The Bell Jar and Psychology
Sylvia Plath's novel, The Bell Jar is often considered a literary classic for its description of the protagonist's angst ridden journey through depression. In the autobiographical novel, Esther Greenwood, Plath's protagonist, sinks into a profound depression after her third year at college during the 1950's. Esther battles not only a deteriorating mental stability, but also a lack of a sense of individuality, which leads to her major depressive disorder. Esther is a sensitive and intelligent woman who feels oppressed by the obvious social restrictions placed upon her, along with the pressure she feels regarding her future. Esther feels overwhelmed and powerless to break free of the emotional burdens of her inner world of alienation and depression. Her story of the overcoming of depression leads the reader through a story of dependency, self-criticism, and inefficacy all to become healthy once again.The novel begins in New York City, during the summer after Esther Greenwood's third year at college. Esther spends the month of June interning at a ladies' fashion magazine
Esther, along with the reader, is aware of her mood disorder throughout the whole novel. She suffers from the psychological disorder of major depression. Her recurrent depression lasts until her treatment in the hospital, towards the end of the book. Esther's symptoms begin with anxiety, fatigue, and agitated behavior. Her disorder interferes with her sleep patterns along with the ability to concentrate and interact with others. Esther's emotions increase and seriously threaten her health and life when it leads to suicide attempts. Depression often leaves its victims with the sense that it will go on forever and they are helpless, but luckily for Esther, she receives therapy to overcome it. Her first psychiatrist diagnoses Esther as depressive, and he recommends electrical shock therapy to help her. This proves to be ineffective, and she comes to loathe it. After attempting suicide, she is placed in a private mental hospital under the care of Dr. Nolan. Dr. Nolan prescribes anti-depressive medicine along with the discussing Esther's problems and a different type of shoc
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 731
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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