The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre
This article revisits the categorical vagueness of The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath’s only completed novel. At times referred to as an autobiographical or semi-autobiographical novel and at other times as a non-fiction novel, her work sparks debate on how one might categorize its genre. Published in 1963...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Laboratoire d’Etudes et de Recherches sur le Monde Anglophone (LERMA)
2023-12-01
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| Series: | E-REA |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/erea/17009 |
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| author | Angélique THOMINE-RAPP |
| author_facet | Angélique THOMINE-RAPP |
| author_sort | Angélique THOMINE-RAPP |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article revisits the categorical vagueness of The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath’s only completed novel. At times referred to as an autobiographical or semi-autobiographical novel and at other times as a non-fiction novel, her work sparks debate on how one might categorize its genre. Published in 1963 in the United Kingdom under the pen name Victoria Lucas right before Plath’s early death, the novel, set in the 1950s, follows the protagonist Esther Greenwood, an American student who, for many, closely resembles Plath. The blurred line between fiction and non-fiction genres was the central question during the 1986 libel lawsuit against the film crew of the 1979 film adaptation of The Bell Jar. Jane Anderson, who supposedly inspired the character Joan Gilling in The Bell Jar, sued members of the film crew and Ted Hughes, who held all rights to the novel. This article analyzes how this lawsuit contributed to the confusion between Sylvia Plath and The Bell Jar’s narrator and deconstructs how the resistance of many to accept The Bell Jar into a literary genre is due in large part to the myth surrounding Plath as an author and the public fascination about her private life, which obscured the importance of the novel’s social aspects as well as its critical look into American society. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ae41241facfc4a9ab90652cbf5e0fe45 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1638-1718 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Laboratoire d’Etudes et de Recherches sur le Monde Anglophone (LERMA) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | E-REA |
| spelling | doaj-art-ae41241facfc4a9ab90652cbf5e0fe452025-01-09T12:53:02ZengLaboratoire d’Etudes et de Recherches sur le Monde Anglophone (LERMA)E-REA1638-17182023-12-0121110.4000/erea.17009The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genreAngélique THOMINE-RAPPThis article revisits the categorical vagueness of The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath’s only completed novel. At times referred to as an autobiographical or semi-autobiographical novel and at other times as a non-fiction novel, her work sparks debate on how one might categorize its genre. Published in 1963 in the United Kingdom under the pen name Victoria Lucas right before Plath’s early death, the novel, set in the 1950s, follows the protagonist Esther Greenwood, an American student who, for many, closely resembles Plath. The blurred line between fiction and non-fiction genres was the central question during the 1986 libel lawsuit against the film crew of the 1979 film adaptation of The Bell Jar. Jane Anderson, who supposedly inspired the character Joan Gilling in The Bell Jar, sued members of the film crew and Ted Hughes, who held all rights to the novel. This article analyzes how this lawsuit contributed to the confusion between Sylvia Plath and The Bell Jar’s narrator and deconstructs how the resistance of many to accept The Bell Jar into a literary genre is due in large part to the myth surrounding Plath as an author and the public fascination about her private life, which obscured the importance of the novel’s social aspects as well as its critical look into American society.https://journals.openedition.org/erea/17009autobiographySylvia PlathautofictionThe Bell Jarfictionallawsuit |
| spellingShingle | Angélique THOMINE-RAPP The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre E-REA autobiography Sylvia Plath autofiction The Bell Jar fictional lawsuit |
| title | The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre |
| title_full | The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre |
| title_fullStr | The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre |
| title_short | The Bell Jar : Troubles dans le genre |
| title_sort | bell jar troubles dans le genre |
| topic | autobiography Sylvia Plath autofiction The Bell Jar fictional lawsuit |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/erea/17009 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT angeliquethominerapp thebelljartroublesdanslegenre AT angeliquethominerapp belljartroublesdanslegenre |