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Type of bind: Paperback
EAN num: 9780061148514
ISBN number: 0061148512
Label: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 288
Printing Date: October 01, 2006
Publishing house: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Release Date: October 17, 2006
Sale Popularity Level: 2810
Studio: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
Esther Greenwood is brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under—maybe for the last time. In her acclaimed and enduring masterwork, Sylvia Plath brilliantly draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that her insanity becomes palpably real, even rational—as accessible an experience as going to the movies. A deep penetration into the darkest and most harrowing corners of the human psyche, The Bell Jar is an extraordinary accomplishment and a haunting American classic.
Amazon.com:
Plath was an excellent poet but is known to many for this largely autobiographical novel. The Bell Jar tells the story of a gifted young woman's mental breakdown beginning during a summer internship as a junior editor at a magazine in New York City in the early 1950s. The real Plath committed suicide in 1963 and left behind this scathingly sad, honest and perfectly-written book, which remains one of the best-told tales of a woman's descent into insanity.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers 
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Before I go into criticism of The Bell Jar, I will say that Sylvia Plath is an excellent writer but you can tell she's more of a poet than a novelist. That having been said, I felt absolutely no connection with any of the characters in this novel. Esther just seems unsatisfied 24/7 and never wants to connect with anyone. The whole premise of the book is just dark, depressing, and disturbing. It sounds like Sylvia Plath wrote this like a personal diary and replaced her name with Esther Greenwood. While reading this, I was asking myself, "What goes on in this woman's mind and what makes her think this is alright to show to the general public?" Nobody wants to relax by reading a book about suicide, cutting yourself, depression, etc. This book is out-dated because the teenage suicide rates in the 1950s weren't as high as the ones yesterday which should give teachers a reason not to have students read this for an assignment. Plath tries to present suicide as a rational solution to any problem in "The Bell Jar." What if a person who has considered suicide read this book? This is NOT a classic at all. Classics have memorable stories and characters that we as the readers can connect to. "The Bell Jar" makes no connection at all to the reader. Sometimes authors have to know what their limits in writing are when it comes to what the general public wants to read. I don't recommend this book to anyone, especially those dealing with depression or any other similar problem.
Rated by buyers 
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Reading through some of the mediocre-to-negative reviews of this book, many people seem to have the idea that Esther Greenwood is depressed. Just really, really depressed. I feel like these people either know nothing about mental illness (aside from those conditions advertised in prescription medicine commercials) or they weren't paying attention when read the book. Esther may have started out as depressed, but she clearly becomes paranoid and delusional, losing her grip on reality and rationality as the book goes on. Her more bizarre actions are often implied or described through the casually mentioned comments of other people, and you'll miss them if you don't stop to think about what you just read. Esther herself doesn't seem to think these things are noteworthy, and it's clear there's more going on than she bothers to mention.
Anyway, I found this book interesting and worth reading, but I had one issue with it, that being the overuse of similes. While Plath's comparative images are always spot on, they sometimes seemed like unnecessary padding, and the more I read the more irritating they became. This happens throughout the book, not only when Esther is extremely ill, so I guess it's just Plath's writing style. I read some of her poems after reading the book, and the extensive use of similes seems more at home in the poetry. I would have preferred that particular literary device to be used more sparingly here, to leave only the ones that were really needed to improve the image or set the tone.
Overall, this book is worth reading for anyone who's interested in understanding what can go on in the mind of someone who is mentally ill. For those who have gone through similar periods in their lives, the book can be comforting and reassuring to the fact that you are not alone. Some people make it through, and some people, like Plath herself, don't. But I find it to offer a hopeful perspective overall.
Rated by buyers 
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This book was really funny and really honest. But that's what I liked about it.
It was kind of frustrating because you just wanted the main character to snap out of it. I know mental illness is serious and these people cannot help themselves from feeling the way they do, but it was really frustrating because I do not share her same opinions about life and I try really hard not to be so helpless and reliant on other people to fix problems in my life. Also she talks a lot about the burden of being a woman. I think just because women have the challenge of giving birth, it is really a gift of closeness to our mothers and ancestors that nobody can take away.
Just like some people never find real love, I think Sylvia takes her emotions for granted. Like she's supposed to feel great all the time. Being a genius sometimes means being more sensitive and vulnerable to feelings of depression, but that doesn't mean she should give up. Because in the end everyone dies. We're supposed to share our sympathy for humanity, but Sylvia doesn't really care about anybody but herself because she's so alone and afraid to reach out.
All in all, I don't think this book has a positive message. There's a difference between honesty and helplessness. She's kind of helpless.
Rated by buyers 
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The Bell Jar tells the captivating story of Esther Greenwood, a gifted young woman who has just completed her arduous internship as a junior editor at a magazine in New York City in the early 1950s. The novel, written entirely in very first person, chronicles her mental breakdown and subsequent emotional deterioration.
This work is a roman à clef, in which some or all of the characters in the book are based on actual people, and the happenings in the novel are rooted in real occurrences. Typically this style is used on sensitive subjects, or subjects with which the author is not entirely comfortable revealing all the information. This novel was obviously quite emotionally close to Plath, who could be described as the real-life Esther Greenwood. Originally released under the pen name Victoria Lucas, the book was modified to be in Sylvia Plath's name only after her suicide in 1971.
Though often associated with severe sadness or depression, The Bell Jar can be very humorous, but not always in an obvious way. Plath writes using dry humor, being, at times, extremely cynical. She expresses a strong disdain for those who choose to follow convention, such as marrying and having children, believing those to be unexceptional and simple paths of life.
Plath's skill is unmistakable and her experience as a poet is quite evident. Alliteration and assonance are scattered in the pages of The Bell Jar, and Plath employs various other literary devices throughout the novel to enrich the reading experience. Symbolism is another tool commonly used by the author. Esther glimpses into several mirrors during her stay at the psychiatric ward, often mistaking her reflection for that of another. This lack of self-recognition reveals Esther's struggle to fully comprehend herself and this symbolism demonstrates Plath's insight into the human condition.
To be direct, I adore this book. I find the character Esther to be the perfect combination of skepticism and wit, refusing to conform to meet the standards of her time. Her resilience and individuality ripple forth from the pages of this book like the interruption of still water by a stone.
Having said all of this, I probably would not recommend The Bell Jar. I say this not because of any fault of the book, but for my own selfish reasons. As it is, I feel not everyone has the capacity to genuinely appreciate this bok. Reading this novel without that capacity runs the risk of depreciating it based on misunderstanding. In a way, those who choose to pursue this piece of literature deserve the knowledge it holds, and this prevents the book from becoming commonplace. It should be kept-- like a secret among friends.
Rated by buyers -
The Bell Jar was one of the most substantial things written by Sylvia Plath, who was world-renowned for being one of America's best poets. In college I took an array of poetry classes, I enjoyed them to an extent, and I always did well in them. But poetry has never really affected me like it has other people. A lot of it is pretentious, and a lot of it is hard to understand. But Plath eased in well to prose; it was excellent.
Initially this wasn't a big seller (partly due to her using the pseudonym "Victoria Lucas"), but after her very tragic suicide in 1963, the novel took on a new fame.
It's about a smart college girl in the 1950s; starts just after the Rosenbergs are electrocuted (as it states on page one). This young woman is spending a semester in New York City working for a reputable fashion magazine, as an intern, winning her spot with twelve others for academic excellence: for her it was writing a particular poem. The book follows her life for approximately a year; from New York to Massachusetts (Plath's originally from Boston). It's a "confessional-prose" masterpiece.
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