The 'Belle' Jar
With the titular bell jar and scattered mentions of flowers, I was frequently reminded of this image of the enchanted rose from Beauty and the Beast which I think perfectly encompasses the way Esther Greenwood views herself. Sylvia Plath incorporates tons of metaphors in The Bell Jar , including Esther's comparison of dying flowers to dead bodies when she's volunteering at the hospital. When Esther throws the dying flowers away, it's due to her belief that giving them to patients would only depress them. This seemingly insignificant moment revealed Esther's mindset to me; like a withered flower, Esther would rather not be there at all than be present but visibly unhappy in the eyes of those around her. Why does Esther feel this way? In class, we discussed how Esther's metaphorical bell jar left her feeling vulnerable to prying eyes. In New York, Esther felt she was being constantly surveilled for her next career move or academic achievement. This paranoia was ex...