Death and Depression in Sylvia Plath - Essay Example

?Death and Depression in Sylvia Plath Within the scenario of literature, especially within poetry, readers and critics attempt to read between lines and try to unearth hidden facts in the poems. To be specific, readers and critics consider that renowned poets make use of poetry as a medium to express their personal opinions and to share their emotions. Personally, I am an admirer of confessional poetry because the same helps me to have deeper understanding on the aim of a specific poet and his or her reason to compose a specific poem in general. Within this scenario, I consider that Sylvia Plath’s works can be considered as a mirror that reflects her struggle against depression and is symbolic of her death in the end. Thesis statement: The poems by Plath, especially the poems like Daddy, Ariel, Lady Lazarus, and Tulips, are symbolic of her feminine struggle against depression and death. Plath’s poems: symbolic of feminine struggle against depression and death This section is divided into: Feminine struggle against depression and Feminine struggle against ultimate doom. Feminine struggle against depression First of all, Plath’s attraction towards poetry can be considered as a genuine attempt to escape from depression. But Plath’s childhood was similar to other children because she was able to enjoy her childhood. On the other side, her father’s untimely death deeply influenced her life. Gradually, she began to realize the fact that human life is an unending struggle to attain perfection. During her college days, depression began to haunt her. This illness, added with other problems related to her married life, hindered her from enjoying her private life. So, I consider that the poems like Daddy and Ariel are symbolic of the Plath’s feminine struggle against depression and related problems. In the poem named as Daddy, the poetess provides ample importance to the problems related to one’s racial identity in a multiracial society. The poetess considers her father’s German ancestry as a shame that is haunting her life. On the other side, this poem can be interpreted as the poetess’s attempt to keep her away from depression. In the poem named as Daddy, the speaker pointed out that, “Daddy, I have had to kill you” (n.pag.). One can see that depression resulted in a number of problems in the poetess’s personal life. When she was a college student, she was forced to undergo anti-depression treatment at a psychiatric care. So, I consider that the poem Daddy reveals the poetess’s reaction related to her father’s negligence towards her. To be specific, Otto Plath’s unexpected death eventually led Sylvia Plath to face loneliness in her private domain. Suman Agarwal stated that, “She was a character whose life could not be really understood by many people, the reasons for which are crystal clear because she had multiple psychological problems which served as the root cause for her depression and her traumatic end” (149). She tried to overcome her problems by composing poems related to her personal life. In the poem, the narrator tries to kill her memories related to her life with her father. So, I consider that the poetess considers that she needs to forget her father because it will help her to keep herself away from depression. On the other side, this poem is symbolic of the poetess’s feminine attempt to keep away from male domination. To be specific, depression can be considered as the by-product of male domination and related issues. So, the poetess considers that the metaphoric murder of her father can help her to keep herself away from depression. I consider that the poetess’s struggle against depression is an unending fight against certain problems in her personal circle. To be specific, depression maybe one among the symptoms of the emotional trauma face by the poetess. She tired her level best to keep herself from troubles, but for vain. Within this scenario, the poem Ariel can be interpreted as the poetess’s attempt to find solace in literary creativity. The poem Ariel belongs of the group of poems composed during her final phase in her literary life. In the poem, horse-ride is symbolic of the narrator’s/poetess’s attempt to gain control over the problems in life. One can easily identify that the theme of rebirth in the poem can be connected to the poetess’s desire to solve the problems in her personal life. In the poem named as Ariel, the speaker (say, Sylvia Plath) stated that “Black sweet blood mouthfuls, shadows” (n.pag.). At the same time, this poem can be regarded as the catalyst of the poetess’s literary creativity because the same is full of ambiguous ideas. In the poem, the speaker is in need of spiritual rebirth. This spiritual rebirth can be regarded as the poetess’s attempt to find solace in eternity, not death. One can see that almost all the poems by the poetess carry autobiographical elements. Besides, the poem named as Ariel proves that the poetess is not aiming to keep aloof from the mainstream society. Instead, she is ready to be responsible to her family. In the beginning, the speaker is portrayed as the symbol of domination (say, stallion). But in the end, the speaker wishes to undergo transformation as water element. This gradual shift from male domination to water element is symbolic of the poetess’s desire to keep herself away from male domination (say, influence of the memory about her father) and to a free life like water element in nature. So, I consider that both the poems (Daddy and Ariel) are symbolic of the poetess’s feminine struggle against depression. Feminine struggle against ultimate doom From a different angle of view, some poems like Lady Lazarus and Tulips shed light into the poetess’s feminine struggle against ultimate doom. But one need not misunderstand that these poems are symbolic of the poetess’s tendency to commit suicide. Instead, the poetess tries to overcome her depression and tendency to commit suicide by portraying death as an image. Raihan Raza pointed out that, “Her imagination is coloured by the theme of death in which any other motif seems to be only incidental” (n. pag.). I consider that the poetess was aware of the fact that her subconscious mind is in favor of suicide. But the poetess considers that depression and death can hinder her from entering the realm of literature. To be specific, the poetess quit her job at Smith College and joined the Massachusetts General Hospital. The ultimate aim behind this decision was to provide importance to poetry. Besides, the poetess decided to