Personal Review
I actually enjoyed reading The Bell Jar, which surprised me because most people who had already read it only complained of its depressing story. It is true that the majority of the book is not happy, but being depressed is not a very happy topic. I thought that Sylvia Plath was extremely realistic in her description, and I found that she captured the depressed, uncaring tone perfectly, sometimes even creating that very mood for the reader. I really liked her artful writing with the variety of paradoxes and similes; it made the reader really think about the subject because she would contrast positive and negative things in all her comparisons. Also, I liked how she would foreshadow a lot of things to keep the reader interested and guessing. I am not sure if I liked how she would be telling a specific story and then interrupt it with an anecdote and then return to the story because it made following the timing and each line of the story difficult. This way of writing did keep me more involved with the book then if it was just a continuous flow of the story. Also, by telling the story that way, it mirrors the number of jumps that occur throughout everyone’s brain and made the reader connect to Esther that much more. Also, I am glad that Plath told the reader at the very beginning of the book that she made it out all right in the end. This allowed me to keep hope throughout the book even when it got astonishingly sad that eventually she would return to normalcy and have a better life after. I am also glad that even though Plath specifies that Esther is better, she does not tell about Esther’s life, merely hints that she has a baby, and allows the readers to imagine her in a good, happy. Despite the unhappy topic, I actually enjoyed reading this novel.
I felt the same way about the abundant anecdotes. They tended to confuse me often, however, they also kept me hooked and more involved. They helped me to further understand Esther's life. It helps portray Esther's mind set in the her brain would jump from one thought to another.
ReplyDeleteI did not particularly enjoy the depressing tone of the book, however, I found it an interesting read as well, and the fact that Esther recovers brings happiness and light to the novel, and gives hopes to the readers.
Many people (Kyle Bauer) may not particularly like the vivid descriptions and immense imagery that Plath included. However, from my point of view, it is what made this novel incredibly intriguing. Some scenes were somewhat disturbing, but it brought the novel to life and helped me to really understand Esther's feelings and situation. I agree with you in that Plath was extremely realistic, but this helped me to understand the novel more in dept.
If I could "like" this comment I would hahah
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