This is not the book I set out reading for December's challenge. I may revisit the one I set aside again, but it was a little too much for me given the length of the book and the time I had available to read. And yes, maybe I was being a little lazy, not trying hard enough to get into book X. Such is life and such is reading.The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath was not all that I expected it to be. First off, complete shock on my part that I was able to go through at least two feminist-focused English classes and not even glance at this book. Second, knowing how Plath herself mimicked this book off chapters from her own life, I expected more angst and darkness given how she came to her own end.
Perhaps the most jarring thing about Esther Greenwood and her path to depression and thoughts of suicide was how easily I related to her. There she was, living an enviable summer internship in New York working at a magazine hundreds of girls long for, and she felt entirely out of place. She bought the clothes to fit in, had the right friends to fit in, a social calendar that placed her well to meet the well-to-do and attractive, and yet she felt she was just playing a part. Upon her return home, now without the distractions of the city, she could not quiet the thoughts that had been stirring about all summer. It seemed every place she went, she contemplated how to end her life there. After a failed suicide attempt, she stayed at an institution where it is never clear if Greenwood got better or found a new part to play in order to fit in.
I could not agree more with the introduction to my book: this is most definitely confessional literature. At times I felt like I was eavesdropping with no method of escape. And though it has been over a decade since I read it, I also agree with many who have drawn a string from J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye to The Bell Jar. They are in some ways twins, companion pieces.
I think the confessional aspect of this book is necessary to its success, but it is also what moves it a step or two away from being a top pick for the Great American novel. However, the fact that it is indulgent and has the feel of voyeurism shines a light all too bright on American culture presently. This book is all about Esther Greenwood and what people have done to her. And largely that is what America is right now - the constant whine of what people have done to me and how I deserve better, bigger, more, faster. So maybe that knocks it back up a peg or two toward Great American Novel. I think the question is whether Plath was being self-indulgent in writing this, or if she did have a larger message regarding American culture. If the former, this book is a closer relative to books such as The Devil Wears Prada or Sex and the City. If the latter, it fits right in with other great American novels.
Great American Novel Challenge Booklist:
July 2009: Absalom, Absalom! - William Faulkner, publ. 1936
August 2009: Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry, publ. 1985
September 2009: Moby Dick - Herman Melville, publ. 1851
October 2009: For Whom the Bell Tolls - Ernest Hemingway, publ. 1940
November 2009: Their Eyes Were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston, publ. 1937
3 comments:
We read this last year in bookclub! I was not looking forward to it, but I actually really enjoyed it. I think, like you, I was surprised at how well I identified with Esther. I thought this was a really well done novel.
Interesting review. I had no idea the book was similar to The Catcher in the Rye, which I loved. I'll have to add it to my ever-growing list of books to read.
I do wonder what role Plath's suicide played in the success of the book. She killed herself a month after publishing a semi-autobiographical book about a woman's mental decline. If that happened today, the book would immediately shoot up the best sellers chart regardless of whether it was actually a good read.
I recently graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design and used The Bell Jar, and The Yellow Wallpaper for my thesis which, was a mixed media triptych. I loved the Bell Jar I just thought you should know it was what drew me to your blog.
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