her behavior is abnormal, so the reader is likely to accept them rather than question them. In fact, all of Esthers descriptions suggest just the opposite. When describing the behaviors of others she shifts into a cynical tone that frequently depicts them more as caricatures than actual people, emphasizing the ridiculousness and absurdity of their actions in a strikingly comical manner. Plaths shift in Esthers tone when describing the external world elucidates another effective technique used to render a more comprehensible account of madness and what it means to be mad. In her observations of the world around her, Plaths persona depicts a world of characters that are dehumanized and flat. This sets up striking contrasts between the narrative I (Esther) and the existence of others. The other characters in the novel seem to only exist as a contrast to Esther, thus suggesting that they lack any fundamental qualities that would distinguish them from a stereotyped other. This, in turn, causes Esther to appear as the only humane character, with depth and insight. In Esthers descriptions of the girls around her (in the opening of the novel) Esther states, These girls looked awfully bored to me. I saw them on the sun-roof,

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

yawning and painting their nails and trying to keep up their Bermuda tans, and they seemed bored as hell. I talked with one of them, and she was bored with yachts and bored with flying around in aeroplanes and bored with skiing in Switzerland at Christmas and bored with men in Brazil (Plath, 4). From this description, the reader is inclined to sympathize with Esther rather than the other girls. Esther admits that she has been given a once in a lifetime opportunity by winning a scholarship to study in New York. The other girls, however, appear to be completely bored and indifferent to this opportunity altogether. Esther portrays them as spoiled and ungrateful characteristics which are generally looked down upon. When Esthers descent into madness continues, her descriptions of others become even more comical and absurd. When she is back at her mothers house in Boston, she describes one of her neighbors (Mrs. Ockenden) in such a way that ultimately paints a picture of her as an utterly absurd woman. Esther states, Mrs. Ockenden was a retired nurse who had just married her third husband the other two died in curious circumstances and she spent an inordinate amount of time peering from behind the starched white curtains of her windows (Plath, 111). Her depiction of Mrs. Ockenden as, a nosy old woman whos onto her third marriage and spends her time spying on others, is both comical and ludicrous. She continues by providing examples of the types of things Mrs. Ockenden concerns herself with. She reveals, she had called my mother up twice about me once to report that I had been sitting in front of the house for an hour under the streetlight and kissing somebody in a blue Plymouth, and once to say that I had better pull the blinds down in my room, because she had seen me half-naked getting ready for bed one night when she happened to be out walking her Scotch terrier (Plath, 111). The reader thus gets a sense that Mrs. Ockenden, a woman who is supposed to be sane or normal, spends her time muddling in the insignificant businesses of others. Plaths depiction of Mrs. Ockenden closely resembles her characterization of all other characters in the novel. Such characterizations elucidate the thin veil between sanity and madness. Esther, who is deemed mad by societys standards, is surrounded by people with bizarre characteristics and modes of living, but who are nevertheless considered sane. This

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

juxtaposition between Esthers mentality and the mentality of the sane instills the reader with a feeling that madness and sanity are not the polar opposites that they appear. In fact, Plaths conception of madness forces the reader to question what madness really is, and whether the insane are actually more sane than the sane. From the beginning of the novel, the reader gets a sense that Esther is searching for her identity through the identities of others (Perloff). It then seems that her discontentment with herself results from her discontentment with those around her. Thus, the reader is led to speculate the nature of Esthers madness; is Esthers descent a result of society, or her own inability to cope with the external world? Plath depicts Esthers descent into madness through a series of episodes that ultimately reveal the effects of certain external causes as psychological motivation for her inevitable breakdown. Esthers narrative style reveals elements of her past through flashbacks, all of which maintain her at the center of all the action. When characterizations of other characters do occur, they seem to only exist for the purpose of demonstrating their effects on Esthers breakdown. Thus, Plaths structuring of The Bell Jar portrays a world of situations and characters that all serve the purpose of elucidating Esthers accelerated disillusionment, which ultimately results in a world in which the reader is only given fragmentations of events that have impacted Esther in some way. Therefore, Plath has conceived of a world in which the reader is able to experience Esthers descent along with her - for the reader is only presented with select fragments that pave the way for Esthers breakdown. The events in the novel are presented in three parts (1) Esthers encounters in New York and Boston that lead to her breakdown, (2) Esthers breakdown itself, and (3) Esthers recovery in the hospital. The first part of the novel portrays the nature of Esthers confusion with respect to her maintenance of a series of conflicting identities. Esther is depicted as the cynical best friend and the innocent and eager to please young lady, the successful writer and the immature student, the virginal girlfriend and the experienced lover, the obliging daughter and the ungrateful woman, etc. (Wagner). Thus, by setting up the framework of the novel in such a fragmented structure, Plath is able to demonstrate how closely these conflicting

