Metaphors by Sylvia Plath Essay

Sylvia Plath is well known for her confessional style of writing. Her poem Metaphors was written in the 1960s and expresses her self-loathing during pregnancy. Unlike many poets, Plath isnt afraid to express her inner feelings throughout her work and explore herself within her poetry. In her poem Metaphors Plath uses the I contribution to make her writing deeply personal and convey her pessimistic attitude towards her body image during pregnancy.Metaphors is written in a single stanza structure consisting of cabaret-spot lines each containing nine syllables. Nine is a recurring and significant number in the poem as metaphor and pregnancy both have nine letters and I is the ninth letter of the alphabet. It also may be an underlying reference to the nine months of gestation during pregnancy and the impact pregnancy is having on Plath. The poem is written in the form of blank verse without any regular rhyming pattern however the meter remains consistent with 9 syllables in each line. Plath pretends shockingly vivid imagery of her heavily pregnant body and child within An elephant, a ponderous house. She uses the word ponderous to create an image of her large, lumbering heavily pregnant body and house to show that she is sheltering something precious within. Plath also compares herself to the humorous image of a melon on two tendrils. This makes the reader picture a heavy, round image staggering on two frail, weak legs. The writers constant comparison to humorous, ugly objects such(prenominal) as a big loaf and a fat purse highlight the extent of her depression and self-loathing.Although Plath compares herself to a large, unattractive being, she places great value on her unborn childs life and compares it to many beautiful, valuable objects ivory fine timbers She uses comparison between the beautiful baby contained within her and her own self-image silvers new-minted in this fat purse which clearly represent the ugliness she sees in herself, concealing her pre cious child within. The writer claims to bea way where the child will thrive and grow until birth, a stage for her child to develop and grow within and a cow in calf which emphasizes the self-loathing she feels towards the intensify in her body.In the second last line on the poem, Plath says Ive eaten a bag of green apples which could be a reference to the Bible and the apples that tempted eve in the Garden of Eden and how her over-indulgence followed by painful consequences are a biblical reference to original sin. Plath compares her situation to that of Eves, she believes that she too indulged in the carnal pleasure of over-indulgence and is now facing the consequences of her actions. On a more literal level, it may also be that she has over-eaten and feels bloated as this is often common among pregnant women.Plath ponders what the dubious future holds for her in her last line Boarded the train theres no getting off. She implies that the pregnancy is too far advanced to be c oncluded and she is solely responsible for the new life within her. As the poem progresses, Plath begins to feel helpless towards the last weeks of her pregnancy, facing an uncertain future and she has no mesh over the outcome.The overall tone of Metaphors is a pessimistic one which highlights the extent of the poets self-loathing and depression. This may be related to mental health issues the fragile poet suffered from. Plaths distorted self-image combined with the love she feels for her unborn child and her uncertainty of what the future may hold for her come together to produce a beautiful, highly stimulated poem. She successfully incorporates striking yet shocking imagery to engage the reader into her deepest impressions and feelings and almost sympathise with her situation. Plath leaves us pondering what the future holds for her through her extremely heart-rending, thought provoking poem.