Distorted Female Identity in Sylvia Plath’s: The Bell Jar
Distorted Female Identity in Sylvia Plath’s: The Bell Jar

Summary/Abstract: The paper examines the concept of identity in Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar and explores the definition of female identity from the point of view of the self and by the public. Different approaches to defining female identity are examined by comparing studies on gender theories and analysing the roles of women in the period of the 1950s. The study takes into account the personal life of Sylvia Plath, focusing on several works written by close friends or experts and using Plath’s own thoughts and comments from her journals and personal diaries. The next part of the paper outlines the similarities between Plath’s life experiences and her most famous character, Esther Greenwood in The Bell Jar. Using direct quotes from the novel, the paper focuses on how identity is formed and then shattered in a society where women had to follow strict rules without the opportunity to experience life on their own, through their own choices. The final part of the study presents the findings of an in-depth analysis, the aim of which was to show what the consequences of a deeply repressed individual identity can be, and how much damage can be done to someone’s mental state by hiding behind masks.

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