Below is a list of the corrections that were made for the paperback editions of The Letters of Sylvia Plath. A few tweaks were made to the front matter and the Acknowledgements
and they were made the same in both editions. But I have not listed them here. My thanks to those readers who sent in corrections.
Volume I:
p. 106, Footnote 2 – Revise to: Mary Ventura (1932-1973), high school classmate of SP.
p. 202, Footnote 1 – Revise to: According to Plath's housemate Olive Milne Glaser, Marie was the head cook at Haven House. See SP's 'Marie'; held by Lilly Library.
p. 279, line 21: add footnote at: dodie
Priscilla Dole Peters (1930- ), B.A. 1952, Government, Smith College, SP's housemate at Haven House.
p. 327, line 24: add footnote at Rosie
Rosemary Jaicks Flinn (1929- ) B.A. 1951, American Studies, Smith College, SP's housemate at Haven House.
p. 409, Footnote 2 – Revise to: Ezra Pound, The Pisan Cantos (New York: New Directions, 1948). SP's copy held by Lilly Library.
p. 493, Footnote 1 & Footnote 2
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 499, Footnote 2
for: Attila A. Kassay
read: Attila A. Kassay (1928-1973), Hungarian; B.A. 1955, business administration, Northeastern University; graduated Harvard Business School, 1957; dated SP in 1952.
p. 505, Footnote 2: Revise dates:(1907-72).
p. 551, Footnote 1:
for: Shirley Baldwin Norton
read: Shirley Baldwin Waring
p. 599, Footnote 5
for: 'The Perfect Set-Up' (December 1952)
read: 'The Perfect Set-Up' (October 1952)
p. 599, Footnote 5
for: 'Twelfth Night' (October 1952)
read: 'Twelfth Night' (December 1952)
p. 599, Footnote 6
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 642, footnote 3, line 6
for: Jose A de Lavelle
read: Jose A de Lavalle
On the following pages: p. 647, Footnote 2; p. 762, footnote 3; p. 763, footnote 1 and 2; p. 768, footnote 1; and p. 780, footnote 1 for: Finnegan's
read: Finnegans
ditto in Index under following entries:
p. 1336, Campbell, Joseph;
p. 1343, Finnegan's Wake: Meeting...; and
p. 1350, Joyce, James
p. 671, line 23
for: buckling
read: bucking
p. 732, Footnote 1
for: Richard Laurence Sassoon (1934– );
read: Richard Laurence Sassoon (1934–2017)
p. 748, line 12
for: you rhythmic
read: your rhythmic
p. 1280, Footnote 1
for: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales
read: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Book of the Duchess
INDEX
p. 1333, index – revise Baldwin, Shirley
for: Baldwin, Shirley, see Norton, Shirley
read: Baldwin, Shirley, see Waring, Shirley Baldwin
p. 1333, index – insert: Benion, Katherine, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1333, index – separate Bennett, Joan into:
Bennett, Joan (actress), 553
Bennett, Joan (scholar), 1047
p. 1334, index – insert:
Bible, 31, 374, 378, 492, 500, 879, 1030, 1275, 1283, 1309, 1315
p. 1335, index – insert: Bucknell University,
p. 1336, index – remove entry ‘Callender, Marie’
p. 1338, index – under Chaucer, Geoffrey:
for: The Canterbury Tales, 1279–80, (quotation from) 1280
read: The Book of the Duchess, 1279-80, (quotation from) 1280
p. 1343, index – insert: Flinn, Rosemary Jaicks (‘Rosie’), 327
p. 1346, index – insert: Grand Forks, North Dakota,
p. 1347, index – insert: Harry Marchard’s orchestra,
p. 1347, index – insert:
Helle, Anita Plath,
Helle, June Johnson, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1350, index – insert: Johnson, Martha Plath,
p. 1351, index
for: Koestker
read: Koestler
p. 1355, index – insert: Marie, 202
p. 1356, index – insert: Milton, Pennsylvania,
p. 1359, index – insert subheading under Norton, Charles Perry:
SP's correspondence with,
p. 1359, index, revise and MOVE to W's
for: Norton, Shirley Baldwin ('Shirl')
