Hi. Welcome to the blog for my IB English B class at Jur Hronec High School in Bratislava, Slovakia. Below you will find links to other websites and discussion questions. My students are required to comment on one of these postings every month and also respond to each other's comments. Feel free to add your two bits, but be aware that all comments are monitored before being posted.
Tuesday, May 14, 2019
The Bell Jar: Esther as a young adult
Esther is
an academically oriented young adult (like you).To what extent can you identify with the
difficulties she faces in the novel?
Personally, I feel that to some extent I am able to identify myself with her stance. She feels almost as if numb to everything that is going on around her. The title of the books gives out the message of the book away. The concept of us being in a bell jar, each and every one of us regardless of our problems is very intriguing because that would mean I would at least have to think about her analogy. If her analogy applies to me as well, then I have to think where exactly in my life am I in a bell jar. Esther says that whether we know or not we are no different in our lives than she is. Even though we may live our lives we are still in our own way in a bell jar and we may not even know about it.
Esther feels the same way anywhere she is due to her condition; like hell, under a bell jar. I too, sometimes feel like I am under a bell jar, wanting to do something, speak, talk with clarity, but sometimes I am unable to. Sometimes I simply am not able to reach out to people in need, or people whom I care for. This is what I would call my own personal bell jar. It is not omnipresent, but it’s like that cadaver balloon head lurking behind me. Sometimes it just descends down upon me and I am unable to speak, clarify or in any way reach out to the people I love. It really is as if I were behind glass that I cannot break because I am too weak.
I would like to end it off with two citations that really hit the spot. The first one is the feeling when the bell jar has descended. The second one when I have the sense of doubt, when I do not know at what time the bell jar will descend again.
“…wherever I sat-on the deck of a ship or a street café in Paris or Bangkok I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar stewing, in my own sour air” (Plath, 185),
“How did I know that someday—at college, in Europe, somewhere, anywhere—the bell jar, with its stifling distortions, wouldn’t descend again?” (Plath, 241).
I would say that Esther and I are very similar. Throughout the first half of the book, I sometimes had a feeling that I am reading about myself. We are both ambitious persons, which, can, honestly, cause a lot of pain. I always feel like what I do is not sufficient and I have to work harder. That is, in my opinion, exactly what Esther was experiencing as well. Her achievements were never enough for her. She always simply tried to reach out for more. Esther's summer internship in New York was supposed to be the number one accomplishment, something she really wanted and finally got. But it didn't make her feel any better about herself. Esther quickly figured out that it is not what she wished it to be. That is when her mental problems start to get more serious. She realized that no matter how "big" her success was or will be, it is never going to be enough. I strongly relate to that, because on the way of trying to be perfect, we both forgot about the most important thing- to find out who we are.
As a person suffering from depression, I can identify with the difficulties she faces to a high extent. We all feel lost and sad sometimes, but depression is not just being a bit sad. It is feeling nothing. A quote from Rollo May summarizes it very nicely: "Depression is the inability to construct a future." That is probably the main problem Esther had, she could not imagine herself anywhere. When Jay Cee asked her, back in New York, what would she like to be in the future, Esther started to cry. It is always worse than it seems. I think that was the moment when she fully realized she had no clue and could not do anything about it. I am, right now, facing the same problem. Soon enough, I have to decide what I am going to do with my life. You cannot make progress without making decisions.
When I compare myself and Esther I can most definitely see some similarities. We both are very academically driven women. I often find myself over-preparing myself for important exams or over-organizing my time weeks in advance. This type of perfectionism can, however, easily lead to depressive thoughts when coming across failure. And I can confirm it myself. When I do not get the grade that I wanted, I can spend a long time thinking that I am not as smart as everyone else or that I did not prepare enough. I would compare this feeling to a quote by Esther: “The trouble was, I had been inadequate all along, I simply hadn't thought about it.”. Deep down I know that it is not true, I just cannot help myself to be overwhelmed by these thoughts when experiencing failure. A best solution to this would probably be improving my self-confidence or try not to let it too much into my head.
