What to Read When You’re Mad Enough to Burn It Down
Lilly Dancyger shares a reading list to celebrate BURN IT DOWN: WOMEN WRITING ABOUT ANGER.
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Posts Tagged: The Bell Jar
What to Read When You Want to Celebrate Feminism
We here at The Rumpus matriarchy are celebrating all of our feminist “mothers” this Mother’s Day!
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Not a Single False Moment: I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell
What makes this memoir so fine, so special, is not just the power of these brushes with death, but [O’Farrell’s] examination of them.
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Written in Chalk: What It Means to Be Crazy
As truth becomes more elusive, as fact blends with fiction, we ought to take notice of how we categorize people, as categorization seems to be married to suppression, to disenfranchisement.
...moreBarbizon Revisited
For Lit Hub, Nathan Hill takes us through the history of the Barbizon Hotel, recounting its role as an incubator for young women writers of the mid-20th century and as a landmark for those same writers to touch upon and mythologize in their work: Beyond Plath’s infamous retelling, the Barbizon has a strong association in […]
...moreBelles of the Box Office
The multifaceted Kirsten Dunst is going to direct a new film version of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, and the lovely Dakota Fanning is set to star in it, the Guardian reports. “Dunst has co-written the film with Nellie Kim, while Fanning is a co-producer; shooting is scheduled to begin in early 2017,” the article […]
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The Rumpus Interview with Sarah Tomlinson
Author Sarah Tomlinson talks about ghostwriting, her father and childhood, the tradition of confessional writing, and her new memoir, Good Girl.
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The Last Book I Loved: The Hours
Depression has a peculiar texture: sometimes, rather than sadness, it is an emotional flatline; the sneaking suspicion that you are play-acting.
...more“A ‘Fuck You’ to Women Everywhere”
I can imagine complaining along these lines in an editorial meeting at a British publishing house, and being sighed at: “Yes, of course the 1960s cover is beautiful – I love it – but Waterstones and Tesco won’t stock it.” At the London Review of Books‘ blog, Fatema Ahmed takes a critical look at the cover of a […]
...moreFact and Fiction in The Bell Jar
How much of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar is autobiographical, and how much is fictional? Is her unflinching exploration of suicidal depression more meaningful if it’s a record of real life or if it’s invented? The Guardian tackles these questions (and posts a fun, short video interview with the designer of the book’s original cover).
...moreThe Bell Jar Turns 40
“It’s always interesting when a very strange book is also an enduringly popular book.” This Poetry Foundation essay is appreciating The Bell Jar, which is embarking on its 40th year of publication. Initially unnoticed for its literary prowess in Britain, it’s been sustainably successful here, and most likely had a profound presence during your teenage […]
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