Bell the Bell Jar

Book name – The Bell Jar Author – Sylvia Plath Genre – Fiction So after a long time, bookstagram made me read this masterpiece and I am so glad that I did. So here is my take on this book: This is the story of Esther Greenwood, a protagonist who initially seems fine but then she spirals into depression and suicidal thoughts. The novel shows how she manages (or fails) to deal with a world full of negativity or perhaps how her mental state leads her to see more negatives than positives. It portrays how she copes with the death of her father, the loss of friends, and inner despair. She survives an asylum stay, struggles with her own depression, and tries to find a way out of her mental prison. The Bell Jar works as a metaphor: people trapped inside their own minds, unable to break free. They want to do things but they can’t; this frustration becomes overwhelming and eventually pushes them toward despair. Also The Bell jar mean walking Dead !! Esther loves writing and creative pursuits, but depression becomes so suffocating that she can’t even hold a pen in her hand. The build-up of frustration, lack of trust in people, breakups, disappointments everything culminates in her ending up in a psychic ward. The book has an open ending: it doesn’t clearly state whether she really recovers or not. Some readers (and critics) relate Esther’s story to Sylvia Plath’s real life knowing that Plath died by suicide and call the book tragic. Have you read this book if yes then, tell me your take on this book in comments??? If not then read this book asap

Loved it totally...it's worth 5 stars but the glitters from the pages is coming out

“It was a queer sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” The first sentence itself gives a glimpse into her thought process which hooked me to the book. The book goes through the experiences of the protagonist Esther Greenwood while she is working as an intern in a fashion magazine in New York during the summer and how she views people around her. After she completes her internship, she moves back to Boston but her life does not turn out the way she envisioned it to be. And then slowly but surely, she falls into depression and ultimately takes help. The book also deals with how the protagonist faced critique from the society as she decided to focus on her career rather than getting married and settling down. The book also gives a glimpse into New York of that time. Coming to the title, the bell jar is metaphorical to depression. The protagonist felt trapped inside a bell jar and she could see everyone around her and how they were behaving and they could see her perfectly normal externally. She wanted someone to come and save her but nonetheless no one could see what she was going through internally. The book deals with the complexities of the human mind, the protagonist trying to find her place in the world, societal expectations and taboos on women, depression and suicide. I felt the book was quite ahead of its time since it was set in the 1950’s and navigates through the mental health journey of the protagonist. I found the writing style quite intense and gripping. It was extremely difficult for me to continue reading the book as it became quite overwhelming at times. The book was moderately paced for me. I will treasure reading such an honest portrayal of the author’s life experiences making the book semi-autobiographical. However, I won’t suggest this book for beginners or anyone going through anything difficult in their life becz this book is quite disturbing and it can trigger u.

The book is a timeless classic there's no way it was written in 1960's.Sylvia was ahead of her time.The book came in a very good condition and price was reasonable too. Looking forward to reading this book.

There’s a certain breeziness in the beginning—The Bell Jar opens like a tale of a young woman chasing ambition in the city that never sleeps. Sylvia Plath’s novel centres on Esther Greenwood, a bright college student navigating New York City in 1953. While others seek the glamour and excitement of the city, Esther’s experience is far from seamless. She encounters unsettling behavior from men and views other women as if they belong to an entirely different world. Her inability to meet the rigid standards expected of women only deepens her unprocessed grief and disappointment, slowly unraveling her mental health. The second half of the book shifts into something far more internal. Esther’s ambition and her persistent feelings of inadequacy begin to fracture her once-strong image. Though others see her as successful, she feels hollow inside. The cracks in her identity widen as she returns home and is pulled into the frightening world of psychiatric care. Plath captures Esther’s descent into confusion and madness with subtlety and grace. The language is restrained but powerful—no dramatic outbursts, just a slow, haunting unraveling. We feel her alienation deeply, and we come to understand that the world she’s been trying to belong to was never really meant for her. Esther is imperfect, conflicted, but deeply relatable. The Bell Jar is a semi-autobiographical novel—Plath’s only one—and it’s a work that pits a young woman’s mind against the void. I had wanted to read Plath for a long time, and as expected, her writing is absolutely beautiful. She has an incredible gift for imagery, turning even the mundane into poetry. That said, I found myself losing interest in the second half. Perhaps intentionally disorienting, it left me feeling distant and disillusioned by the end.

The book was of good quality and in excellent condition.

Iam lost at words at how relatable,how deep emotions this book can evoke,uff..sylvia plath,the literary magician she was,the hypocritical standards imposed on women,her humour in the beginning of book😂this book is an intense portrayal of mental health, and how the protagonist slowly finds herself losing to it.The fig tree analogy in this, that is the best part, anyone can find it relatable.The ending was saddening,depressing and raw reality of life for some(not going to spoil it) Coming to quality of the book , it didn't had proper binding and the pages might come of easily ,if not handled delicately.reducing one star for this only, not for the content.