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ISBN 9781119782384 (Paperback) ISBN 9781119782391 (ePDF) ISBN 9781119782407 (ePub) COVER ART & DESIGN: PAUL MCCARTHY
For my son Damien
Foreword In “Context,” a short work of prose published in The London Magazine in February 1962, Sylvia Plath discusses how the issues of her time impact on her writing. It concludes eloquently: Surely the great use of poetry is its pleasure—not its influence as religious or political propaganda. Certain poems and lines of poetry seem as solid and miraculous to me as church altars or the coronation of queens must seem to people who revere quite different images. I am not worried that poems reach relatively few people. As it is, they go surprisingly far—among strangers, around the world, even. Farther than the words of a classroom teacher or the prescriptions of a doctor; if they are lucky, farther than a lifetime. Sylvia Plath endures. She holds our attention, and as a result, people all over the world think about her, recite her poetry, and write articles, essays, and books about her. Her novel The Bell Jar (1963) has been translated into more than thirty‐five languages, including Braille. Yet, fifty‐eight years after her death, we find we still have much to learn about Plath the person and Plath the writer. The recent publication of the more than 1,400 letters Plath composed helps to fuel our interest in her. When combined with her poetry, prose, and other life writing, an astoundingly prolific and diverse person develops who defies singular classification. Plath's output in various genres of writing and media of expression make her an endlessly fascinating area of study. Patricia Grisafi's Breaking Down Plath is up to the moment. It blends historical and contemporary readings of Sylvia Plath—the major themes in her poetry and important aspects of her prose—in such a way that you, her newest readers, will understand and relate to the mid‐twentieth century's most famous writer. Peter K. Steinberg, co‐editor of The Letters of Sylvia Plath 11 February 2021 Acknowledgments Many thanks to my team at Jossey‐Bass for its support, guidance, and assistance during this process: Riley Harding, Christine O'Connor, and Kezia Endsley. I am grateful to Maria Farland for helping make the opportunity to write a book on Sylvia Plath a reality. An extra big thank you to Peter K. Steinberg for your help; you are an invaluable resource and incredibly generous with your time and knowledge. To Gail Crowther, Fox Frazier Foley, and Li Yun Alvarado, thank you for your helpful feedback, suggestions, and notes on early versions of this project. Cristina Baptista, thank you for your insightful commentary and advice; you truly went above and beyond. To my writing group Erin Khar, Naomi Rand, and Amy Klein: thank you for providing editorial assistance and emotional support. Thank you to The Plath Society for organizing all of the Zoom events that kept Plath scholars and fans connected during the pandemic. I am grateful for the Plath community, especially Julie Goodspeed‐Chadwick, Dave Haslam, Emily Van Duyne, and Elizabeth Winder. Thank you to Jake Currie for being flexible with my work schedule so I could complete this book. To the Ladies’ Group Text—Lauren Navarro, Sophia Chang, and Deborah Schwarz—you guys are a lifeline. Thank you to my therapist, Lisa Youngclaus, for your continued encouragement. Many thanks to my childcare professional, Tashi Sherpa: Without your hard work, it would have been impossible to write this book. Mom and Dad, I am grateful for your continued support and belief in me. To all the writers, teachers, artists, and scholars continuing to bring Sylvia Plath's work to wider audiences: Keep up the wonderful work. As always, thank you to my husband, Scott Goldstein, for reading many drafts of this book and being a truly supportive partner. I could not have done this without you. About the Author Patricia Grisafi, PhD, is a freelance writer, editor, and educator. She received her BA in English from Skidmore College and her PhD in English from Fordham University. She lives in New York City with her husband, son, and two rescue dogs. Introduction
