ipl-logo

You Re By Sylvia Plath Analysis

1043 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Analyzing sylvia plath poetry

You’re Introduction: Hello, and welcome to my individual oral commentary on “You’re” by Sylvia Plath. The poem portrays the idea of pregnancy and motherhood. Motherhood and pregnancy has been a crucial identity of women, which had become a stereotype in the early twentieth century. It is a much-awaited phase in woman’s lifetime that brings a bucketful of joy but requires intensive effort and composure. Sylvia Plath, a famous poet active during mid-twentieth century, articulates the phase of pregnancy in her poem, “You’re”. “You’re” is essentially an associative response to the truth of fetus, but its art is certain and fascinating to contemplate. Plath conveys the mixed emotions that regulate during the persona’s phase of pregnancy and childbirth …show more content…

We can see that the poem consists of two stanzas with nine lines each; the nine lines refer to the pregnancy period of nine months. The first line of the poem, “Clownlike, happiest on your hands,” displays the emotions related to a newly born child, but the rest of the stanza gives the impression of the time period when the baby is inside the womb, “Feet to the stars…O high riser, my little loaf.” Furthermore, the poem evolves through the time phases of pregnancy, as the first stanza displays a set of positive emotions such as that of clown like and happy, which slowly transform into acrid second stanza with images of creel, pickle jars, and traveled prawn. This change in tone of comparison for the fetus displays the evolution of the thoughts of persona as the nine months of pregnancy gradually pass through. In contrast to this subtleness, the poet uses enjambments to clarify the theme of pregnancy to the readers, “Mute as a turnip from the Fourth of July to all Fool’s Day.” In the second stanza, every line is ended with a period except of the fourth line, “Snug as a bud and at home Like a sprat in a pickle jug.” This extended line contrasts the first paragraph about the must-awaited fetus by referring to the baby as a small inconsequential being, with a kinesthetic imagery of

Show More
Related
1818 Words | 8 Pages

In a way it is like a cyclic recurrence where she finds that she must transform the image of herself yet again for she is not fulfilled by her own role as a woman. By becoming a biological mother for five children and a mother substitute to numerous others not her own, Marie Lazarre begins to encompass this maternal ideal, a person that has adopted the “mystique of feminine fulfillment [...], the cherished and self-perpetuating core of contemporary American culture. ” We witness Marie’s capacity, resilience, and strength to fulfill the role of Nokomis and the stereotypical woman during the birth of her first born son, Gordie. Marie movingly depicts the pain that she suffered during labor, describing the contractions as if she was allowing her “body to be driven by waves, like a boat to shore, like someone swimming toward a very small light.” And it is after the birth of her son that we observe this connection between her mother in that they “shared the same boat, where [Marie] had labored.”

Read More
857 Words | 4 Pages

The author lays bare the emotional turmoil, the omnipresent discomfort, and the enduring trauma that marked the entirety of their pregnancy through vivid storytelling. These were all characteristics of their pregnancy. These emotionally charged paragraphs are where the author draws readers into the more private, vulnerable parts of themselves. Through the author's willingness to openly discuss their hardships and expose their most vulnerable selves, the reader is able to build a profound connection with the author that goes beyond the written words on the page. This intentional act of sharing provides a resonant connection between the emotional landscape of the author and the empathic response of the readers, which helps to foster an elevated emotional engagement that goes beyond basic compassion.

Read More
1484 Words | 6 Pages

Thank goodness, she turned out alright. But I’ll never risk it again. Never! The strain is simply too - too hellish,” (36). Larsen uses words provoking anxiety and horror to give the reader insight into Clare’s mind when she thinks about pregnancy and motherhood.

Read More
1145 Words | 5 Pages

That is a crucial moment of transformation for the infant projected in the present of the adult - the moment he realizes he has to cease being a child and become a man. The mother goes to bed and leaves her son alone to gradually fade and cool. The second part begins; it seems like there is no boundary between reality and fantasy anymore, but the poet just lets himself be sucked within his own memories. Everything is possible in one’s mind; the time is compressed (A minute galaxy/ About my head will easily/ Needle me back.)

Read More
506 Words | 3 Pages

Wyatt Tucker Mrs.Briglia Block 1 28 March 2023 “Initiation” It could affect peoples realization that they don’t need a group for finding their true self. “Initiation”, by Sylvia Plath, is about a girl in high school trying to join a sorority, but is getting put up with task to see if she’s worthy like making her go buy them sandwiches and sending a handsome man out to talk to her to intentionally make her fail, but then she had later on realized that she doesn’t need them or the sorority to be herself. In “Initiation”, by Sylvia Plath uses symbolism , conflict, and indirect characterization to show when one is searching for an identity, it can lead to them finding their true selfs. In the story “Initiation”, Plath uses setting by showing when and where the story taking place.

