A Psychological Look at The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

This novel is written as fiction but is really an autobiographical novel about Sylvia Plath’s own psychological problems and descent into madness.


From the beginning problems were very apparent, she was overly critical of everything, especially herself. But at the same time she just watched and went along with everything, it was as if she was living outside of herself, not really feeling any real emotions. She also had a slight obsession with sex, even though she didn’t really feel or need to have sex, but thought she should.


She was an over achiever in school, always getting good grades, all A’s actually, even if she hated the subject, she forced herself to work at it. She pushed herself to the very extreme to be perfect. Then once she was in New York she suddenly gave up. Even though she was only in New York a month it had a tremendous impact on her life and her sanity.


New York seemed to push her over the edge. She felt as if she didn’t fit in, though others seemed to accept her quite well. She was caught up in a whirl wind of fancy clothes, dinner parties, fake smiles, plastic life. She realized she didn’t know what she wanted out of life. She wanted it all, but she couldn’t decide which route she really wanted to take. It ate at her and drove her towards her impending madness.


She really did not seem to like herself very much. When ever she describes her appearance it is basic, like she was 5’ 10”, or else it was a negative comment. She never describes herself as pretty or anything close to it.


Her relationship with men was strange, she never really felt much for them. On her last night there, she unfortunately ended up with an abusive man who attempted to rape her. After she went back to the hotel that night she threw all her fancy clothes out the window not even leaving herself anything to wear home. So she went home on the train with borrowed clothes and bloodstreaks on her face from fighting with that man, she didn’t even bother to wash them off.