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4.64 AVERAGE
4.64 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
The old comparisons to Medea and Electra no longer hold. If she must be a myth, let her be Ariadne, laying down the threads, leading us out from the centre of the labyrinth. Let us not desert her.
Like many people, I was introduced to the work of Sylvia Plath as a moody teen. It left a mark on me that has not faded. For the many of us who have been uneasy with the image crafted by Ted Hughes and his sister Olwyn, "Red Comet" is a long-awaited corrective. This work is an attempt to move Plath out from the simplistic image of her as the doomed emo Confessional poetess, and recenter her in her own life. It is Sylvia's voice which comes through with all it's strength and complicated humanity. Clark helps us see the deeper notes to Plath's work that have been so easily passed over in her dismissal by what was a male-dominated literary culture.
This is a complex work, befitting of it's subject. Against the sea of other works purported to show the 'real' Sylvia, Clark is able to do what others have not. There is no judgment of any of the players, and this single act allows us to move beyond the facade. We see Plath's work as not only that of a 'female' creative, but also as precursor to Second Wave Feminism, and at the vanguard of the 1960's creative blossoming, pushing boundaries and straining against convention. That would have pleased her most.
This is a complex work, befitting of it's subject. Against the sea of other works purported to show the 'real' Sylvia, Clark is able to do what others have not. There is no judgment of any of the players, and this single act allows us to move beyond the facade. We see Plath's work as not only that of a 'female' creative, but also as precursor to Second Wave Feminism, and at the vanguard of the 1960's creative blossoming, pushing boundaries and straining against convention. That would have pleased her most.
challenging
informative
reflective
5 Stars
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“I write only because there is a voice within me that will not be still.” - Red Comet.
Determined not to read Plath's work as if her every act, from childhood on, was a harbinger of her tragic fate, Clark presents new materials about Plath's scientist father, her juvenile writings, and her psychiatric treatment, and evokes a culture in transition in the mid-twentieth century, in the shadow of the atom bomb and the Holocaust, as she explores Sylvia's world: her early relationships and determination not to become a conventional woman and wife; her conflicted ties to her well-meaning, widowed mother; her troubles at the hands of an unenlightened mental-health industry; and her Cambridge years and thunderclap meeting with Ted Hughes, a true marriage of minds that would change the course of poetry in English. Clark's clear-eyed sympathy for Hughes, his lover Assia Wevill, and other demonized players in the arena of Plath's suicide promotes a deeper understanding of her final days, with their outpouring of first-rate poems. Along with illuminating readings of the poems themselves, Clark's meticulous, compassionate research brings us closer than ever to the spirited woman and visionary artist who blazed a trail that still lights the way for women poets the world over.
This was such an amazingly detailed biography and deep-dive into Sylvia Plath’s life and her art. The details were well cited and the author presented the biography in a humanizing light that really showed who Sylvia Plath was as a woman, mother, and artist. I especially loved how this biography looked into her poetry, showed its progression, the connections to Sylvia’s literary influences, and her own memories of her life. I definitely learned so much from this biography and think it will be a great reference for reading the rest of Sylvia’s work. If you are interested in reading about Sylvia Plath this is a biography I would recommend. Also, it is about 1,100+ pages long, so it will keep you busy for a while!
See more on my Bookstagram: Shelf.Inspiration Instagram
“I write only because there is a voice within me that will not be still.” - Red Comet.
Determined not to read Plath's work as if her every act, from childhood on, was a harbinger of her tragic fate, Clark presents new materials about Plath's scientist father, her juvenile writings, and her psychiatric treatment, and evokes a culture in transition in the mid-twentieth century, in the shadow of the atom bomb and the Holocaust, as she explores Sylvia's world: her early relationships and determination not to become a conventional woman and wife; her conflicted ties to her well-meaning, widowed mother; her troubles at the hands of an unenlightened mental-health industry; and her Cambridge years and thunderclap meeting with Ted Hughes, a true marriage of minds that would change the course of poetry in English. Clark's clear-eyed sympathy for Hughes, his lover Assia Wevill, and other demonized players in the arena of Plath's suicide promotes a deeper understanding of her final days, with their outpouring of first-rate poems. Along with illuminating readings of the poems themselves, Clark's meticulous, compassionate research brings us closer than ever to the spirited woman and visionary artist who blazed a trail that still lights the way for women poets the world over.