Read More
549 Words | 3 Pages

There once was a little girl, she had long hair and big eyes; and she loved to play outside in the dirt. At the age of six her mother told her to go inside and play with the dolls, that she would get hurt playing outside. Society taught her that a woman’s job was to take care of a family and raise children of her own one day; she was taught the world was not a place for her. Despite the instilling of this message in many girls, few managed to speak out against it; one of these few was Sylvia Plath. In Sylvia Plath’s work, her deeply rooted emotions and resistance to authority often led people to perceive her as pompous.

Read More
1238 Words | 5 Pages

Sethe embraces the dominant values of idealised maternity. Sethe’s fantasy is

Read More
2058 Words | 9 Pages

This severe view on childbirth is exemplified when the narrator, Offred, goes to the doctor for a monthly check-up. The doctor asks her if she wants a child, and she replies “yes,” then repeats in her head the phrase from the Bible, “give me children, or else I die” knowing “there’s more than one meaning to it” (Atwood 61). For a Handmaid, they have it embedded into their minds that “There are only women who are fruitful and

Read More
1024 Words | 5 Pages

When thinking of personal experiences, “The Mother” by Gwendolyn Brooks touches on the emotional topic of abortion. Even though this poem was published decades ago, it can still be seen very relevant to this day. Accepting abortion and the outcome can indeed be a challenging task for many, while others seem to adapt to it without much of a problem. Gwendolyn Brooks’ writing lets us take a look at the mothers view point of abortion and how a mother responds to her new situation. Throughout the poem, the speaker shows signs of grieving concern of the topic of abortion and its outcomes by presenting emotions of regret and memories, shame and guilt, and contradicting herself to almost justify what she has done.

Read More
1201 Words | 5 Pages

After finding Sarah’s baby buried in the garden, she nurses the baby back to health and houses both the mother and baby saying “I will take the responsibility” (70-71). Mother nurtures them without question, providing for the baby and Sarah as if they are her own family. After Sarah’s death, Mother continues to raise the baby as her own and after the death of Father and a year of mourning, she marries

Read More
1125 Words | 5 Pages

Harwood therefore uses the poem as a social commentary on 1950’s Australia. Through figurative language, she shows a dark side to motherhood and how the repetitive and mundane lifestyle can be exhausting. The line “hatred forks between my child and me” shows that the persona is an honest reflection on how ultimately, a mother can resent her children at times. Harwood therefore uses the rhythm of her ‘vengeances’ to form the final couplet in each of her stanza’s which stress that they are related humorously. The quote “inside my smile a monster grins, and sticks her image through with pins.” contains a child like rhyme that contrasts against the dark statements suggesting that the humorous exaggerations could be the persona’s way of dealing with her own confinement.

Read More
838 Words | 4 Pages

“Daddy” by Sylvia Plath is a daughter’s overdue words to her dead father. As a vessel for the speaker’s emotional outbreak, the poem alternates among her idolation and fear, and her love and rejection for him, feelings that she constantly struggles between. The work reveals the destructive nature of the memory of the speaker’s father, and portrays her final attempt to break free of its shadow. The poem is one big apostrophe directed at the speaker’s dead father, and in doing so she regresses into her childhood self.

Read More
1339 Words | 6 Pages

Christina Rossetti The sister of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, Christina Rossetti’s work was influenced by the doctrines of this artistic movement. Her poetry is simple in rhyme scheme and choice of words, conveying the meaning of her poems to the reader with much clarity. The aforementioned characteristics of her poem do not take away from the vibrancy of her descriptions, as she used symbolism to help her paint vivid images in the minds of her audience. Adding to that, she was a devout Christian, and so her poems take on a highly religious, spiritual, and emotional theme, removed from material wealth and earthly possessions.

Read More
507 Words | 3 Pages

This shows what she had to endure to try to keep her baby healthy. It appeals to the loving protective side of the reader. It makes them think about what the baby must be going through beacuase of their economic situation. Rhetorical questions are used to directly engage the

Read More
1056 Words | 5 Pages

This image seems at first cold, but it is a realistic judgment of her ideas of parenthood. The feeling of distance is also shown in: “I’m not more your mother than the cloud that distils as mirror to reflect its own slow effacement at the wind’s hoard.” The final lines of the poem present the reassuring vision of a loving mother attending to her baby's needs. Plath’s self-image – ‘cow-heavy and floral in my Victorian nightgown’ – is self-deprecating and realistic. The final image is an optimistic one.

Read More

More about You Re By Sylvia Plath Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document