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A review by bruhcheesee
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
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.
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.