1)
the
is a woman who is
persona
identity of persona
>
female
present
representing death
is the same
conflicting thoughts about death
{÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷:÷÷÷÷÷÷÷
::
.
.
3 entities
persona
present The persona imagines the voice of the
present as well as
the
presence of the giver of the present Thepresent itself is left
-
speak
in the
curious
present giver
-
-
hesitant
person
}
.
.
always directly
poem but not
of tension
creation
.am#......
shifting tone throughoutpoem
in
questioning uncertainty
tone
.
.
.
>
scornful
>
>
A Birthday Present
disdainful
,
persona 's increasing more
and invitation to the
together in
>
stanza 7- 13
stanza
I -2
of present
in
stanza
3-5
derive
for the present
urgent
to
partake in present ( death )
giver
recognition of the fear of the giver and a tone of
in stanza
towards the
desire for
>
frustration
14-18
giver
release I
escape
in Hama
19-21
layered
>
in
present
symbolism of veil
the
,
ambivalence
.
.
stanza is
the
a
What is this, behind this veil, is it ugly, is it beautiful?
It is shimmering, has it breasts, has it edges?
visual
double conflation
>
question emphasis on
-
incomprehensible present
.
/
.
symbolism of veils
>
deliberate
indeterminacy of
hidden behind a veil +
.
.
persona and present giver
all
mother and wife
family centered )
and 4
at the
present
>
rebelling against the prescribed roles of
and domestic .c
stanza 2
2) looking
-
.
.
imagery of beauty
weddings
funeral
religious
} mourning
a
beginnings
endings
celebration of
connotation
,
and
-
/ Herat
taking +neuei,
becoming a
>
,,
nun
metaphorical death
poem about transition
.
,,
or
>
false confidence
betrays her uncertainty
caring
into
social
expectations
personification of the mysterious present
a
looming presence
>
Tulips
n' Milano
.
highlighting
being
domestic
-
"
notion
-
following rules
>
>
of
rules
following the
""
" " " "" " "" " " " "
persona is
present
-
rigid
the
not
feels
but
"
conformity
and
that
being controlled
persona
undeserving the gift
>
""
""
routine
is
vulnerable and weakened
persona
onto the
showing
projecting
her
gift
thoughts
her own insecurities
.
structure
and
injury
(domestic chores )
Measuring the flour, cutting off the surplus,
Adhering to rules, to rules, to rules.
key themes
Catholic celebration of the announcement
bythe
Gabriel to
many that she would conceive and
become the mother of
Jesus
would be a
reference to the persona being a mother
and unfavourable
to
,
f
compared
Is this the one for the annunciation?
My god, what a laugh!'
visual
Mary
.
mm,
imagery of beauty
,
www..mg .
a.
.
language
sexual
.
deriving the persona
-
.
But it shimmers, it does not stop, and I think it wants me.
I would not mind if it were bones, or a pearl button.
sense
>
persona 's presence
is
accident
>
.
only by
intertwining of life and death
becoming more apparent
linked to death in
.
Plath 's poems
of
translucence
something bright light , translucent in color
>
connection to death
the persona 's desire to take her own life
,
.
I do not want much of a present, anyway, this year.
After all I am alive only by accident.
.
.
I would have killed myself gladly that time any possible way.
Now there are these veils, shimmering like curtains,
more
prominent ?
expansion
bigger ?
present
light and delicate
is
>
in
of the
.
a
veil
theatre
,
symbol
where it star ts and ends
glowing ?
plays
.
The diaphanous satins of a January window
White as babies' bedding and glittering with dead breath. O ivory!
end of the winter
-
start
new babies
-
life
form
of the
the
present is
→
persona
becomes more keen
having the present
of
.
the
more
eagerness
showing
assertive,
.
.
.
ivory
present giver
beautiful alluring
reminder of death
the
white and
but Hill
becomes
yeas on
year
white , valuable like
but still tied to death
>
new
oxymoronic phrase
.
It must be a tusk there, a ghost column.
