Great Minds of the 20th Century: Sylvia Plath

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) was an American poet, novelist, and short-story writer. She is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential writers of the 20th century. Plath is best known for her poetry, particularly her collections "The Colossus and Other Poems" (1960) and "Ariel" (1965), which were published posthumously.

Sylvia Plath was born on October 27, 1932, in Boston, Massachusetts. Her parents were Aurelia Schober Plath and Otto Plath, both of whom were professors. When Sylvia was eight years old, her father died of complications from diabetes, an event that had a profound impact on her life and work.

Plath was an excellent student and won a scholarship to attend Smith College in Massachusetts, where she studied English and wrote for the college newspaper. After graduating in 1955, she was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study at Cambridge University in England. While in England, she met and married fellow poet Ted Hughes, with whom she had two children.

Plath's writing style is often associated with the confessional poetry movement, which emerged in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s. Confessional poets wrote deeply personal and often autobiographical works that explored themes of love, loss, and mental illness. Plath's poetry is characterized by its intense and vivid imagery, its use…