Sylvia Plath Literary Devices

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Sylvia Plath has written several dynamic pieces of literature, she uses her life struggles as a vessel for her work. When Sylvia Plath wrote “Mirror” she used the inner battles she was facing as her inspiration. Additionally, when Plath wrote “Mirror” she used many literary techniques such as imagery, and personification to create such a compelling poem. Using literary devices and one’s own life struggles when writing can result in a magnificent piece of literature. This method of writing can be observed in D.H. Lawrence’s poem, “Piano” and ironically in Plath’s husband Ted Hughes poem, “Wodwo.” All of these artists share several similarities throughout their works. For example, Plath, Hughes, and Lawrence heavily use literary devices such as personification and imagery, to convey their poems to the reader. Furthermore, they share their life struggles and regrets throughout their poems as well. In each poem, there is an …show more content…
In “Mirror” Sylvia Plath uses imagery to her advantage when describing the scenes in each stanza. One prime example in ‘Mirror” is when Plath says, “Then she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon. I see her back and reflect it faithfully” (12-13). In this verse, the woman is searching for herself, she is attempting to learn more about herself through the reflection. The woman then turns and proceeds to follow the “liars” which is the light emitting from the candles and the moon. The candles and the moon are liars because they do not reflect the truth like the mirror and the lake do since they cannot show the woman her blemishes and her signs of aging. Instead, the light cast from the night sky envelopes one in darkness. It acts as a cloak and helps to hide any unsightly insecurity. Furthermore, Plath uses imagery to her advantage when describing this scene and really helps create a picture for the reader in their mind of the women searching for her youth in the
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