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Sylvia Plath (October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963) was an American poet and novelist who helped popularize a then-new genre of poetry — [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessional_poetry confessional poetry]] — that emphasizes revealing intimate details about the poet's life, often with brutal honesty; Robert Lowell and Creator/AnneSexton were other major figures. Plath is still incredibly popular today, despite her short life and limited bibliography, precisely ''because'' of her honesty, imagery, and diction.

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Sylvia Plath (October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963) was an American poet and novelist who helped popularize a then-new genre of poetry {{poetry}} — [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessional_poetry confessional poetry]] — that emphasizes revealing intimate details about the poet's life, often with brutal honesty; Robert Lowell and Creator/AnneSexton were other major figures. Plath is still incredibly popular today, despite her short life and limited bibliography, precisely ''because'' of her honesty, imagery, and diction.
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Wellesley is most definitely *not* in Boston.


Plath was born in Massachusetts to Otto Plath, an entomologist whose expertise is on bumblebees, and Aurelia Plath, a second-generation American of Austrian descent, and spent her early years in the seaside town of Winthrop. She had a younger brother named Warren. On November 5, 1940, a week and a half after Syliva's eight birthday, Otto died from complications following the amputation of his foot. The family then moved to the town of Wellesley, in Boston. Aurelia took a job teaching students in medical-secretarial training at Boston University, while Sylvia and Warren attended local public schools.

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Plath was born in Massachusetts to Otto Plath, an entomologist whose expertise is on bumblebees, and Aurelia Plath, a second-generation American of Austrian descent, and spent her early years in the seaside town of Winthrop. She had a younger brother named Warren. On November 5, 1940, a week and a half after Syliva's eight birthday, Otto died from complications following the amputation of his foot. The family then moved to the town of Wellesley, in a few miles west of Boston. Aurelia took a job teaching students in medical-secretarial training at Boston University, while Sylvia and Warren attended local public schools.
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-->--'''Edward Butscher''', ''Sylvia Plath: Method and Madness'' (1976)

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-->--'''Edward -->-- '''Edward Butscher''', ''Sylvia Plath: Method and Madness'' (1976)



At an early age, Sylvia began to write poetry and began to draw in pen and ink, submitting forty-five pieces to the teen magazine ''Seventeen'' before publishing her first short story in the August 1950 issue. That same year, Plath entered Smith College, where she held class and college offices, became a member of the editorial board for ''The Smith Review'', and published poems and stories for ''Seventeen'' and the ''Christian Science Monitor''. She won ''Mademoiselle'''s fiction contest in August 1951, two Smith College poetry prizes the following year, and became a guest editor for ''Mademoiselle''. That summer, she also published three poems in Harper's magazine. Despite her success, Plath returned home and suffered a "six month crash", attempting suicide and vanishing; she was then hospitalized and subjected to shock treatment to complete her senior year at Smith, graduating summa cum laude. She went on to Newnham College in Cambridge, England, on a Fulbright fellowship, and within a year, she met and married the poet Creator/TedHughes; they moved to the United States in 1957.

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At an early age, Sylvia began to write poetry and began to draw in pen and ink, submitting forty-five pieces to the teen magazine ''Seventeen'' before publishing her first short story in the August 1950 issue. That same year, Plath entered Smith College, where she held class and college offices, became a member of the editorial board for ''The Smith Review'', and published poems and stories for ''Seventeen'' and the ''Christian Science Monitor''. She won ''Mademoiselle'''s fiction contest in August 1951, two Smith College poetry prizes the following year, and became a guest editor for ''Mademoiselle''. That summer, she also published three poems in Harper's magazine. Despite her success, Plath returned home and suffered a "six month crash", attempting suicide and vanishing; she was then hospitalized and subjected to shock treatment to complete her senior year at Smith, graduating summa cum laude. She went on to Newnham College in Cambridge, England, on a Fulbright fellowship, and within a year, she met and married the poet Creator/TedHughes; they moved to the United States in 1957.
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At an early age, Sylvia began to write poetry and began to draw in pen and ink, submitting forty-five pieces to the teen magazine ''Seventeen'' before publishing her first short story in the August 1950 issue. That same year, Plath entered Smith College, where she held class and college offices, became a member of ''The Smith Review'''s editorial board, and published poems and stories for ''Seventeen'' and the ''Christian Science Monitor''. She won ''Mademoiselle'''s fiction contest in August 1951, two Smith College poetry prizes the following year, and became a guest editor in New York in ''Mademoiselle'''s College Board Contest. That summer, she also published three poems in Harper's magazine. Despite her success, Plath returned home and suffered a "six month crash", attempting suicide and vanishing; she was then hospitalized and subjected to shock treatment to complete her senior year at Smith, graduating summa cum laude. She went on to Newnham College in Cambridge, England, on a Fulbright fellowship, and within a year, she met and married the poet Creator/TedHughes; they moved to the United States in 1957.

