Please post your questions below for your pair of chapters from the first six of The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. Try to extract themes by close-reading a particular passage.Remember that you are responsible for reading all of the chapters through the end of 6, not just your own.
The main character Esther is shown in many instances where she feels excluded physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Is this drawn from her race or is it mirroring how many americans felt during the cold war?
ReplyDeleteThe story opens with "it was a queer sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenburgs, and I didn't know what I was doing in New York" (1). How does this phrase set the tone for the book and describe Esther's alienation?
ReplyDeleteIn the story Esther is close friends with Doreen, an outspoken character who Esther follows around and goes to for advice. After Esther leaves Doreen at Lenny's house alone she says that she will remain loyal to Betsy because "it was Betsy [she] resembled at heart" (25). Despite her outright stating that she has the most in common with Betsy, Esther continues to go back to Doreen. Why is it that Doreen intrigues Esther so much and what qualities does she have that continues to bring Esther back to her.
ReplyDeleteEsther often remarks on other characters’ physical appearances and sometimes describes her own as “queer.” In Chapters 5 and 6, her relationship with Buddy seems to be based on his appearance and how others see her when they associate them together. When Esther finds out that he is not innocent and pure like she thought he was, not only does she feel deceived, but becomes slightly vindictive. Does Buddy’s experienced past intensify Esther’s feeling of physical inferiority?
ReplyDeleteEsther in a scene at the bar, orders pure Vodka because she doesn't know what to drink it with. In chapter 5, she spends the whole chapter describing how she does not like Buddy partly because he lost his virginity and is not honest about it. What is it about purity that Esther is so fixated on. What does it reveal about her?
ReplyDeleteAlthough it seems like Esther is living the life that many girls would love to live. But often see seems excluded, empty, and unhappy. Why? Why is it so hard to embrace her situation...is there something deeper involved in relation to her unhappiness?
ReplyDeleteIn chapters 3 and 4, food is a main theme and occurs throughout the chapters. Esther claimed that she loves food and could eat as much as she wants and never gain a pound. Yet later on, the crab from Ladies' Day is actually what made her sick. Does the food she loves so much making her sick have any significance? Why are there so many references to food, specifically, "higher class" food such as caviar and crab meat?
ReplyDeleteEsther is disgusted by Buddy, not but because of his loss of virginity, but rather, "Buddy's pretending [Esther] was so sexy and he was so pure, when all the time he'd been having an affair with that tarty waitress and must have felt like laughing in my face" (page 80). What does Esther's abhorrence of hypocrisy say about social expectations of "fine" gentlemen in the mist of cold war and woman rights movement?
ReplyDeleteHey folks, sorry to interrupt, but I have to cut this common problem off at the pass: The Bell Jar was not written, nor does it take place, during the women's rights movement (AKA second-wave feminism). After its publication, it would be inspirational to the members of this movement and subsequent generations of feminists, but this story--the story of Esther Greenglass set in the year of the Rosenberg's execution (1953)-- by no means transpires in the midst of the radical social movements of the mid-late 1960s. Please take note!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/19/books/betty-friedans-feminine-mystique-50-years-later.html
DeleteEsther and Billy's relationship seems to be what the average couple should be. Esther is the smart, virgin girl that Billy's mother would want him to be with and Billy is the overall good, innocent guy that people think Esther should want. Near the end of chapter 6, Esther finds Billy is a hypocrite who seems to be using her to please society, mainly his mother, and she wants nothing to do with. Once he is sent away sick though, Esther seems to use the relationship to focus on learning while not being made fun of for it. What does it mean that this relationship is functioning solely on one of the persons own gain? What could this be saying about relationships in general?
ReplyDeleteEarlier in the story, we find out that Esther's father passed away when she was only nine. In chapters 5 and 6, Esther is dating Buddy. Explain how there may be a connection between a lack of a father figure in Esthers life and her uneasiness about her relationship with Buddy.
