"The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

The Bell Jar, written by Sylvia Plath in the 1960s, is described as a coming-of-age novel; it narrates the protagonist's journey, from a cynical, listless young woman to an independent, rejuvenated woman. Esther Greenwood is one of the few elite females who receives a scholarship to college and an internship at a magazine, yet she still feels empty and unhappy. "I buried my face in..;. Jay Cee's loveseat and with immense relief the salt tears and miserable noises that had been prowling around in me all morning burst into the room" (102). Esther describes her first of many breakdowns, which occurs when she and the other girls are in the middle of a photo shoot. She cries because every other girl in her group seems to have their career set, but she feels so lost and indecisive, and as a result, she breaks down in public. …