It is well-known that Sylvia Plath died at the age of 31 (do the math: 63 - 32 = 31, right?). Her death came about, in part, because of unrealized feelings for her father, who was a member of the Nazi party and ardent supporter of Aldof Hilter. In fact, Otto Plath's "death" in 1940 was just simply a ruse to trick his children and family so that he could go train an army of bees for the Fuhrer back in his homeland.
Wait a minute. Seriously, what am I smokin'?
Wait a minute. Seriously, what am I smokin'?
Reading the internet can be bad for your mind. (I can just imagine the Google searches now "Did Otto Plath train killer bees for Adolf Hilter?" NO! Wouldn't it be great if Google knew the answers to stupid questions and just came up with a page that said "No" or "As if"!) Doesn't it bother you when the facts are wrong? Ted Hughes argued that each of us owns the facts of our lives. But what about when you're gone? I certainly don't own the facts of Plath's life but I own a library of books that can be checked and re-checked to ensure that I present them to the best of my ability and knowledge. Unchecked or left in the hands of the sloppy researcher, the facts can be grossly mistaken and perpetuated like the "merciless churn" of "the hooves of the horses."
This post addresses a few instances which are running rampant on the Internet.
First. There is this quote, “For me, poetry is an evasion of the real job of writing prose.” 10 times out of 10 there is never any citation/source but yet it is attributed to Plath. The source for this quote is Ted Hughes' introduction to the short story and prose collection Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams.
This quote, in actuality, is one of those he said she said things as if Hughes is remembering a conversation. It appears on the following pages (mind you, these are just the editions I've been able to check in local libraries).
Faber 1977: page 13
Faber 1979 (and subsequent editions): not in it; introduction much shorter and revised....
Harper's editions: page 3
Cite it! If anyone out there knows if this was in a letter or in some other documented source by Plath please let me/us know. It does not appear in her published Journals. There is always the possibility it was said either in conversation or in the missing journal (I just checked and it's not in there) or destroyed journal.
Second. The Plath recording made on 30 October 1962 with Peter Orr was for the British Council (and Woodberry Poetry Room at Harvard). It was not made for the BBC. Some of the poems aired on the BBC after Plath's death, but the recording was not made for the Beeb. Now to be honest I'm guilty of thinking it was for the BBC, but I know better now. And this is why those poems read on 30 October, 1962, are not on the British Library/BBC Spoken Word: Sylvia Plath CD that I will never tire of plugging. Have I mentioned you can save 10% off your order by clicking the link on this blog? See top right of the sidebar.
Third. In one of the most wonderful, optimistic scenes in The Bell Jar, Esther Greenwood readies herself for her exit interview from the hospital where she was "patched, retreaded, and approved for the road." (The Bell Jar, 1971:275) The quote in question as it appears on the Interweb (and probably dozens or hundreds of papers) is this, "I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart: I am, I am, I am." No no no no no no no no no. The quote is actually "I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart: I am, I am, I am." (The Bell Jar, 1971: 274)
Thanks to Arlaina Tibensky, author of the forthcoming Bell Jar Summer (title may change) http://arlainatibensky.blogspot.com/ for bringing this bray/brag quoting discrepancy to my attention. She now has bragging rights, whilst those who have perpetuated the misquote can bray your heart out (and seriously, if your heart sounds like that, go see a doctor).