This was such an amazingly detailed biography and deep-dive into Sylvia Plath’s life and her art. The details were well cited and the author presented the biography in a humanizing light that really showed who Sylvia Plath was as a woman, mother, and artist. I especially loved how this biography looked into her poetry, showed its progression, the connections to Sylvia’s literary influences, and her own memories of her life. I definitely learned so much from this biography and think it will be a great reference for reading the rest of Sylvia’s work. If you are interested in reading about Sylvia Plath this is a biography I would recommend. Also, it is about 1,100+ pages long, so it will keep you busy for a while!
Though a DNF, it’s mainly due to the length of this one – at 45 hours it’s a lot to get through. The amount of detail captured here is fairly vast and seems like a must read for Plath fans: for those of us who enjoyed the Bell Jar but aren’t familiar with her poetry it does become a matter of committing oneself to just a huge amount of detail on her life and work. It’s not as breezy as the equally lengthy Warhol biography that also came out in 2020. It might be one to revisit at some point and it was a top 3 on Tyler Cowen’s year-end list, but at this point I’ll have to settle for having made it through about 1/3 of it.
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
The idea of reading an almost 1000 page biography of Sylvia Plath seemed daunting to me, but given all the glowing reviews, I found it hard to resist. I'm glad I took on the challenge, because it was a pretty ideal reading experience, minus the physical weight of holding this gigantic book up.
From what I understand, there have been tons of Plath biographies, and none of them have been very objective. Here, Heather Clark has access to Plath's journals and letters going back to her childhood, so pretty much every source in the book is a primary one. Clark clearly has great love and affection for Plath, but I thought she presented the facts of her life in way that gives readers space to come to their own conclusions.
Based on all the journal entries, letters, and first hand accounts from people who knew Plath, she really did seem like an incredibly complicated person who happened to be a genius. She was driven from a very young age to achieve, and was constantly putting pressure on herself to reach lofty goals. Combining that drive with the repressive 1950s culture, living in England without much of a support system, stigma surrounding mental illness and a lack of proper care for women with mental illness, Plath's tragic end seems inevitable. I couldn't help but wonder what might have become of Plath if she'd just been born 20 years later, when women had (slightly) more opportunities. She was someone who really wanted it all - a career, a husband, children, a beautiful home - and that was simply not allowed in her lifetime. Even though I clearly knew how it all ended for Plath, reading this book had me feeling like she was a friend, and her death felt shocking and horrible after spending 900+ pages with her. This was an incredibly immersive book, jam-packed with fascinating information and even at its great length I was sad for it to end.
From what I understand, there have been tons of Plath biographies, and none of them have been very objective. Here, Heather Clark has access to Plath's journals and letters going back to her childhood, so pretty much every source in the book is a primary one. Clark clearly has great love and affection for Plath, but I thought she presented the facts of her life in way that gives readers space to come to their own conclusions.
Based on all the journal entries, letters, and first hand accounts from people who knew Plath, she really did seem like an incredibly complicated person who happened to be a genius. She was driven from a very young age to achieve, and was constantly putting pressure on herself to reach lofty goals. Combining that drive with the repressive 1950s culture, living in England without much of a support system, stigma surrounding mental illness and a lack of proper care for women with mental illness, Plath's tragic end seems inevitable. I couldn't help but wonder what might have become of Plath if she'd just been born 20 years later, when women had (slightly) more opportunities. She was someone who really wanted it all - a career, a husband, children, a beautiful home - and that was simply not allowed in her lifetime. Even though I clearly knew how it all ended for Plath, reading this book had me feeling like she was a friend, and her death felt shocking and horrible after spending 900+ pages with her. This was an incredibly immersive book, jam-packed with fascinating information and even at its great length I was sad for it to end.
