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Quote by Sylvia Plath

“I don't know what started me, I just wrote poetry from the time was quite small. I guess I liked nursery rhymes and I guess I thought I could do the same thing. I wrote my first poem, my first published poem, when I was eight-and-a-half years old. It came out in The Boston Traveller and from then on, I suppose, I've been a bit of a professional.”

Quote by Sylvia Plath

Author

American poet, novelist, and playwright. Her works are known for their profound emotion and unique style, and she is considered one of the most important female writers of the 20th century. more

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“I think the coming of spring, the stars overhead, the first snowfall and so on are gifts for a child, a young poet.”

Thinking Firsts Children Young Stars Poet Spring Overhead Snowfall

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I think that as far as language goes I'm an American, I'm afraid, my accent is American, my way of talk is an American way of talk, I'm an old-fashioned American. That's probably one of the reasons why I'm in England now and why I'll always stay in England.”

Thinking Way Reason Language England My Way Reason Why Accents Old Fashioned

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I'm about fifty years behind as far as my preferences go and I must say that the poets who excite me most are the Americans. There are very few contemporary English poets that I admire.”

Years Behinds Poet Contemporary Admire Fifty Preference

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I must say that I am not very genteel and I feel that gentility has a stranglehold: the neatness, the wonderful tidiness, which is so evident everywhere in England is perhaps more dangerous than it would appear on the surface.”

Feels Wonderful Dangerous England Surface Evident Neatness Gentility

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I think the whole emphasis in England, in universities, on practical criticism (but not that so much as on historical criticism, knowing what period a line comes from) this is almost paralysing. In America, in University, we read - what? - T. S. Eliot, Dylan Thomas, Yeats, that is where we began. Shakespeare flaunted in the background. I'm not sure I agree with this, but I think that' for the young poet, the writing poet, it is not quite so frightening to go to university in America as it is in England, for these reasons.”

Thinking Writing Reason Whole America Young Lines Knowing Poet Periods Criticism England Agree Historical University Practicals Backgrounds Not Sure Frightening Emphasis Dylan Eliot Yeats

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I am not a historian, but I find myself being more and more fascinated by history and now I find myself reading more and more about history. I am very interested in Napoleon, at the present: I'm very interested in battles, in wars, in Gallipoli, the First World War and so on, and I think that as I age I am becoming more and more historical. I certainly wasn't at all in my early twenties.”

Thinking World Firsts War Age Reading Becoming Battle Twenties Historical War Of The Worlds Historian Fascinated Becoming More First World War Reading More Gallipoli

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I think my poems immediately come out of the sensuous and emotional experiences I have, but I must say I cannot sympathise with these cries from the heart that are informed by nothing except a needle or a knife, or whatever it is.”

Thinking Heart Cry Emotional Knives Needles Sensuous

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I believe that one should be able to control and manipulate experiences, even the most terrific, like madness, being tortured, this sort of experience, and one should be able to manipulate these experiences with an informed and an intelligent mini.”

Should Believe Able I Believe Madness Intelligent Manipulate Terrific

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I think that in poetry personal experience is very important, but certainly it shouldn't be a kind of shut-box and mirror looking, narcissistic experience. I believe it should be relevant, and relevant to the larger things, the bigger things such as Hiroshima and Dachau and so on.”

Thinking Should Believe Kind Important I Believe Bigger Mirrors Boxes Relevant Narcissistic Personal Experiences Hiroshima Dachau

Author:Sylvia Plath

“I feel that very strongly: having been an academic, having been tempted by the invitation to stay on to become a Ph.D., a professor, and all that, one side of me certainly does respect all disciplines, as long as they don't ossify.”

Feels Long Doe Sides Discipline Professors Very Strong Academic Tempted Invitations

Author:Sylvia Plath