read: Waring, Shirley Baldwin ('Shirl'),
Add subentry: SP's correspondence with
p. 1361, index – insert: Peters, Priscilla Dole (‘Dodie’), 279
p. 1370, index – insert: under Plath, Sylvia, WORKS: 'Marie', 202n
p. 1371, index – under Plath, Sylvia, WORKS:
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 1380, index – append new subentry under Smith College,
student life: Vocational Office, 307, 318, 893,
SP's correspondence with,
p. 1382, index – insert: Susquehanna University,
p. 1382, index – insert: Swaim, Rosamund Pugh, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1385, index – insert: Wagner-Martin, Linda,
p. 1386, index – insert subentry in Wellesley College:
Alumnae Hall, ;
p. 1388, index – insert: Woodthorpe, Peter, 1013, 1025
Volume II:
p. 25, line 21
for: bill & the £ 46 tailor's
read: bill & the £46 tailor's
p. 33, line 6
for: still at Newnham,& living
read: still at Newnham, & living
p. 41, Footnote 2
for: Harvey Street
read: Harvey Road
p. 46, line 23
for: pen, socks,& ourselves
read: pen, socks, & ourselves
p. 73, line 7
for: vampires, martyrdom--- and
read: vampires, martyrdom---and
p. 76, line
for: and published poet).
read: & published poet.)
p. 113, line 27
for: All the Aldriches, Dot & Joe Benottis,(Miss
read: All the Aldriches, Dot & Joe Benottis, (Miss
p. 139, line 24
for: sharinghis
read: sharing his
p. 142, Footnote 1 for: 17 May 1959
read: 17 May 1957
p. 158, line 27
for: readbooks
read: read books
p. 166, Footnote 3
for: Howard's End
read: Howards End
p. 239, Footnote 1
for: 'The Fugue and the Fig Tree'
read: 'The Fugue of the Fig Tree'
p. 248, line 20
for: Our park if full
read Our park is full
p. 407, line 24
for: them ( my favorite
read: them (my favorite
p. 424, Footnote 5 for: Critical Quarterly 5
read: Critical Quarterly 2
p. 451, line 17
for: Boston Lying-in - the mother
read: Boston Lying-in ‒ the mother [en dash]
p. 451, line 20
for: her child-is completely
read: her child ‒ is completely [en dash]
p. 480, Footnote 4
for: (1922- )
read: (1922-2016)
p. 530-1, Footnote 2
Revise end of note to read '…, Dublin); Lucas Myers, and Hilda Farrar and Vicky Watling.' [remove ‘(offered for sale in 2017)’ in order that this new copy to Hilda & Vicky might fit.]
p. 552, line 16
for: hermits,(if not saints
read: hermits, (if not saints
p. 559, line 11
for: criticizing poets I!like
read: criticizing poets I! like
p. 563, line 3
for: all the years I’ve know her
read: all the years I’ve known her
p. 570, line 18
for: the light on
read: the lights on
p. 718
for: TO Mary Louise Vincent Black
read: TO Mary Louise Vincent Back
p. 848, line 9
for: seethat
read: see that
p. 904, Footnote 2
for: Since writing to Olive Higgins Prouty on 2 November,
read: Since writing to ASP on 7 November,
p. 941, line 6
for: has yellow,& white
read: has yellow, & white
INDEX
p. 983, index – 2nd column, line 9
for: Howard's End
read: Howards End
Naturally each error hurts but with nearly one million words between the two volumes we did not do too badly!
Please note: The spacing "corrections" that you see largely in Volume II remove the claim of exactness in the Preface that "The transcriptions of the letters are as faithful to the author’s originals as possible" (p. xx). So when considering these, please know that in the original letters, for example, "sharinghis" on page 139 and "seethat" on page 848, appear just like that, with no space between the words. I transcribed these as they appeared because Plath herself did not mark them for separation (often her letters included some corrections in pen but ignored other mistakes which is why we stated "Plath’s final revisions are preserved" in the Preface (p. xx).
