Sylvia Plath inspires us all in various and wonderful ways. She is in many respects a form of comfort to us, which is something that Esther Greenwood expresses in The Bell Jar , about a bath: "There must be quite a few things a hot bath won't cure, but I don't know many of them. Whenever I'm sad I'm going to die, or so nervous I can't sleep, or in love with somebody I won't be seeing for a week, I slump down just so far and then I say: 'I'll go take a hot bath.'" We read and remember Sylvia Plath for many reasons, many of them deeply personal and private. But we commemorate her, too, in very public ways, as Anna of the long-standing Tumblr Loving Sylvia Plath , has been tracking, in the form of tattoos. (Anna's on Instagram with it too, as SylviaPlathInk .) The above bath quote is among Sylvia Plath's most famous. It often appears here and there and it is stripped of its context. But I think most people will know it is from her nove...
I'm able to listen to it right now, though it's too early for the "Frieda Show" - are we not supposed to be able to get this in the US? It appears that we can access it here - now, if I can only get up that early after being up this late....thx Peter! kim
ReplyDeletethank you for having told about the programme,,im listening to it right in this moment.and it is the very first time i hear Frieda's voice. it's thrilling and moving for me because she's got a very similar tone of voice of her mother(most of all she gets it when she reads her poems) and it's emotional to me because she reminds me so much her mother and it's touching.
ReplyDeletethank you Peter for having given this nice sunday gift ;)
p.s apologize for my horrible english.
best regards,Nina-Italy
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ReplyDeleteThe musical selections were quite wild; all very lovely. It was great to hear Hughes read her poems. "For Nick", an elegy for her brother, tore a hole in my chest. "Doll" I like better hearing rather than reading and suspect that this could be the case for many of her poems.
ReplyDeleteLots more one could say. Any other listeners out there??
Nina, thank you for your comment. Not too long at all!
I am not sure but I think you can access the show in the next two weeks on bbc 3, that is what they do for the other radio programmes. Her voice is so similar to her mother', incredible. To me Frieda sounds like a very confident woman.
ReplyDeleteI'M DEVASTATED! I missed it! I really hope, I'll be able to listen to it somewhere!
ReplyDeleteIf someone knows for sure, please please let me know!
I wanted to tune in sooo badly! :(
I FOUND IT! ;)
ReplyDeleteI was searching for the poem and I found the link to the show, available to listen for the next seven days ;)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00qzt56
Anna,
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting that link!!
Kristina, I also find the voice quite similar to that of her mother. The cadences, the words chosen, even. The attitude towards poetry and its composition...
Cheers
Peter
I heard the Private Passions programme before when Tori Amos was on, and I remember thinking how fascinating an idea it was to share musical selections and talk about their influence in the lives of the famous.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this throughly! Thanks for the link, Anna.
You're welcome ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm listening to it right now and loving it! :) When I listen to Frieda talking, it sounds like Sylvia reading her poetry, really, truly and honestly :)
By the way, Peter I bought your book and started reading immediately and I'm already loving it, even learned some new things in the indroduction ;)
Anna, I've heard of people buying my book to cure insomnia but never out of interest in the subject!!
ReplyDeleteFinally got the chance to listen to it. A strange experience, I really did not expect her to sound so much like Plath.
ReplyDeleteAll the musical choices were either geared towards uplifting or empowering, what to make of that?
I'm not sure what I was expecting but I was surprised at her super-confident tone. I come away with the impression that she is a very resiliant woman with an great level of mental strength.
The children thing is very interesting and yet she writes books for children! She gives the impression that the burying of the doll story in the poem actually happened, a very strong emotional reaction for a child, I think - the kind of thing a psychoanalyst could have a field day with?!
Thank you for such a thoughtful post! Was this the first time you'd heard Frieda's voice? The music played a game of tug of war...
ReplyDeleteRemember all of Plath's children's books were written before she had children (and some of Ted Hughes' too) - so there is something there in the family gene that enables them to write for children.
When I read the poetry of Frieda Hughes, I too feel like they are all so grounded in reality, in the factual. I'm sure there are moments of spontaneous creativity or something, but I find them accessible when there is something anchoring the poem in her history.
Yes, it was the first time I had heard her voice. I haven't read a great deal of her poetry - it's hard to read it without comparing her (unfairly) to Plath and Hughes. However, I did enjoy parts of the 'Nick' poem that she read.
ReplyDeleteI caught this link (and your blog) in the nick of time! Thanks to Anna, and to this site for posting it.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't heard any of Frieda's new poems, but I have 45 and Waxworks. She is a different kind of poet from her parents--lacking in all that smart double-entendre and symbolism-- but it is honest and heartfelt, and you can't knock that.
Does anyone know if it's still online somewhere, somehow?
ReplyDelete