Can you not see I do not mind what it is. addressing
tone
a
,
to the
persona
.
Can you not give it to me?
Do not be ashamed—I do not mind if it is small.
present does not matter Ino matter how small or large )
representation of present does not matter
the size of the
the
→
link to
vague
and broad ideas
.
usage of the
word
"
"
Do not be mean, I am ready for enormity.
Let us sit down to it, one on either side, admiring the gleam,
<
is
interesting
→ an act
y
idea
→
enormity
of depravity ,
rin
,
grave crime, evil
imagery of beatty
of minor
minoring identity of the present giver andpersona
reflecting the self
is
-
.
evidence
for
when the
interpretation
persona = present giver
The glaze, the mirrory variety of it.
Let us eat our last supper at it, like a hospital plate.
showcasing the different facets of self
.
1) biblical
→
allusion
death
of Jesus
predicts that his disciples will betray
him
and
deny
biblical allusion
.
→
2) classical reference
→
death
of Medusa
perseus
using reflection of a shield
to
kill Medusa
present giver
is hesitant to
give
the
gift
presentation of death ] to persona
> afraid
of the wnrequences
that
might come with
ive
.
.
.
.
reference to Jesus
.
I know why you will not give it to me,
You are terrified
The world will go up in a shriek, and your head with it,
references
to Medusa
.
used
as a
frame of reflection
problems of language
.
.
.
and
imagery where
clearly
of something
trying locate and pinpoint a type offeeling through various
forms of imagery
.
.
quotation marks
actually thoughts of thepresent
with
.
seriously ?
repetition
.
.
extreme situation cannot be described
>
ambiguous and vague
address
wnfwntation , immediate or prlential ,
derived but also feared
'Is this the one I am too appear for,
fatigued
Is this the elect one, the one with black eye-pits and a scar?
.
.
.
.
>
is this the person 1 am supposeto serve ?
imagery ofthe persona being
.
Death and Co , Contusion ,
artistic talent
of persona 's current situation
reference to Tuplips
an
self and sense of
under surveillance
with
deals
.
.
dealing Whn metaphorical / literal
.
and
I am sure it is unique, I am sure it is what I want.
}
When I am quiet at my cooking I feel it looking, I feel it thinking
thoughts Mine present
commentary
is
,
artistry
domesticity
her
critical
birthday and present
on
personals life
also
Lady Lazarus
-
present representing
other critical
anaphora
poems
Predations of death
.
must die -10 attain her true self and
kill the woman who i t rapped in
therefore it is
•
some
" "+"
.
.
.
rhyme scheme
Edge
.
Bossed, brazen, an antique shield,
persona treats death
whereas
>
very lightly
present giver is wavy
why the
contradiction
.
of gilt giver
being afraid ofgift they are giving ?
comforting
>
.
the Obi client
will be silent
when
in persona
the
present
open ing
expectations that
.
subverting
be
hysterical
>
and excited
would
she
.
opening process is ominous
.
trying the quell the anxiousness
of present giver
A marvel to your great-grandchildren.
Do not be afraid, it is not so.
I will only take it and go aside quietly.
You will not even hear me opening it, no paper crackle,
.
No falling ribbons, no scream at the end.
I do not think you credit me with this discretion.
the
taking away
gift
time
.
If you only knew how the veils were killing my days.
To you they are only transparencies, clear air.
present give u does not understand
to
present giver , effect rfgif
the extent
ofthe gift
bothering persona
harmless , to persona it is toxic
is
suffocating
.
.
But my god, the clouds are like cotton.
Armies of them. They are carbon monoxide.
heaviness and density
veils
.
persona welcomes the
-
poison accepting the death
,
L
.
poison clouds
that
comes
with
gift
.
Sweetly, sweetly I breathe in,
Filling my veins with invisibles, with the million
9Mt helping persona reach the goal of self annihilation / suicide
poppies in July , opiates into her system
.
similar 0
.
.
Probable motes that tick the years off my life.
