She tears at his life Tearing up his papers Tearing up his sense of self Tearing up his fragments Into greater and lesser fragments He pokes at her life Poking at her papers Poking at her sense of self Poking at her tears Tears for greater and lesser fears
Composed: 23/10/2011 09:25
I’ve always been a big fan of both Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes. I learned about them both independently, so it was quite a revelation when I found out they were married. It was even more of a revelation to learn that they had this burning, passionate and ultimately doomed loved that was like an all-consuming force in their lives. After Sylvia’s death, Ted was even called a ‘murderer’ by some, who shouted that word as a heckle at him, causing him to cease live readings of his poetry.
For me, the story of Ted and Sylvia (which was portrayed in a well-meaning but solidly depressing film in 2000 called Sylvia starring Daniel Craig and Gwyneth Paltrow) has become something of a fascination. I regret this, as sadly their relationship often eclipses their own works as individuals, and there was something of a circus around their relationship by fans and critics alike. However, for me it is a beautiful – though tragic – thing. I often liken it to a true life Romeo and Juliet; young love, jealousy, suicide. It’s just a lot more complicated than the Bard’s great play, but no less poignant. If you would like to learn more about my teaching work with Ted and Sylvia, you can watch some of my Open Campus lectures on this subject here, and I also published a paper on this topic in my first ever edited book chapter, which you can read here.
I was inspired to share this poem again by the wonderful Yuko Uesugi, who is a Plath scholar and was a very kind host to me in my recent trip to Okayama where I discussed Authenticity and Intuition.
Below are some of the videos my university filmed of a class that I sadly no-longer teach in which we discuss Ted and Sylvia, in particular her poem Daddy and Ted’s response, The Minotaur. To see the videos click this paragraph.
As part of my class I explained Ted and Sylvia’s relationship, and the looming presence of Otto Plath, Sylvia’s father who was the subject of both Daddy and The Minotaur. I really miss teaching those classes, might be time to do an updated version!
Thanks for reading.