BIOGRAPHY
Lived from 1932 – 1963.
 Born in Boston, Massachusetts, to two
German migrant parents.
 Plath won a Fulbright Fellowship to study
at Cambridge University.
 While at Cambridge, she met the famous
poet, Ted Hughes and married him. They
had two children, Frieda and Nicholas.
 Plath committed suicide in 1963.

PLATH’S LEGACY


During Plath’s lifetime, she had
one collection of poetry published,
The Colossus, to little critical
attention.
It was with the posthumous
publication of Ariel, that her
reputation as one of the twentieth
century’s finest poets was
established.
THE CHALLENGE OF
PLATH’S POETRY



Many people have found it hard not to read Plath’s work
autobiographically;
however, although based on personal experience, her
poems transform these experiences into something more
original, visceral and artistic.
Plath can be simultaneously confronting, insightful and
contrary to normal expectations when exploring ideas
related to:
 Motherhood
 Families
 Marriage
 Femininity
 Death and mortality
TECHNIQUES

Plath uses a wide range of different poetic
devices, some to look for include:

Figurative language
“The voices just can’t worm through”

Colloquial language
“…daddy, you bastard, I’m through”

Imagery (metaphors, similes etc)
“Chuffing me off like a Jew”
AUTOBIOGRAPHY &
CONFESSIONAL POETRY

Autobiography:
 “Daddy” is addressed to her father, who passed
away when she was eight.
 “Morning Song” was written after the birth of her
first child.

Plath moves beyond normal Confessional
Poetry, as she does not just reflect but in
turn questions herself throughout these
poems.
ACTIVITIES
Read through the poem, “Daddy” carefully and
use the 10 Step Poetry Grid to help you
analyze it. Make sure to consider the following
as part of your analysis?
1.
a)
b)
c)
2.
What kind of form does this poem take?
How many times is “you” or its possessive form
of “your” repeated in the poem? What is the
effect of this on the reader?
Plath employs a couple of image clusters in her
poem relating to Nazism and vampires, highlight
these. Why do you think she does this?
Now complete the 10 Step Poetry Grid with the
poem, “Morning Song.