You are silver-suited for the occasion. O adding machine——the
present giver is the
inhuman
dvrect
of persona
machine that wants to add more
years of suffering
s
opposite
/ life to persona who wants to take away years
giver move elaborate attire
giver is a male figure
Is it impossible for you to let something go and have it go whole?
Must you stamp each piece purple,
.
the idea
with the
and
of letting go is only possible
breaking down ofpersona
abusing
>
her in some
way
.
physical abuse
purple bruises
.
feminist
C
reading
)
Must you kill what you can?
There is one thing I want today, and only you can give it to me.
description of death
> as
big as the endless sky
.
hinting that her previous lives are
now
>
corpses
.
by
persona lives
herself
sheets are hers alone
.
It stands at my window, big as the sky.
It breathes from my sheets, the cold dead center
part ofthe persona
death to
wanting
>
hit
come
quickly
through slow mail or word of
mouth
Where split lives congeal and stiffen to history.
Let it not come by the mail, finger by finger.
.
C
potential of getting delayed )
Let it not come by word of mouth, I should be sixty
By the time the whole of it was delivered, and to numb to use it.
death wish
→
on
her
birthday
derive through
emphasized the
was
considered to
birthday
.
C sense
be a
sign
3
fold repetition
of greatness to die
of completion )
.
on
your
Only let down the veil, the veil, the veil.
If it were death
death
> a
is a sew u us htuati on
grand and significant end
.
I would admire the deep gravity of it, its timeless eyes.
I would know you were serious.
of stabbing
imagery
>
instead of
cutting a birthday cake,
persona stabs herself
a
and clean as the
a
.
>
pure
''
simile
baby
death
paradoxical
-
>
cry of
and birth
killing natural like birth
the
discomfort ofchildbirth ?
is he
.
or
other
babies as an
poems uses
idea of
and innocence but
purity
here is violent
.
There would be a nobility then, there would be a birthday.
And the knife not carve, but enter
Pure and clean as the cry of a baby,
And the universe slide from my side.
instead
of the baby hiding from
it is the universethe
persona loses
her womb,
connection
with
Greek
µ
the
poem
is about the
death
of
a
woman
detailing the description of her dead body
death
The
lobes and the dead children
poem
and its
Tragedy
,
a wound her
primarily about the depiction of death
is
significance
Edge
.
endings
,
deaths
.
diction
f.
>
an
object
the state
the
perfect
( ironic )
detachment and distance
of death as perfection
The woman is perfected.
Her dead
endpoint
-
reader
of
some
>
.
the last
bleakness
death is
.
positioned as an observer
an
.
poems thatplath had
wrote
.
accomplishment
Body wears the smile of accomplishment,
The illusion of a Greek necessity
not
>
being actually necessary
hopeless
and
ambivalent
futile
link to the
>
.
7
?
the waste
of life
subject of Greek Tragedy
sense of
granduev and heroism
pwning highthought and pwning
a
.
Flows in the scrolls of her toga,
Her bare
.
metaphor of clothing as scrolls that capture writing
>
reference to Plath 's curling as well
continuous
of the ambivalence
a
complete story + state of death of woman
.
.
( tire )
(ve )
Feet seem to be saying:
We have come so far, it is over.
vulnerability
1) relief
2) desolate
-
we
-
have
.
( visual
have traveled
we have
imagery of the dead body)
so
far
and
suffered so much
finally reached the goal
and
gone
through
and
now we can
rest
.
}
""
OR
%
"""
resignation
£
.
Each dead child coiled, a white serpent,
One at each little
Pitcher of milk, now empty.
She has folded
protection and withdrawal -1 retreating
> never bat
of the birthing process Ivel earing
(death
of
breast
of the
women whom
had
imagery of
>
white and milk
-
danger
serpents
or
innocence
>
poison
maybe
even
causing
causing harm to the woman
her death
.
great literary deaths )
woman , no milk ,
greek mythological figure
cleopatra
more vivid
imagery
Monbiot
dead children
-
empty and hollow
Medea
killed her children in
revenge of her
husband
her for another woman
.
leaving
Greek
death associated with
.
