Reviews

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Only show reviews with written explanations

misareadss's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

SCREAMING ,CRYING, WEEEPING i absolutely loved this book esther greenwood is me i am her she is i

bruhcheesee's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.75

not a bad book but not something i will read again.

though the book is a well-known feminist novel (and yes, i know we have to keep the time it was written in in mind) im always shocked all over again to read how inaccessible feminism was for non-white, non-middle/high class, non-cishet women. the writing and perspective shines a light on how hopeless and encasing the life of our main character feels, which at times made me feel sad and hopeless - and then it just made me feel worse for the characters even she disregards or speaks about rudely even more.

if her life is so hopeless and she truely feels as depressed and trapped as she does, i wonder how she might feel if she realized how much less help and assitance is available to marginalized groups who are also depressed like her? how much less empathy is accessable to joan, or the people of color she thinks about as a whole entire separate people.

although the story is not something that left an impression on me, i think the perspective of societies view of what esther is expected to want and how she is expected to live is interesting, as well as how mental illness was treated/viewed as at the time. the author is very good at describing esther's feelings in a way that's really easy to understand and empathize with.

lia123's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.5

I don’t think I understood it to be honest. Some parts were amazingly well written but I don’t know, I just couldn’t get myself to care about the main character.

mysafe_place's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Considering this book is partially based on Plaths own life it would feel wrong to bash this book in any way. Though I have to say that it was less than I expected. The first hundred pages were simply a dull retelling of Esther's daily life and just when we started to get a more profound view into her emotions and current mental state it switched to the most mundane occurrence again. I definitely enjoyed a great part of the book, yet it was not as philosophical (if I may say so) as I expected it to be. Good alliterations and some allusions, but rhetorically placed in a questionable way. Still a good book.

Content Warnings

masonrobertsdge's review against another edition

Go to review page

She could not hang

cara_embree's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

cherryghost15's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Not sure how I missed this. Guess I got in a Flannery O'Connor or two and just never pushed further into more women's writing. I listened to the audible version with the delicious voice of Maggie Gyllenhaal, and it was quite a treat. From the great descriptions through Esther's eyes and the sadness at how young she is to experience such a severe episode of depression. But the disease is in your brain and not on your schedule or concerned with your timetable, goals, or plans. In other areas it struck me how little has changed for women in so many ways. And I do mean the smart, educated, and well brought up variety.

I did have some trouble following it; I think because it was the audible version. But I went back and listened again until I had filled in all the gaps.

Unfortunately not much has changed today in mental health care, either. Despite her classic symptoms, many people have no idea what is going on--it can manifest for months before a person might think medical care is needed--and it just depends on who and what kind of doctor they have, if any, to get the appropriate help. Didn't do enough for the real Sylvia; but I guess Ted was something of a lady killer as they said back in the day.

I am looking forward to her poetry.

If you think someone needs help, speak up. If you know someone dealing with mental illness, just be there for them. They are not a problem to be fixed (by you) but a person who needs your friendship.