Please also keep in mind that there are nine new letters between both volumes too. I cannot, however, post those due to copyright.
Volume I:
p. 106, Footnote 2 – Revise to: Mary Ventura (1932-1973), high school classmate of SP.
p. 202, Footnote 1 – Revise to: According to Plath's housemate Olive Milne Glaser, Marie was the head cook at Haven House. See SP's 'Marie'; held by Lilly Library.
p. 279, line 21: add footnote at: dodie
Priscilla Dole Peters (1930- ), B.A. 1952, Government, Smith College, SP's housemate at Haven House.
p. 327, line 24: add footnote at Rosie
Rosemary Jaicks Flinn (1929- ) B.A. 1951, American Studies, Smith College, SP's housemate at Haven House.
p. 409, Footnote 2 – Revise to: Ezra Pound, The Pisan Cantos (New York: New Directions, 1948). SP's copy held by Lilly Library.
p. 493, Footnote 1 & Footnote 2
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 499, Footnote 2
for: Attila A. Kassay
read: Attila A. Kassay (1928-1973), Hungarian; B.A. 1955, business administration, Northeastern University; graduated Harvard Business School, 1957; dated SP in 1952.
p. 505, Footnote 2: Revise dates:(1907-72).
p. 551, Footnote 1:
for: Shirley Baldwin Norton
read: Shirley Baldwin Waring
p. 599, Footnote 5
for: 'The Perfect Set-Up' (December 1952)
read: 'The Perfect Set-Up' (October 1952)
p. 599, Footnote 5
for: 'Twelfth Night' (October 1952)
read: 'Twelfth Night' (December 1952)
p. 599, Footnote 6
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 642, footnote 3, line 6
for: Jose A de Lavelle
read: Jose A de Lavalle
On the following pages: p. 647, Footnote 2; p. 762, footnote 3; p. 763, footnote 1 and 2; p. 768, footnote 1; and p. 780, footnote 1 for: Finnegan's
read: Finnegans
ditto in Index under following entries:
p. 1336, Campbell, Joseph;
p. 1343, Finnegan's Wake: Meeting...; and
p. 1350, Joyce, James
p. 671, line 23
for: buckling
read: bucking
p. 732, Footnote 1
for: Richard Laurence Sassoon (1934– );
read: Richard Laurence Sassoon (1934–2017)
p. 748, line 12
for: you rhythmic
read: your rhythmic
p. 1280, Footnote 1
for: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales
read: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Book of the Duchess
INDEX
p. 1333, index – revise Baldwin, Shirley
for: Baldwin, Shirley, see Norton, Shirley
read: Baldwin, Shirley, see Waring, Shirley Baldwin
p. 1333, index – insert: Benion, Katherine, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1333, index – separate Bennett, Joan into:
Bennett, Joan (actress), 553
Bennett, Joan (scholar), 1047
p. 1334, index – insert:
Bible, 31, 374, 378, 492, 500, 879, 1030, 1275, 1283, 1309, 1315
p. 1335, index – insert: Bucknell University,
p. 1336, index – remove entry ‘Callender, Marie’
p. 1338, index – under Chaucer, Geoffrey:
for: The Canterbury Tales, 1279–80, (quotation from) 1280
read: The Book of the Duchess, 1279-80, (quotation from) 1280
p. 1343, index – insert: Flinn, Rosemary Jaicks (‘Rosie’), 327
p. 1346, index – insert: Grand Forks, North Dakota,
p. 1347, index – insert: Harry Marchard’s orchestra,
p. 1347, index – insert:
Helle, Anita Plath,
Helle, June Johnson, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1350, index – insert: Johnson, Martha Plath,
p. 1351, index
for: Koestker
read: Koestler
p. 1355, index – insert: Marie, 202
p. 1356, index – insert: Milton, Pennsylvania,
p. 1359, index – insert subheading under Norton, Charles Perry:
SP's correspondence with,
p. 1359, index, revise and MOVE to W's
for: Norton, Shirley Baldwin ('Shirl')
read: Waring, Shirley Baldwin ('Shirl'),
Add subentry: SP's correspondence with
p. 1361, index – insert: Peters, Priscilla Dole (‘Dodie’), 279
