MetaMetaphors by Sylvia Plath

A detailed Summary of MetaMetaphors by Sylvia Plath

Essay #1: "Metaphors" by Sylvia Plath

In Sylvia Plath's poem, "Metaphors," the speaker describes a negative event in which she is experiencing pregnancy. Her choice of words and phrases express her feelings about the pregnancy as well as the structure of the poem.

In her poem, Plath chooses many metaphors to describe her pregnancy. I felt that these metaphors were describing something that she was not enjoying or looking forward to. The objects she chose to use to express her feelings gave me an uncomfortable feeling of the pregnancy. The line in which she refers to a "ponderous house" brings me to a vision of shelter. I feel that she is sheltering something, but has to think deeply about sheltering this object. The speaker doesn't sound sure of what she is sheltering, and feels confused. It almost seems like a feeling of regret. The line, "Boarded the train there's no getting off," supports her feelings of regret. She sounds as if she has no other choice

The way that Plath chose to form her poem is also relevant to why the speaker is not enjoying the pregnancy. The beginning line, " I'm a riddle in nine syllables," begins the pattern of nine syllable lines. Each line having exactly nine syllables and containing nine lines is in reference to her length of being pregnant. This reference to the length gives me the impression that the time she has to be pregnant is an issue. Instead of cherishing this "miracle" time, she seems to be bickering about the time she is pregnant and is excited until nine months is over.

Another feeling that I received from reading this poem was that the speaker did not like the pregnancy because she was becoming larger. In the second line, she refers to an elephant. Being pregnant, a person gains a large amount of weight, and I can see her feeling as an "elephant." "This loaf's big with its yeasty rising," refers to her getting larger as her pregnancy progresses. These metaphors all are

Some common words found in the essay are:
Sylvia Plath's, Sylvia Plath, line refers, , green apples, mixed feelings, nine syllables, describe pregnancy, express feelings, experiencing pregnancy, feelings ready, getting larger, reference length,

Approximate Word count = 653
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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