ReplyDeleteEsther describes her time in New York as feeling empty, such as the eye of a tornado "moving dully along in the middle of the surrounding hullabaloo" (3). She is going through the motions, seeing everyone around her having the time of their lives yet struggling to enjoy it herself. This gives the feel of loneliness, although she is living with a dozen other girls. She even places some of the blame for this feeling on Doreen, saying that she is one of her "troubles." Strangely, though, Doreen seems to be the one she enjoys most. Is Esther simply not letting herself feel happiness? How will this pessimistic attitude affect her relationships and overall experience during her time in the city?
ReplyDeleteThe first time Esther went over to Buddy's house, Mrs Willard was expressly trying to tell if Esther was a virgin. What does this say?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the irony in Ester saying "I thought the TB might just be a punishment for living the kind of double life Buddy lived and feeling so superior to people" (73). How is it related to Ester's arrogance throughout the story?
ReplyDeleteIs Esther a virgin? What relevance does this have for the story? Is there a connection between Esther not growing up with a father figure and her dating struggles? Why is Esther having trouble enjoying life? Why is Esther's obsessed with perfection?
ReplyDeleteThrough out Chapter 6, Buddy shows Esther many gruesome cadavers that he works on in the hospital, all of which she handles just fine. It isn't until she witnesses a live birth, and the pain of the mother going through the live birth, that she becomes incredibly uncomfortable. What is it about the raw pain of the mother that upsets Esther so much? How does this tie in with her hatred for anything that serves men?
ReplyDeleteHow does Esther's job and living situation reflect the status of women in the 1950's? Can this be related to any of the characters in Mad Men? How does the mentioning of the Rosenberg's allude to how the Cold War is effecting these women?
ReplyDeleteEsther seems to pay particular attention to color when thinking about objects. This then is contrasted to the drab and seemingly colorless world outside. Does this contrast help to show Esther's relationship to the outside world?
ReplyDeleteJay Cee, Esther's boss, seems to help guide Esther through life. I don't mean to turn this into a huge religious debate, but do you think Jay Cee is supposed to represent a bigger presence, perhaps Jesus Christ, who is sometimes called "JC"?
ReplyDeleteWhy does Doreen continue to call Esther Elly even when no one else was around? Why does Esther depict sexual activity so violently? Does her discomfort stem from her being a virgin?
ReplyDeleteWhy does Esther seem to not mind getting sick? Doreen comes to Esther's aid to comforter her; how is this indicative of Esther and Doreen's relationship?
ReplyDeleteWhat does it mean when Esther says that "I thought it sounded just like the sort of drug a man would invent." And why does she specifically point to men in the production of pain killers? Furthermore, the idea of queer is mentioned a few times throughout the novel. What, if any connection does this have to Burrough's Queer?
ReplyDeleteSimilar to how Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye point out "phony" people and their behavior and subsequently gets depressed, Esther reacts very similarly and sometimes does not explain why why is feeling upset. Is this to show that she is immature and does not understand her own self yet?
ReplyDeleteFurther, she criticizes Buddy for being a hypocrite and acting a "double life" as she felt that he purposefully made himself feel inexperienced and Esther sexy while it was actually the opposite. However, isn't Ester hypocritical in a sense for pretending to be more social and liked for the older students at her college to see. How are her lies similar or different from living a double life and what is the significance of this?
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ReplyDeleteDespite living the dream life that many college girls would admire, why does Esther seem uncertain and unhappy about her life? It is described that she is "supposed to be having the time of her life", however, she is unable to enjoy her situation. Is her decision to use Elly at the bar an attempt at embracing her new life style?
ReplyDeleteDoes the recurring theme of distorted vision, such as seeing others and seeing Esther herself, have any implication about the story in general or the character?
ReplyDeleteWhy does Doreen's wild night with Lenny suddenly shift Esthers take on life and make her realize for instance that she doesn't know what she wants to do the the future or that she cheated the system when she took the chemistry course?
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