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A review by lindsey_bear
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Plath’s writing style is easy and timeless. That being said, the topics in The Bell Jar are anything but easy. The story was hard to get through as much of it surrounds the main character’s thoughts of suicide. I found the descriptions of the asylum to be extremely interesting and it shed a lot of light on how mental disorders used to be dealt with decades ago. The metaphor of the bell jar as intermittent depression was relatable and evergreen.
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Classism