write about her personal life. One can see that the poetess’s works generally deal with the feminist view of life. For instance, the poem Lady Lazarus is full of images related to death. Madhurita Choudhary stated that, “For example, Sylvia Plath’s exemplary confessional poem, “Lady Lazarus” offers delineation of a lady who has mastered the art of death” (30). The WWII, and the atrocities relate to Nazism, portrayed in the poem are symbolic of death. Personally, I consider that the poetess inculcated these images as a struggle against ultimate doom. On the other side, the poetess does not consider death as a terrific experience. For instance, the speaker in the poem considers that the doctors do not allow her to embrace death. Within this context, the poetess makes use of her personal experience (say, suicidal attempt) as the theme of the poem. But the doctor’s duty mindedness helps the patient to overcome death. After this incident, the speaker considers that the doctor forced her to undergo unwanted resurrection. Now, the speaker considers herself as a phoenix. One can easily identify the fact that phoenix is symbolic of resurrection. In the poem, the speaker tries to make a comparison between her and an imaginary character named as Lazarus. The emotional trauma faced by the poetess forces her to consider that her failure to embrace death is symbolic of her fight against ultimate doom. In short, the images like WWII, Nazism, Biblical references, phoenix, etc., in the poem proves that the poetess makes use of the same to portray her feminine struggle against ultimate doom. The poem named as Tulips by the poetess is symbolic of emotional trauma and alienation faced by her. As pointed out, the poetess does not like to die. Instead, she likes to be saved from death. She considers continuous suicidal attempts as an outlet to keep her safe from emotional problems. As pointed out, the poetess’s subconscious mind is in favor of suicide. But her conscious mind reminds her that death cannot help her to accomplish her duty towards her readers. So, the poetess considers suicide attempt as a temporary escapade from the real world. In the poem, the speaker portrays how red tulips interrupt her calm and peaceful life in a hospital. Connie Ann Kirk made clear that, “The tulips seem to watch her, their redness speaking to the blood of her heart and her wounds” (85). The speaker is aware of the fact that hospitalization is a temporary adjustment in life. Still, the speaker tries to find solace in that temporary adjustment. The speaker in the poem reveals that hospital life altered her identity because now she is a patient. The doctors are allowed to take decisions related to her life. This indecisiveness forces the speaker to contemplate upon the incidents in her personal life. Besides, the speaker considers that displacement from her private domain can help her to be free from personal problems. But the appearance of tulip flowers creates trouble in her mind. One can see that the poetess makes use of tulip flowers as the symbol of intrusion. Still, the poetess is aware of the fact that recovery from illness can remove her from the realm of calmness. So, she considers the tulip flowers as the symbol of removal from safety and calmness. Still, the poetess is aware of the fact that hospitalization or temporary escape from reality cannot solve her problems. In short, the poetess makes use of the tulip flowers as a powerful image that removes her from safety. In the end, the speaker realizes that the return to normal life is symbolic of her feminine struggle against fatality. Personal opinion In my opinion, the poetess did not consider poetry or the expression of literary creativity as a difficult task, detached from her own life. She does not complain that illness is hindering her progress as a budding writer. Instead, she avoided her career as an educator and embraced her personal interest. I consider that personal problems strengthened the poetess and she did not hesitate to share her views with the readers. This is important because personal problems can ruin one’s personal interest and career interest. Still, the poetess was responsible towards her family. She did not ignore her children, but was attentive. I consider that the poetess made use of poetry as an innovative medium to be in touch with her readers. On the other side, she provided ample importance to her feminine identity. She was aware of the fact that her sexual identity makes her responsible towards the female folk in the society. At the same time, her outlook of life was different. But one need not misunderstand that the poetess was a pessimist. Instead, her poems prove that she valued her life, but illness hindered her from enjoying the same. The most important factor that attracts me towards her poems is that she tried her level best to resolve the problems in her life and contributed unforgettable poems to the realm of literature. So, I consider that the poetess’s works are symbolic of feminine energy, and her personal life was an unending fight against illness. Summing up, Plath’s poems lead the readers to her views on life and death. I consider that philosophical view point of life hinders human beings from enjoying the same in its fullness. On the other side, Plath does not consider death as an enemy who is waiting for her in the dead end. Instead, she decided to consider death as an adventurous journey. Her attempt to commit suicide can be considered as her desire to lead an adventurous life. From a different angle of view, emotional trauma originating from depression strengthened the poetess’s outlook of life. Her poems like Daddy, Ariel, Lady Lazarus, and Tulips prove that feminine struggle against depression and demise (say, death) is not over. In short, I hope that the confessional mode of writing put forth by the poetess will accelerate the feminine struggle against problems in human life. Works Cited Agarwal, Suman. Sylvia Plath. New Delhi: Northern Book Centre, 2003. Print. Choudhary, Madhurita. In Search of a Voice: Poetic Modes of Elizabeth Bishop and Adrienne Rich. New Delhi: Sarup & Sons, 2006. Print. Kirk, Connie Ann. Sylvia Plath: A Biography. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2004. Print. Plath, Sylvia. Selected Poems of Sylvia Plath. London: Faber & Faber, 2011. Print. Plath, Sylvia. Ariel. London: Faber & Faber, 2010. Print. Raza, Raihan. The Poetic Art of Sylvia Plath: A Critical Study of Themes and Techniques. New Delhi: Pinnacle Technology, 2012. 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