Slyvia Plath
Presented by Dani Stoe
Though often viewed as either a feminist martyr or a tragic heroine, Sylvia Plath was in truth neither and at the same time, a bit of both. While it is certainly true that her madness was most likely driven over the edge by her husband's general scorn for women, she was no martyr for feminism. She was also not quite the doomed lunatic that some would say she was. Plath was the author famously known for the novel The Bell Jar, as well as poems such as Ariel. Collections of her poetry were published after her death. They include Crossing the Water, Winter Trees, and The Collected Poems, which won the Pulitzer Prize.
One interesting influence on Sylvia Plath's career was her friendship with fellow poet Anne Sexton. Although contrasting stories exist regarding the genuineness of their friendship, Plath and Sexton did spend time with each other during March and April 1959. Both had been attending a poetry class offered by Robert Lowell at Boston University and enjoyed discussing their deaths over martinis at the Ritz-Carlton hotel's bar after class. Poet George Starbuck, who joined them on these occasions, wrote that they "had these hilarious conversations comparing their suicides and talking about their psychiatrists" (Trinidad 4). However, as Sexton began an affair with Starbuck and they had work published, Plath became jealous of her friend. Plath was especially upset because her work was not well received by publishers and critics at that time. Nevertheless, as Plath became more successful, she acknowledged that she had been influenced by Sexton's work. Plath's "Ariel" and Sexton's "The Starry Night" both celebrate suicide, the same topic which the women discussed at the Ritz. After Plath's death, Sexton started to incorporate Plath's themes and Nazi imagery into her own work. Despite the fact that the two women communicated only sporadically between 1959 and Plath's suicide, the brief friendship had a definite impact on each woman and her work.
Trinidad, David. "Two Sweet Ladies: Sexton and Plath's Friendship and Mutual Influence." American Poetry Review. 35:6 (2006): 21-29. full text
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