"In any case you are always there,
Tremulous breath at the end of my line"
Tremulous breath at the end of my line"
Word choice here (tremulous) indicates that Sylvia Plath may not view her mother as a strong role model. But her use of words like "fat and red, a placenta" are undeniable references to a maternal relationship and its rawness, with its origins being very physical.
The religious references in the last stanzas of the poem reminded me of our class discussion on Wednesday, and the topic of how divine love and maternal love compare. Sylvia Plath expresses frustration with what I perceive to be her mother's spirituality. The line "Hiss at my sins" seemed to me to suggest that her mother's religious beliefs created tension in their relationship, and probably made Plath feel like her mother looked down upon her. Maybe Plath's mental health had something to do with her feelings of being judged. I think this is a common theme in many mother-daughter relationships when a mother's spirituality is involved. Religion itself seems to worsen an already wide generational gap.
"Off, off, eely tentacle!
There is nothing between us."
There is nothing between us."
This line stings a bit, and to end a poem like this is to end it in anger. Plath has made her decision--she wants to be free of her mother's judgments and expectations. She is hurt.
Your interpretation of Plath's relationship with her mother was much like mine. The words Plath uses to describe their connection are harsh and show her resentment of her mother, in both Medusa and The Disquieting Muses. Plath made it very clear that she could never be good enough for her mother because her mother wouldn't accept her for who she was. Plath writes these words of her mother through her anger, but you are correct in that Plath is hurt by her mother and the connection they never had.
ReplyDeleteI agree that religion can cause a divide between generations. Her religious references reminded me of our class discussion about the christlike love of a mother, but the narrator is being smothered. The part where she asks, "Did I escape, I wonder?" after all the red womb imagery was kind of interesting to me. Its like she's still under her mother's control and questioning whether she actually had been born into her own body or was still inside her mother.
ReplyDeleteI also saw the connection to her mother in this; but I saw it more as a form of respect to her mother or at very least acknowledgement of what she went through. I don't know maybe I just need to read it again
ReplyDelete