Tragedy
serpents
.
.
children into the world )
Them back into her body as petals
Of a rose close when the garden
simile
+
nature
imagery
+
metaphor
folding in the children lprotecting them )
rote
closing
garden seem dangerous
>
the act is likened to
>
a
.
the
imagery of poisoning
poppies in July
* seems in
Stiffens and odors bleed
From the sweet, deep throats of the night flower.
The moon has nothing to be sad about,
Staring from her hood of bone.
wniealment, coldness and death
I
c associations
and
personification
>
bold envious
* seen in
>
therefore
has become
the moon is seen as
who relished death
a
sinister
figure
darkness of the
night sky
from zooming into zooming out imagery wire
the
.
moon
.
a recurrent
of the moon )
She is used to this sort of thing.
Her blacks crackle and drag. surrounding
symbolism of the
feminity
Elm
death is
incident
accustomed to-1ha-1
.
.
{ ÷:÷÷÷÷::÷÷÷÷÷:÷÷
on
the
fly
a
body
on the
which is then
wall
The
.
poem
compared to
other
> the
.
a
death
approaching
meaning of the
bruise
a
key images in
ultimately conveys
Contusion
of life /
. ..
the idea
of loss
.
title
tissue or
region of injured
capillaries
skin in which blood
have been
-
poem
of a
begins with
bruise on the
a
vivid
body
description
becomes
visual
central
the
imagery of
ruptured
.
image of
the
poem
.
bruise
Color floods to the spot, dull purple.
The rest of the body is all washed-out,
The color of pearl.
metaphor
-
water
flowing way which
,
the wlov form C uncontrollable movement )
9
waterbody metaphor
builds the
.
C morbid )
visual
imagery
-
paleness
reference topearl
clean ,
the color pure
bruise
beautiful ,
.
ethereal
n
ambivalence
.
-
contrasting
>
of
lifeless corpse
which isthen
compared to other key
images in the subsequent stanzas
namely apit of rock in the sea and a
fly on the wall
.
shifting of imagery
-
sea
body
the
is the wok
the tea is the blood
the
.
and life force
and
that
the rest of the
body
pale
.
flows
In a pit of a rock
The sea sucks obsessively,
One hollow the whole sea's pivot. overwhelming
body
through
the
.
bruise is the wck that Hicks out
flow of blood
sea is the
a
broader circumstance
.
.
personification of
the sea +
drawing out the life source
>
sibilance
coininer tone )
.
vampiric quality
the centre
the seals
of
full
the entire sea and has
and
attention C
Cliteral
-
the
pit of wok as
-
+ne
overpowering / overwhelming quality
The size of a fly,
The doom mark
Crawls down the wall.
to a worn C internal
>
ultimately
death and conveys
loss of life
.
of approaching
imagery
The heart shuts,
The sea slides back,
The mirrors are sheeted.
gothic
>
closing
sea
finality
skin
.
death and
ending
death
of the heart
drawing back
minors
>
our
though
bruise formation
and surreal
intensifies the scenario of aperson being
further weakened and approaching death
sense of fear and
hopelessness
references of
anaphora , conveying
body
paints the process of
the
reflecting
now
bleak and
of individual
overwhelming
are
experiences
now
-
and
drawn back
viewing
covered, the
fatalistic tone
the
self is lost
.
self
.
at the end
.
.
.
.
plays atiny part
external circumstance
body
therefore feels helpless
of bruise and body
connection
overly emphasized )
and the bruise
being overwhelmed by
.
they
as
the idea
-
of
Kin aesthetic
> bruises do
not crawl down
do form very slowly
>
is
individual
environment , specific )
establishing the inner psyche
the individual
foreshadowing
a
tragedy that is goingto take place
body
and drains the
"*""d " " """ M""
tea
body
the sea isthe broader circumstance
the
going from the
significant
interpretation )
the entire
.
and external environment
.
.