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At an early age, Sylvia began to write poetry and began to draw in pen and ink, submitting forty-five pieces to the teen magazine ''Seventeen'' before publishing her first short story in the August 1950 issue. That same year, Plath entered Smith College, where she held class and college offices, became a member of the editorial board for ''The Smith Review'''s editorial board, Review'', and published poems and stories for ''Seventeen'' and the ''Christian Science Monitor''. She won ''Mademoiselle'''s fiction contest in August 1951, two Smith College poetry prizes the following year, and became a guest editor in New York in ''Mademoiselle'''s College Board Contest.for ''Mademoiselle''. That summer, she also published three poems in Harper's magazine. Despite her success, Plath returned home and suffered a "six month crash", attempting suicide and vanishing; she was then hospitalized and subjected to shock treatment to complete her senior year at Smith, graduating summa cum laude. She went on to Newnham College in Cambridge, England, on a Fulbright fellowship, and within a year, she met and married the poet Creator/TedHughes; they moved to the United States in 1957.

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[[caption-width-right:248:"I desire the things which will destroy me in the end."]]



Sylvia Plath (October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963) was an American poet and novelist who's probably most famous for dying of suicide at the age of thirty. Although not the first, she helped popularise a then-new genre of poetry — [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessional_poetry confessional poetry]] — that emphasises revealing intimate details about the poet's life, often with brutal honesty. Plath is still incredibly popular today, despite her short life and limited bibliography, precisely ''because'' of her honesty, coupled with her imagery and diction.

Plath was posthumously honoured, if you will, in 2001 when [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_C._Kaufman Dr. James Kaufman]] conducted research on creativity and mental illness. He found that creative writers, particularly female poets, are at great risk for depression, mental illness, and suicide. Kaufman called this the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvia_Plath_effect Sylvia Plath effect]].

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Sylvia Plath (October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963) was an American poet and novelist who's probably most famous for dying of suicide at the age of thirty. Although not the first, she who helped popularise popularize a then-new genre of poetry — [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessional_poetry confessional poetry]] — that emphasises emphasizes revealing intimate details about the poet's life, often with brutal honesty. honesty; Robert Lowell and Creator/AnneSexton were other major figures. Plath is still incredibly popular today, despite her short life and limited bibliography, precisely ''because'' of her honesty, coupled with her imagery imagery, and diction.

Plath was born in Massachusetts to Otto Plath, an entomologist whose expertise is on bumblebees, and Aurelia Plath, a second-generation American of Austrian descent, and spent her early years in the seaside town of Winthrop. She had a younger brother named Warren. On November 5, 1940, a week and a half after Syliva's eight birthday, Otto died from complications following the amputation of his foot. The family then moved to the town of Wellesley, in Boston. Aurelia took a job teaching students in medical-secretarial training at Boston University, while Sylvia and Warren attended local public schools.