10

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Engl 260/1 - King

identities are interwoven, and furthermore, how these conflicting identities result in a kind of fragmented self. By presenting Esthers maintenance of these conflicting identities in the first part of the novel, Plath has ensured that reader has all of the necessary background information needed to understand Esthers character and can now focus more on the nature of Esthers mentality and her descent. Thus, the second part of the novel chronicles Esthers downward descent and her various attempts at suicide. By providing the reader with all the necessary motivation for her inevitable descent, Plath is able to focus almost entirely on the nature of Esther broken psyche for the remainder of the novel, while still conceiving of an account of madness that is both comprehensible and sympathizing. Through the manipulation of language, style, and structure, Plath conceives a world in which madness and sanity appear more alike than they do different. Plaths employment of figurative language imparts vivid descriptions of emotions and sensory experiences to the reader that seem so personal, but are at the same time universal. Rather than merely describing the emotions of a mad woman, Plath demonstrates them by presenting emotional descriptions through the senses. Plaths creates a persona whose tone and personal insight allows the reader to react to her (Esthers) madness with compassion, sympathy, and understanding. By illustrating her personas emotions through compellingly vivid metaphors, Plath effectively transfers the intended emotions into the minds of the reader by forcing them to recall similar emotional experiences. Thus, Plath succeeds in creating a character whose thoughts and feelings seem so personal, while at the same time are universal enough for the reader to be able to relate. Furthermore, Plaths manipulation of the novels narrative structure provides such an account of madness that the reader is able to experience the characters descent along with her. Plath thus creates a character who embodies certain qualities of a mad woman, but who nevertheless remains sympathetic and human-like in the eyes of the reader. In creating such a character, Plath forces the reader to question the very nature of madness in a seemingly dehumanizing society, which, in turn, demonstrates the fine line that separates madness from sanity.

11

Margaret Brichant (6010067)

Works Cited

Engl 260/1 - King

Axelrod, Steven. "Sylvia Plath." The Literary Encyclopedia. University of California Riverside, 2003. Bonds, Diane S. "The Separative Self in Sylvia Plaths The Bell Jar." Women's Studies 18 (1990): 49-64. Foucault, Michel. "What is an Author." The Foucault Reader: An Introduction to Foucault's Thought. By Paul Rabinow. Pantheon Books, 1984. Gill, Jo, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Sylvia Plath. New York: Cambridge UP, 2006. "An Interview with Ted Hughes." Paris Review 1995. Kukil, Karen V., ed. The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath. New York: Vintage Books, 2000. Martin, Wendy. "'God's Lioness' - Sylvia Plath, Her Prose and Poetry." Women's Studies 1 (1973): 191-98. Perloff, Marjorie G. "'A Ritual for Being Born Twice': Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar." Contemporary Literature 13 (1972): 507-22. Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar. London: Faber and Faber Limited, 2005. Uroff, M. D. "Sylvia Plath and Confessional Poetry: A Reconsideration." Iowa Review 8 (1977): 104-15. Wagner, Linda W. "Plath's The Bell Jar as Female 'Bildungsroman'" Womens Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal 12 (1986): 55-68.

12