Although I can honestly say I do not fully comprehend Sylvia Plath's, Lady Lazarus, I know why it is that I can't. Plath's life experience is something that I'll never have, as well as her struggle with severe depression. Through Lady Lazarus, Plath tries to convey some personal point; however, reveals one simple one that can be seen on the surface throughout all her poems. Plath is dissatisfied with life. She is skilled in near death experiences, "like a cat with nine lives". While it appears that she is conflicted by the constant pull of death, she also seems to take comfort in it. It makes her feel alive, in fact she does it so "it feels like hell... so it feels real." Plath conveys that life is nothing without death. Maybe that death is even the most important thing, as it gives some peace, and some justice. For Sylvia however, death is her escape, as she makes it clear through much imagery that life is her hell, so it wouldn't matter what death would be like.
P.S.
Sylvia tried to slit her throat at age ten
Her son committed suicide by hanging himself due to depression
P.S.
Sylvia tried to slit her throat at age ten
Her son committed suicide by hanging himself due to depression
So one thing to consider is how well does Plath express her experience, which is different from yours? Does her poetry convey her depth of feeling and struggles with life in a way that readers who haven't had those experiences can experience/understand just through the experience of reading? So much of critical reading is the ability to contemplate lives different from our own and see what we can glean from them. Are there common human fears and needs that we can identify?
ReplyDeleteI think Plath does a very good job in expressing her feelings of despair and agony in her writing. I can relate to her; I have suffered from such horrifying depression that the thought that I will one day die and this misery will be over is, strangely, the only thing that kept me going. So reading her work is hits more than "close to home" and, therefore, I think she does a great job in conveying her true inner self.
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