"The bell hung, suspended, a few feet above my head..." For most people, when the name Sylvia Plath comes to mind, the word “psychotic” is the more appropriate word. this follows; However, Plath had more than her demented works. Throughout her shortened life, Plath was given various titles: daughter, sister, student, wife, mother, teacher, author, and poet. However, Sylvia Plath was a haunted soul, as she also bore the labels of "manic depressive" and "bipolar." His constant struggles with his mental illnesses are evident in his writings, particularly in his semi-autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar. Aurelia Schober, Plath's mother, was studying at Boston University when she fell in love with her professor who taught German and biology, Otto. Plath, whom she would marry in January 1932. Later that same year, on October 27, Plath was born to the couple. Plath's father died when she was eight years old (Academy of American Poets). From then on, Plath began publishing it. poems. In everything she did, she strove to be perfect; she had straight A's, was a good girl, and won prestigious awards (Gilson helped push her daughter toward excellence and always made sure Plath knew how proud she was). In fact, Sylvia's mother collected her daughter's accomplishments and praised her highly (In 1950, she had received a scholarship to attend Smith College and had hundreds of publications, which she would greatly add to over time). passed to Smith (Gilson). Symptoms of severe depression began to plague Plath in her early college years (Poetry Foundation). One of Plath's short stories, "Sunday at the Mintons", was published in 1952 in Mademoiselle magazine while...... middle of paper...... Books, 1981. Gilson, Bill. “Sylvia Plath Bio.” 2014. ibiblio.org. April 9, 2014. Griffin, Marie. “Sylvia Plath – Poet, author.” October 11, 2011. About.com Bipolar Disorder. April 9, 2014. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. "'The Bell Jar' by Sylvia Plath Book Summary." 2013. Cliffs Notes. April 12, 2014.Liukkonen, Petri. “Sylvia Plath.” 2008. kirjasto.sci.fi. April 9, 2014. Poetry Foundation. “Sylvia Plath.” 2014. Poetry Foundation. April 6, 2014. The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. “Sylvia Plath (American author).” September 23, 2013. Encyclopedia Britannica online. April 9, 2014. Topham, James. "'Bell Jar' Review." 2014. About.com Classic Literature. April 8 2014.