The Bell Jar is a very realistic and honestly written book, even considering it is a semi-autobiography. Sylvia Plath wrote very accurately what it means to grow up, a long journey that involves the search for one's identity and growth, the expectations of people in authority and, in this particular case like many others, mental illness. It also includes the restricted role of women during mid-20th century America, depicted very accurately, even though the book was written in 1962, nine years after the events of the book. Something that really strikes me about the book is how Plath managed to capture the vagueness and subtlety of depression. It doesn't say “The protagonist is depressed” in capital letters, instead Esther Greenwood, our protagonist, shows signs and symptoms of mental disorder. This is what happens in real life too. One day it doesn't hit you in the face, but rather creeps up around you, envelops you, and by the time you realize you might not be doing so well, it's probably too late. As someone whose name I can't find once said: "Mental illness is like fighting a war where the enemy's strategy is to convince you that the war isn't really happening." . I had a phase, not too long ago, where I think I was legitimately depressed. I showed more symptoms; I had no motivation to do anything, I was constantly tired and felt devoid of energy even though I hadn't done anything, I had problems with both sleep and concentration, I lost my appetite and therefore my weight, I came dangerously close to self-harm , I thought about death a lot and criticized myself too much for being healthy. But even so I had, and still have, my doubts and suspicions about the whole thing. I... half the paper... a minor thing, to be honest, but since media representation of queer people is so rare even today, I'm very happy. Joan Gilling is proven to be homosexual, bisexual or pansexual. Wow, hello, I'm a huge queer nerd and I get really excited about other queer nerds. The message of the book could be several different things. It might just be a long rant by Plath, it might have been written to show how patriarchy can affect young women in many ways, it might have been written to tell you to choose your path carefully, or to tell you to be careful and not lose track about yourself and who you are. I believe the message is all this, as well as many other things, and therefore the book is not only a good read, but also very important! Works Cited“Mental illness is like fighting a war where the enemy's strategy is to convince you that the war isn't actually happening.”