Ariel
‘Ariel’ by Sylvia Plath is a deeply metaphorical poem. It focuses on the speaker’s experiences during a terrifying horseback ride.
Balloons
Sylvia Plath’s ‘Balloons’ narrates her experience and perspectives of having the balloons around like a pet at home. She contrasts childhood with adulthood through the colorful balloons. The balloon when pops, takes the observer from the dream-like state of childhood to the harsh reality of adulthood.
Black Rook in Rainy Weather
‘Black Rook in Rainy Weather’ by Sylvia Plath uses a black rook as a metaphor. It elevates the simple things in life to a higher, more important level.
Blackberrying
‘Blackberrying’ by Sylvia Plath explores decaying and flourishing life and human mortality. It was published in 1971 in Crossing the Water, after the poet’s death.
Child
‘Child’ by Sylvia Plath depicts the speaker’s concerns about motherhood. She hopes her child will have a better future than her own.
Contusion
‘Contusion’ by Sylvia Plath is a memorable, short poem about death and a loss of passion or meaning in one’s life. It is a dramatic monologue written 12 days before the poet’s death.
Crossing the Water
‘Crossing the Water’ by Sylvia Plath is a four stanza poem that is divided into sets of three lines, known as tercets. Theses lines do not follow a specific rhyme scheme or metrical pattern.
Cut
‘Cut’ by Sylvia Plath is one of the poet’s most famous poems. It details an incident in which she almost cut off her own thumb.
Edge
‘Edge’ by Sylvia Plath tells the haunting story of a woman’s depression and the terrible actions she took on account of it. She murders her children and then takes her own life.
Elm
‘Elm’ by Sylvia Plath is a complex poem. It details a woman’s emotional transformation throughout various seasons and through the image o an elm tree.
Fever 103°
‘Fever 103°’ by Sylvia Plath speaks on complex themes common to her work. The speaker contemplates her guilt and innocence and where she belongs after death.
Finisterre
‘Finisterre’ by Sylvia Plath focuses on ocean imagery. It uses the sea as a way of considering the human experience and complex topics of life and death.
I am Vertical
‘I am Vertical’ by Sylvia Plath discusses the purpose of life and the value of beauty. The speaker is desperate for a worthwhile role in the world.
Lady Lazarus
‘Lady Lazarus’ is one of the best poems of Sylvia Plath and an ideal example of Plath’s diction. This poem contains Plath’s poetic expression of her suicidal thoughts.
Mad Girl’s Love Song
‘Mad Girl’s Love Song’ by Sylvia Plath explores the truth of a relationship. The speaker wonders how deep and meaningful it really was.
Metaphors
‘Metaphors’ by Sylvia Plath is an autobiographical piece. It was written during Plath’s pregnancy and discusses the meaning of motherhood.
Mirror
‘The Mirror’ by Sylvia Plath is an unforgettable poem told from the perspective of a mirror. The mirror gives an autobiographical account of itself.
Morning Song
‘Morning Song’ by Sylvia Plath is a powerful poem about motherhood. The speaker explores the emotions related to it as well as its implications.
Mushrooms
‘Mushrooms’ by Sylvia Plath is about the struggle for women’s rights. It uses mushrooms as a symbol for women and their determination.
Nick and the Candlestick
‘Nick and the Candlestick’ by Sylvia Plath is a poem about new motherhood. The speaker talks about the child she’s caring for and what the experience means to her.
November Graveyard
‘November Graveyard’ by Sylvia Plath describes a cemetery in November. She discusses her views on the afterlife and what the graveyard truly symbolizes.
Poppies in July
‘Poppies in July’ by Sylvia Plath is a personal poem about the poet’s emotional experience. It details her mental state after learning about her husband’s affairs
Poppies in October
‘Poppies in October’ by Sylvia Plath depicts an interesting contrast between life and death. It takes a melancholy tone and can be interpreted in different ways.
Sheep In Fog
The poem ‘Sheep In Fog’ describes Sylvia Plath’s feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, helplessness, and depression.
Stars Over the Dordogne
‘Stars Over the Dordogne’ by Sylvia Plath is a personal, confessional poem. It provides the reader insight into the poet’s battle with depression.
Stings
‘Stings’ by Sylvia Plath is a complex poem that uses bees as a metaphor. It describes the changes a speaker goes through as she considers the role of a queen bee in a hive.
The Arrival of the Bee Box
‘The Arrival of the Bee Box’ by Sylvia Plath depicts a speaker’s chaotic mind. The poet uses the bee box to represent how confined the speaker feels and the bees as a demonstration of her thought patterns.
The Colossus
‘The Colossus’ by Sylvia Plath explores the poet’s relationship with her father. Through incredibly original imagery, her father is depicted as a fallen statue and her as his keeper.