At an early age, Sylvia began to write poetry and began to draw in pen and ink, submitting forty-five pieces to the teen magazine ''Seventeen'' before publishing her first short story in the August 1950 issue. That same year, Plath entered Smith College, where she held class and college offices, became a member of ''The Smith Review'''s editorial board, and published poems and stories for ''Seventeen'' and the ''Christian Science Monitor''. She won ''Mademoiselle'''s fiction contest in August 1951, two Smith College poetry prizes the following year, and became a guest editor in New York in ''Mademoiselle'''s College Board Contest. That summer, she also published three poems in Harper's magazine. Despite her success, Plath returned home and suffered a "six month crash", attempting suicide and vanishing; she was then hospitalized and subjected to shock treatment to complete her senior year at Smith, graduating summa cum laude. She went on to Newnham College in Cambridge, England, on a Fulbright fellowship, and within a year, she met and married the poet Creator/TedHughes; they moved to the United States in 1957.

Plath became a teacher at Smith College, but after a year of teaching, she left to focus on writing full-time; she took a secretarial job in the psychiatric department of Massachusetts General Hospital to stave off writer's block and her depression. This became the basis of one of her short stories: "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams". She eventually returned to England with Hughes in December 1959.

Her first child, Frieda, was born April 1, 1960 in London, and Plath published her first book of poetry, ''The Colossus and Other Poems'' in the fall. The Hugheses moved to a Devon village where they bought a thatched house, where their son Nicholas was born on January 17, 1962. During that time, Plath began writing ''Ariel'', in which she abandoned conventional metrical patterns in favor of free-verse poetry, and she continued writing poems in that style.

In the late summer of 1962, Plath learned of Hughes' affair with Assia Wevill, a mutual friend, and the couple separated. She later submitted the manuscript of ''The Bell Jar'', chronicling a college student's mental breakdown and eventual recovery, and continued to work on poems for ''Ariel''.

In December 1962, Plath and her children moved to London, renting a flat where Creator/WBYeats once lived; she was pleased by this and considered it a good omen. Sadly, ''The Bell Jar'', published January 1963, was met with critical indifference, much to her distress. In addition, living in Yeats' house was cold; the pipes froze, there was no telephone, and Plath's children had miserable colds. Plath managed to complete ''Ariel'', but her depression returned. Her doctor prescribed antidepressants to which, in the United States, she was known to react badly, but as these antidepressants were under a different name, she was unaware that she was taking the very medication she should avoid. Her doctor tried to get her to the hospital and arranged for a psychiatrist. Still, on February 11, 1963, Plath offed herself by carbon monoxide poisoning, sealing herself in the kitchen with tape, towels, and cloth and putting her head in the oven.

Plath was
posthumously honoured, honored, if you will, in 2001 when [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_C._Kaufman Dr. James Kaufman]] conducted research on creativity and mental illness. He found that creative writers, particularly female poets, are at great risk for depression, mental illness, and suicide. Kaufman called this the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvia_Plath_effect Sylvia Plath effect]].



* BilingualBonus: At least a minor one in "Daddy", for all the German speakers out there.
* CreatorBreakdown: The poems written in the weeks before her suicide get darker and darker, until you get to [[http://www.sylviaplathforum.com/edge.html "Edge"]], which is a creepy poem about a statue of a woman, and the last poem she ever wrote.

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* BilingualBonus: At least a minor one in "Daddy", for all the German speakers out there.
speakers.
* CreatorBreakdown: The poems written in the weeks before her suicide get darker and darker, darker until you get to [[http://www.sylviaplathforum.com/edge.html "Edge"]], which is a creepy poem about a statue of a woman, and the last poem she ever wrote.wrote.
--> ''The woman is perfected.\\
Her dead\\
Body wears the smile of accomplishment...''



** "Lady Lazarus" which also doubles for AsTheGoodBookSays Lazarus of Bethany is a man revived by Jesus four days after his death. Guess what "Lady Lazarus" is about.
** Subverted on at least two occasions. Some mistakenly think that "Medusa" is this, believing the title to be referring to the monster from Greek mythology. (It actually refers to a jellyfish.) Likewise, some assume ''Ariel'' is a reference to ''Theatre/TheTempest'' when it was in fact the name of Plath's horse. The central poem of the collection is about her sense of freedom while riding.
* OedipusComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."

