Sylvia Plath lived from October 27, 1932 – February 11, 1963. She was an American poet, novelist and short story writer. Born in Boston, Massachusetts. Plath suffered from depression for much of her adult life, and in 1963 she committed suicide. The poem, "Mad Girl's Love Song", was written by Sylvia Plath. This poem has a theme of suicide as an escape. The author, Sylvia Plath, is writing this song from her own personal view. There are many places where the theme of suicide appears in the poem. Sylvia expresses the meaning of her poem through the use of a unique rhyme scheme, repetition, and a religious allusion.
Literary Devices
1. Repetition: of “I think I made you up inside my head” and “I shut my eyes and all drops dead”. Sylvia’s rhyme scheme throughout this poem is called a “villanelle,” which is a rare method of writing poetry which involves two repeating lines.
2. Dramatics: by the use repetition of the two lines expressing how fed up she was with not feeling normal.
3. Allegory : by there being a deeper meaning behind her words rather than her literal meaning. Its purposes had greater depth than just shutting her eyes.
4. Imagery: by “The stars go waltzing out in blue and red,
And arbitrary blackness gallops in” giving you a mental image.
5. Allusion: by going back and showing that God or religion has had zero impact in her life.
Analysis
1. "I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead;
I lift my lids and all is born again.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)”
-The first stanza of the poem has three lines that are repeated throughout the poem. These lines are implying that Sylvia feels that she is able to control death and life. "I shut my eyes and the world drops dead", represents being afraid or tired of something. She is tired of fighting a constant battle with the world and is afraid of what is happening to her at this point in her life. So, as an escape from the reality of the world she closes her eyes. Sylvia is saying that just simply closing her eyes or hiding does not last forever because when she opens her eyes everything is still the same. "(I think I made you up inside my head)", Sylvia is referring to the happiness and normality of her own life. She feels that this has never been a real part of her life so she is convinced she has only made it up in her head.
2. “The stars go waltzing out in blue and red,
And arbitrary blackness gallops in:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead. “
-In the second stanza, Sylvia is saying that her life was abruptly taken over by and "arbitrary blackness". This “blackness” she referred to is depression. Following this line is the line that’s repeated, “I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead". This is showing that Sylvia is trying to escape from her immense depression.
3. “I dreamed that you bewitched me into bed
And sung me moon-struck, kissed me quite insane.
(I think I made you up inside my head.) “
-This section of the poem talks about Sylvia's life and how she wished it had been.
"I dreamed you bewitched me into bed, and sung me moon-stuck, kissed me quite insane." Here Sylvia is wishing her life could have been something of a normal life. Falling in love and being kissed are both normal things people are supposed to experience and embellish in, but due to her depression she was never able to achieve this state. "(I think I made you up inside my head)"Since she was unsuccessful at living a satisfying life she felt that this was something she had only dreamed of. She had dreamed of this for so long that she made herself believe it was something she could achieve, but in actuality she really could not.
4. “God topples from the sky, hell's fires fade:
Exit seraphim and Satan's men:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.”
-Sylvia explains how she has no influences in her life, especially in the way of religion. "God topples from the sky, hell's fire fade" Satan and God have no meaning in her life. "Exit Seraphim and Satan's men" These beliefs which are good or bad, have left her life. She has been left alone to determine her own fate. Sylvia is pointing out that she has nothing to live for and nothing to gain, from ending her own life. "I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead." represents suicide. This is saying that she does not want to die to be with God or to be in Hell, but only to be at peace.
5. “I fancied you'd return the way you said,
But I grow old and I forget your name.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)”
-Sylvia wished that she would eventually overcome her depression; grow out of the despair she was living in. "I fancied you'd return the way you said, but I grow old and I forget your name." But her longing and search for her happiness drove her insane. She had been lost for so long that she didn't remember what it was like to truly be happy so she would never be able to identify it if she were to regain control of her life. Once again the line, "(I think I made you up inside my head)" is referring to the state of insanity that Sylvia Plath had driven herself into.
6. “I should have loved a thunderbird instead;
At least when spring comes they roar back again.
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)"
-"I should have loved a thunderbird instead, at least when spring comes they roar back again." With this statement she is blaming herself for wanting and in the end actually having a love for something that was impossible for her to grasp and obtain to. She felt that she should have been like the rest of the world and chose something materialistic to long for like a thunderbird sports car. People back then would put these cars away for the winter but she would have the reassurance that her happiness and love would always be there to come back to her. The two repeated lines are seen here to end the poem. "I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead, (I think I made you up inside my head)" The lines are seen in the same stanza when before the line containing death was seen after an idea of despair and the line about imagination was seen in the stanzas that dealt with how her life should have been. So, if you combine these two lines, Sylvia is making a statement that in committing suicide she would be able to escape the reality of never being able to find true happiness in living.
What I thought was interesting about the structure of the poem was the line, "(I think I made you up inside my head)", is written in parentheses, so therefore is something Sylvia is just realizing herself but does not want believe it as being true. It is saying that the love for her happiness drove her to the brink of insanity.
Mad Girl’s love song by Sylvia Plath
"I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead;
I lift my lids and all is born again.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)
The stars go waltzing out in blue and red,
And arbitrary blackness gallops in:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.
I dreamed that you bewitched me into bed
And sung me moon-struck, kissed me quite insane.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)
God topples from the sky, hell's fires fade:
Exit seraphim and Satan's men:
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.
I fancied you'd return the way you said,
But I grow old and I forget your name.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)
I should have loved a thunderbird instead;
At least when spring comes they roar back again.
I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.
(I think I made you up inside my head.)"
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