I related to Ester the most, however, when she discussed her thoughts on marriage. When she said: “So I began to think maybe it was true that when you were married and had children it was like being brainwashed, and afterward you went about as numb as a slave in a totalitarian state.” I felt that her words came out of my own mouth. Personally, I am very scared of getting married and having kids. It is not because I have a negative stance on marriage, I just do not see myself as a typical housewife. I think that giving up your education or job to be fully devoted to your family is a waste of potential for us, young women. Having the routine of cooking, cleaning and changing diapers all day is scarier to me than staying single and without children all my life. I hope to find a perfect balance between my personal life and family in my future.
In my opinion, caring about your mental health is the most beneficial thing a person can do. I understand the fact that our lives are going at a very fast speed, but many things can wait. Taking a gap year, removing your social media or simply going for a walk can help an emotionally-drained mind, even if just a little bit.
“I am sure there are things that can't be cured by a good bath but I can't think of one.” ― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
Esther is a university student and of approximately our age, which, at least as far as demographics and social setting go, makes her quite relatable to high school students. It is this time when we are considering possible career paths and are not so confident about our choices. And this is exactly Esther's case. When she was asked what she was planning on doing in life, which career she would like to follow, she did not know. At one occasion, during photo shoot, when aksed this question again, she began to cry. And although there are many students certain about their future, from my own experience, most of us still do not know. Also, we can relate to the situation when she did not get accepted to the summer writing school, as, I believe, we all went at least once through a situation when we thought that we were good at something, and then we realized that maybe (actually) we were not. Again, suggesting that our possible career paths may be different than those which we have dreamt of. / of course Esther is very talented poet and will acually become a writer, but for some of us, this can be a message to be found in this book, which is very relatable
Another relatable situation of Esther's is that high school students start to form their first relationships, start dating and become more engaged when it comes to topics like relationships. And again, Esther's situation demonstrates how people we think we know may turn out to be quite different in aspects we consider very important. Like Buddy Willard and his virginity. For Esther it was virginity that played very important role (besides many other "categories"), and for everyone of us it is something different. All in all, sexuality is something that we all start to pay attention to at this age, and is therefore a topic relatable for almost every high school student.
Personally, I feel that to some extent I am able to identify myself with her stance. She feels almost as if numb to everything that is going on around her. The title of the books gives out the message of the book away. The concept of us being in a bell jar, each and every one of us regardless of our problems is very intriguing because that would mean I would at least have to think about her analogy. If her analogy applies to me as well, then I have to think where exactly in my life am I in a bell jar. Esther says that whether we know or not we are no different in our lives than she is. Even though we may live our lives we are still in our own way in a bell jar and we may not even know about it.
ReplyDeleteEsther feels the same way anywhere she is due to her condition; like hell, under a bell jar. I too, sometimes feel like I am under a bell jar, wanting to do something, speak, talk with clarity, but sometimes I am unable to. Sometimes I simply am not able to reach out to people in need, or people whom I care for. This is what I would call my own personal bell jar. It is not omnipresent, but it’s like that cadaver balloon head lurking behind me. Sometimes it just descends down upon me and I am unable to speak, clarify or in any way reach out to the people I love. It really is as if I were behind glass that I cannot break because I am too weak.
I would like to end it off with two citations that really hit the spot. The first one is the feeling when the bell jar has descended. The second one when I have the sense of doubt, when I do not know at what time the bell jar will descend again.
“…wherever I sat-on the deck of a ship or a street café in Paris or Bangkok I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar stewing, in my own sour air” (Plath, 185),
“How did I know that someday—at college, in Europe, somewhere, anywhere—the bell jar, with its stifling distortions, wouldn’t descend again?” (Plath, 241).
