Esther's Personification In A Worn Path By Sylvia Plath

The above excerpt is a clear display of how Esther’s vaulting ambition ultimately drained her, causing her to achieve nothing instead of her desired everything. Plath’s use of imagery comparing her life to the fig tree that “branching out” is a metaphor comparing her constant, growing goals to a long lengthy tree. The journey of reaching her goal can be seen as the prolonged and rough branches, while what she wants is the satisfaction at the end - the fig. She also includes an example of personification when the figs “beckoned and winked” for her future, implying that these figs are not only pieces of fruit but certain goals that she wants to achieve. Although not included here, she mentions many of the figs representing certain futures

She referred to a life such as this as being a “slave” in some kind of “totalitarian state.” Harsh diction such as this indicates that the supposed classic life for a woman at that time would drive her to the verge of suicide. Totalitarianism can be defined as subservience to something or someone, creating the idea that if she were to follow this life path, her kids and husband would control her like a puppet. She also defines this “traditional” lifestyle as being brainwashing, almost as if she considers familial love to distort one’s perception and induce insanity. Upon learning that Plath wrote this book while married with kids, it adds a whole new depressing meaning that makes the reader wonder why Esther (or Sylvia Plath, for that matter) would ever have kids if despising motherhood was her predictable

The fact that the women are attending "posh secretarial schools" like Katy Gibbs suggests that they are being trained for traditional female roles as secretaries and assistants, rather than pursuing careers in other fields. As Esther’s mom pesters her to pick up shorthand, her general hatred for women who succumb to such gender stereotypes as their moms probably want increase, to the point when she mostly distances herself from them. She does not appreciate under-achievers as she strives to break these social norms that society places upon the backs of women. Additionally, using “amazon” to describe this hotel is extremely ironic when thinking of mythological amazons that were said to be women who surpassed men in every way and being exceptional warriors. While many of the women are there meeting societal expectations on what a woman should do because of the efforts of their father’s money, a man, the hotel is still coined with something that defines excellence and rebellion. Plath’s includes a lot of clever and ironic comments such as these throughout the entire