p. 1370, index – insert: under Plath, Sylvia, WORKS: 'Marie', 202n
p. 1371, index – under Plath, Sylvia, WORKS:
for: 'Riverside Reveries'
read: 'Riverside Reverie'
p. 1380, index – append new subentry under Smith College,
student life: Vocational Office, 307, 318, 893,
SP's correspondence with,
p. 1382, index – insert: Susquehanna University,
p. 1382, index – insert: Swaim, Rosamund Pugh, SP's correspondence with,
p. 1385, index – insert: Wagner-Martin, Linda,
p. 1386, index – insert subentry in Wellesley College:
Alumnae Hall, ;
p. 1388, index – insert: Woodthorpe, Peter, 1013, 1025
Volume II:
p. 25, line 21
for: bill & the £ 46 tailor's
read: bill & the £46 tailor's
p. 33, line 6
for: still at Newnham,& living
read: still at Newnham, & living
p. 41, Footnote 2
for: Harvey Street
read: Harvey Road
p. 46, line 23
for: pen, socks,& ourselves
read: pen, socks, & ourselves
p. 73, line 7
for: vampires, martyrdom--- and
read: vampires, martyrdom---and
p. 76, line
for: and published poet).
read: & published poet.)
p. 113, line 27
for: All the Aldriches, Dot & Joe Benottis,(Miss
read: All the Aldriches, Dot & Joe Benottis, (Miss
p. 139, line 24
for: sharinghis
read: sharing his
p. 142, Footnote 1 for: 17 May 1959
read: 17 May 1957
p. 158, line 27
for: readbooks
read: read books
p. 166, Footnote 3
for: Howard's End
read: Howards End
p. 239, Footnote 1
for: 'The Fugue and the Fig Tree'
read: 'The Fugue of the Fig Tree'
p. 248, line 20
for: Our park if full
read Our park is full
p. 407, line 24
for: them ( my favorite
read: them (my favorite
p. 424, Footnote 5 for: Critical Quarterly 5
read: Critical Quarterly 2
p. 451, line 17
for: Boston Lying-in - the mother
read: Boston Lying-in ‒ the mother [en dash]
p. 451, line 20
for: her child-is completely
read: her child ‒ is completely [en dash]
p. 480, Footnote 4
for: (1922- )
read: (1922-2016)
p. 530-1, Footnote 2
Revise end of note to read '…, Dublin); Lucas Myers, and Hilda Farrar and Vicky Watling.' [remove ‘(offered for sale in 2017)’ in order that this new copy to Hilda & Vicky might fit.]
p. 552, line 16
for: hermits,(if not saints
read: hermits, (if not saints
p. 559, line 11
for: criticizing poets I!like
read: criticizing poets I! like
p. 563, line 3
for: all the years I’ve know her
read: all the years I’ve known her
p. 570, line 18
for: the light on
read: the lights on
p. 718
for: TO Mary Louise Vincent Black
read: TO Mary Louise Vincent Back
p. 848, line 9
for: seethat
read: see that
p. 904, Footnote 2
for: Since writing to Olive Higgins Prouty on 2 November,
read: Since writing to ASP on 7 November,
p. 941, line 6
for: has yellow,& white
read: has yellow, & white
INDEX
p. 983, index – 2nd column, line 9
for: Howard's End
read: Howards End
Naturally each error hurts but with nearly one million words between the two volumes we did not do too badly!
Please note: The spacing "corrections" that you see largely in Volume II remove the claim of exactness in the Preface that "The transcriptions of the letters are as faithful to the author’s originals as possible" (p. xx). So when considering these, please know that in the original letters, for example, "sharinghis" on page 139 and "seethat" on page 848, appear just like that, with no space between the words. I transcribed these as they appeared because Plath herself did not mark them for separation (often her letters included some corrections in pen but ignored other mistakes which is why we stated "Plath’s final revisions are preserved" in the Preface (p. xx).
Please also keep in mind that there are nine new letters between both volumes too. I cannot, however, post those due to copyright.
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All links accessed 24 September 2019.