Sylvia Plath Research Paper

I believe that Sylvia Plath’s best works come were written within the last year of her life. I believe that this is the case even though Mrs. Plath is known for writing over two-hundred poems in her lifetime. Sylvia Plath first began writing poetry in 1940, when she was only eight years old. Unfortunately, her father died the same year from diabetes. It wasn’t until 1958 that Sylvia chose to take writing poetry seriously. She started taking creative writing classes under the teachings of Robert Lowell and wrote many works such as “Virgin in a Tree”, “Perseus”, and “Above the Oxbow.” While these poems were well-written, I do not believe they can compare to her later works such as “Elm” or “Words.” Plath did not fully embrace her style of

She had a breakthrough in 1959. She was pregnant at the time with her daughter Frieda Rebecca and became inspired by her surroundings to write further works. She combined her surroundings with her personal experiences to create deeper poems. An example of this can be found in the poem “Dark Wood, Dark Water.” Sylvia did not have much time to write in 1960, writing only twelve poems. She did however, have her first collection of poems published, entitled “The Colossus & Other Poems”. Plath began writing and later completed her novel entitled “The Bell Jar” in 1961. She also wrote a total of twenty-two poems this year. An important poem completed during this year was the poem entitled “Tulips”. According to her husband Ted Hughes, this was Plath’s first spontaneous poem. During this developing period, Plath wrote an outstanding poem entitled “The Moon and the Yew Tree.” Literary critic Somya Singh agrees with me. She stated that [“The Moon and the Yew Tree” is a beautifully written poem and its splendor lies in the fact that Sylvia Plath perceives so many beautiful sights and yet finds desolation in each. She has made an extensive use of symbols, personifications and diction that, quite clearly, depict her