The Life Of Sylvia Plath: From Ink To Immortality

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart. I am, I am, I am.”
― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar

Sylvia Plath was one of the twentieth century’s most phenomenal writers, with a voice transcending the boundaries of time. She is celebrated for her unique writing style, which uses raw, intense emotion and unflinching honesty, making her work both powerful and evocative. Her major works comprise “The Bell Jar”, “Ariel”, and “The Colossus”. Although a literary genius, Plath battled with depression most of her life. Her works delve into the themes of mental illness, sexuality, and identity. Let’s explore the tumultuous life of Sylvia Plath.

Childhood

Sylvia Plath was born on October 27, 1932, in Boston, Massachusetts. Her parents were highly intellectual;  her father was a professor of entomology at Boston University and her mother a high school teacher. Sylvia was drawn to writing from a young age and wrote her first poem at eight. Sylvia’s father passed away from complications caused by untreated diabetes. His death had a profound impact on young Sylvia. 

Sylvia was a gifted child and published several of her works throughout her adolescence. She also published her first short story in the ‘Seventeen’ magazine. Apart from writing, she also exhibited a great talent as an artist.

Education

Plath received a scholarship to Smith College, where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature. She won a fiction contest organized by the magazine ‘mademoiselle’ in her first year, which earned her a guest editorship of the magazine the next year. While she continued to achieve academic and literary success during her undergraduate years at Smith, she also began suffering from symptoms of depression. It was during this time that Sylvia first attempted suicide by consuming sleeping pills.

She survived and was institutionalized in a psychiatric hospital, where she was given electric shock therapy, as treatments for depression during this time were severely limited. This traumatic experience would later form the basis of her infamous novel, The Bell Jar.

The Beginning Of A Catastrophic Romance

Sylvia continued her undergraduate degree after recovering and graduated with the highest honors. She secured a Fulbright scholarship to study at the University of Cambridge, England. It was here that she met her lover and her downfall, Ted Hughes.

Sylvia Plath wished to meet Ted Hughes in person after she read one of his poems in a magazine. They met at a spring party in 1956 and embarked on a passionate and fast-paced romance. Both aspiring writers got married in the same year.

Their creativity and love for writing helped them maintain a strong relationship, and they also traveled to Spain together. In 1957, Sylvia began teaching at Smith College, which made it challenging for her to focus on her writing. After extensive travel in America, they eventually settled in London. 

Married Life

Sylvia had her first child in 1960. She also published Colossus, her first collection of poetry that year.

In 1961, she experienced a miscarriage. It was later revealed in one of the letters to her therapist that two days before the miscarriage, Hughes had physically assaulted her. Poems like “Parliament Hill Fields” express this devastating loss. That same year, she finished writing “The Bell Jar”. Soon after, the family moved to the town of North Tawton, and the following year, the couple had their second child, Nicholas.

Ted Hughe’s infidelity

In the spring of 1962, Ted Hughes and Sylvia sublet one of their apartments in England to a woman named Assia Wevill and her husband.  Assia immediately caught Hughes’ attention and they embarked on an affair. Plath also had a car accident this year, which she later acknowledged to be a suicide attempt.

When Hughes and Plath went on a vacation to Ireland, Hughes abandoned her and went on a trip to Spain with Assia. Coincidentally, this was the same city where Hughes and Sylvia had gone on their honeymoon. The couple separated that same year when Ted, upon returning home, refused to end his affair with Assia.

Last Years Of Her Life

While residing at Primrose Hill in London with her two kids, Sylvia’s imagination caught fire and she experienced a rush of creative energy. She composed some of the most extraordinary poems of the twentieth century during this time, that would solidify her reputation as one of the most renowned poets of all time. She wrote “Ariel”, which comprises 26 of her poems including “Lady Lazarus”, “Daddy” and “Poppies in July”. These works were published posthumously.

Death

Even after this burst of productivity, she sunk deeper into depression. She published her semi-autobiographical novel The Bell Jar under a pseudonym and committed suicide just two months after the novel’s release, at the age of 30.

A few weeks before her demise, Plath told her general practitioner that her mental health issues had intensified and that her current depressive episode had been ongoing for six or seven months. She was suffering from insomnia and had lost around 20 pounds recently. She was prescribed an antidepressant but refused to be admitted to the hospital. 

On 11 February 1963, Sylvia Plath tragically took her own life by sealing her kitchen door and placing her head in the oven, while her children were asleep in the next room.

Sylvia Plath’s death was a deeply troubling loss for the whole world. Despite her personal struggles and hardships, Plath made an everlasting contribution to literature. To get more insights into her life, consider reading “The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath“.

To delve deeper into Sylvia Plath’s works, check out How To Read Classic Literature in 6 Easy Steps. And if you’re interested in exploring the lives of more female writers, consider reading Beyond Little Women: The Literary Legacy of Louisa May Alcott.