Sincerely,
Tomáš Csémi
I would say that Esther and I are very similar. Throughout the first half of the book, I sometimes had a feeling that I am reading about myself. We are both ambitious persons, which, can, honestly, cause a lot of pain. I always feel like what I do is not sufficient and I have to work harder. That is, in my opinion, exactly what Esther was experiencing as well. Her achievements were never enough for her. She always simply tried to reach out for more. Esther's summer internship in New York was supposed to be the number one accomplishment, something she really wanted and finally got. But it didn't make her feel any better about herself. Esther quickly figured out that it is not what she wished it to be. That is when her mental problems start to get more serious. She realized that no matter how "big" her success was or will be, it is never going to be enough. I strongly relate to that, because on the way of trying to be perfect, we both forgot about the most important thing- to find out who we are.
ReplyDeleteAs a person suffering from depression, I can identify with the difficulties she faces to a high extent. We all feel lost and sad sometimes, but depression is not just being a bit sad. It is feeling nothing. A quote from Rollo May summarizes it very nicely: "Depression is the inability to construct a future." That is probably the main problem Esther had, she could not imagine herself anywhere. When Jay Cee asked her, back in New York, what would she like to be in the future, Esther started to cry. It is always worse than it seems. I think that was the moment when she fully realized she had no clue and could not do anything about it. I am, right now, facing the same problem. Soon enough, I have to decide what I am going to do with my life. You cannot make progress without making decisions.
This is a comment from Emma:
ReplyDeleteWhen I compare myself and Esther I can most definitely see some similarities. We both are very academically driven women. I often find myself over-preparing myself for important exams or over-organizing my time weeks in advance. This type of perfectionism can, however, easily lead to depressive thoughts when coming across failure. And I can confirm it myself. When I do not get the grade that I wanted, I can spend a long time thinking that I am not as smart as everyone else or that I did not prepare enough. I would compare this feeling to a quote by Esther: “The trouble was, I had been inadequate all along, I simply hadn't thought about it.”. Deep down I know that it is not true, I just cannot help myself to be overwhelmed by these thoughts when experiencing failure. A best solution to this would probably be improving my self-confidence or try not to let it too much into my head.
I related to Ester the most, however, when she discussed her thoughts on marriage. When she said: “So I began to think maybe it was true that when you were married and had children it was like being brainwashed, and afterward you went about as numb as a slave in a totalitarian state.” I felt that her words came out of my own mouth. Personally, I am very scared of getting married and having kids. It is not because I have a negative stance on marriage, I just do not see myself as a typical housewife. I think that giving up your education or job to be fully devoted to your family is a waste of potential for us, young women. Having the routine of cooking, cleaning and changing diapers all day is scarier to me than staying single and without children all my life. I hope to find a perfect balance between my personal life and family in my future.
In my opinion, caring about your mental health is the most beneficial thing a person can do. I understand the fact that our lives are going at a very fast speed, but many things can wait. Taking a gap year, removing your social media or simply going for a walk can help an emotionally-drained mind, even if just a little bit.
“I am sure there are things that can't be cured by a good bath but I can't think of one.”
― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
Esther is a university student and of approximately our age, which, at least as far as demographics and social setting go, makes her quite relatable to high school students. It is this time when we are considering possible career paths and are not so confident about our choices. And this is exactly Esther's case. When she was asked what she was planning on doing in life, which career she would like to follow, she did not know. At one occasion, during photo shoot, when aksed this question again, she began to cry. And although there are many students certain about their future, from my own experience, most of us still do not know. Also, we can relate to the situation when she did not get accepted to the summer writing school, as, I believe, we all went at least once through a situation when we thought that we were good at something, and then we realized that maybe (actually) we were not. Again, suggesting that our possible career paths may be different than those which we have dreamt of. / of course Esther is very talented poet and will acually become a writer, but for some of us, this can be a message to be found in this book, which is very relatable
ReplyDeleteAnother relatable situation of Esther's is that high school students start to form their first relationships, start dating and become more engaged when it comes to topics like relationships. And again, Esther's situation demonstrates how people we think we know may turn out to be quite different in aspects we consider very important. Like Buddy Willard and his virginity. For Esther it was virginity that played very important role (besides many other "categories"), and for everyone of us it is something different. All in all, sexuality is something that we all start to pay attention to at this age, and is therefore a topic relatable for almost every high school student.