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** "Lady Lazarus" Lazarus," which also doubles for AsTheGoodBookSays Lazarus of Bethany is a man revived by Jesus four days after his death. Guess what "Lady Lazarus" is about.
** Subverted on at least two occasions. Some mistakenly think that "Medusa" is this, believing the title to be referring refers to the monster from Greek mythology. (It mythology (it actually refers to a jellyfish.) jellyfish). Likewise, some assume ''Ariel'' is a reference to ''Theatre/TheTempest'' when it was in fact the name of Plath's horse. The central poem of the collection is about her sense of freedom while riding.
* OedipusComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."
riding.



* StockShoutOuts: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output.

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* StockShoutOuts: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output.

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no gendered redirect outside char pages


* ElectraComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."


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* OedipusComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."

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gendered redirect


* ElectraComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."



* OedipusComplex: On BBC Radio, Plath described "Daddy" as "a girl with an Electra complex. Her father died while she thought he was God."
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
She wasn't this, because she also published a collection of her poetry during her lifetime, The Colossus.


* OneBookAuthor: She wrote numerous poems and short stories, but only one novel, ''The Bell Jar''.

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* StockShoutOuts: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. There are {{shout out}}s to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, a [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0c1154bf4594a2874a2b63954ca87e7/tumblr_np2qdzsiK81qadfqfo1_500.jpg mention]] in an episode of ''Series/{{Californication}}'', and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]". Music/TearsForFears also released a single in 1991 called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i717l2eeeE Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams (Fluke Remix)]]". A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.

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* StockShoutOuts: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. output.
**
There are {{shout out}}s to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, a [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0c1154bf4594a2874a2b63954ca87e7/tumblr_np2qdzsiK81qadfqfo1_500.jpg mention]] in an episode of ''Series/{{Californication}}'', and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]". Sylvia]]".
**
Music/TearsForFears also released a single B-side in 1991 called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i717l2eeeE Johnny 1990 titled after "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams (Fluke Remix)]]". Dreams" (which later got remixed as a single in 1991).
**
A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* StockShoutOut: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. There are {{shout out}}s to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, a [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0c1154bf4594a2874a2b63954ca87e7/tumblr_np2qdzsiK81qadfqfo1_500.jpg mention]] in an episode of ''Series/{{Californication}}'', and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]". Music/TearsForFears also released a single in 1991 called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i717l2eeeE Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams (Fluke Remix)]]". A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.

to:

* StockShoutOut: StockShoutOuts: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. There are {{shout out}}s to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, a [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0c1154bf4594a2874a2b63954ca87e7/tumblr_np2qdzsiK81qadfqfo1_500.jpg mention]] in an episode of ''Series/{{Californication}}'', and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]". Music/TearsForFears also released a single in 1991 called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i717l2eeeE Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams (Fluke Remix)]]". A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None


* StockShoutOut: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. There are [[ShoutOut shout outs]] to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, an episode of Series/{{Californication}}, and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]". A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.

to:

* StockShoutOut: As previously mentioned, Sylvia Plath is really quite popular despite -- compared to other writers in the 20th century -- her limited literary output. There are [[ShoutOut shout outs]] {{shout out}}s to ''The Bell Jar'', as well as specifically to Plath. They range from a ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' episode about her typewriter, a ''Series/{{House}}'' patient that wrote a poem in the style of Sylvia Plath, a [[https://64.media.tumblr.com/a0c1154bf4594a2874a2b63954ca87e7/tumblr_np2qdzsiK81qadfqfo1_500.jpg mention]] in an episode of Series/{{Californication}}, ''Series/{{Californication}}'', and a song by Music/TheAntlers titled "[[Music/{{Hospice}} Sylvia]]".Sylvia]]". Music/TearsForFears also released a single in 1991 called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i717l2eeeE Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams (Fluke Remix)]]". A preoccupation with Sylvia Plath in cinema has become cultural shorthand for tough, feminist young women who may be hard to be around, as with Kat Stratford in ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou'' and Lisa from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
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Removed a trope that was specific to a work that has its own page


* AuthorAvatar: Esther Greenwood, the main character in ''The Bell Jar'', is based on Plath, and the book recounts her experiences with depression.
** In ''Literature/TheBellJar'', Esther begins writing an autobiographical novel. Her heroine's name has six letters, like Esther.

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