What do you think?
Rate this book
Breaking Down Plath
A practical guide to Sylvia Plath’s works for middle and secondary school students
One of the most dynamic and admired poets of the 20th century, Sylvia Plath wrote work about war, motherhood, jealousy, rage, grief, death, and mental illness that challenged preconceptions about what poetry should be about. The enduring power of Plath’s poetry and prose continues to attract and fascinate a multitude of readers. Best known for her poems "Daddy" and "Lady Lazarus" and the novel The Bell Jar, Plath starkly expressed a sense of alienation closely linked to both her personal experiences and the to the wider situation of women throughout mid-twentieth-century America. With an eye towards demythologizing Plath and focusing on her achievements, Breaking Down Plath aims to contextualize Plath’s work in the larger scheme of Cold War-era gender politics, debates about mental health, and anxiety about global conflict.
Breaking Down Plath informs readers of essential facts about Sylvia Plath’s life and explores the works of the influential and controversial American poet, novelist, and short-story writer. Author Patricia Grisafi contextualizes and clarifies important underlying themes in Plath’s works while providing insight into how interest in Plath’s work developed, how the story of Plath’s life has been told, what we still need to discover about her, and why her life and art matter.
Breaking Down
Presents a critical biography of Plath’s life
Offers a thematic tour through Plath's, short fiction, journals, and letters
Explores the recurrent themes in Plath’s poetry
Features an overview of the reception of Plath’s work
Discusses the role of Plath in contemporary popular culture
This book is a primer for younger or new Plath readers and a welcome addition to the toolbox used by educators, parents, and anyone interested in or studying Plath’s life and work.
One of the most dynamic and admired poets of the 20th century, Sylvia Plath wrote work about war, motherhood, jealousy, rage, grief, death, and mental illness that challenged preconceptions about what poetry should be about. The enduring power of Plath’s poetry and prose continues to attract and fascinate a multitude of readers. Best known for her poems "Daddy" and "Lady Lazarus" and the novel The Bell Jar, Plath starkly expressed a sense of alienation closely linked to both her personal experiences and the to the wider situation of women throughout mid-twentieth-century America. With an eye towards demythologizing Plath and focusing on her achievements, Breaking Down Plath aims to contextualize Plath’s work in the larger scheme of Cold War-era gender politics, debates about mental health, and anxiety about global conflict.
Breaking Down Plath informs readers of essential facts about Sylvia Plath’s life and explores the works of the influential and controversial American poet, novelist, and short-story writer. Author Patricia Grisafi contextualizes and clarifies important underlying themes in Plath’s works while providing insight into how interest in Plath’s work developed, how the story of Plath’s life has been told, what we still need to discover about her, and why her life and art matter.
Breaking Down
Presents a critical biography of Plath’s life
Offers a thematic tour through Plath's, short fiction, journals, and letters
Explores the recurrent themes in Plath’s poetry
Features an overview of the reception of Plath’s work
Discusses the role of Plath in contemporary popular culture
This book is a primer for younger or new Plath readers and a welcome addition to the toolbox used by educators, parents, and anyone interested in or studying Plath’s life and work.
- GenresNonfictionBiography
116 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 4, 2022
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 3, 2026
From the back of the book cover: “Perfect for middle and high school students studying Plath’s work, Breaking Down Plath is also an indispensable resource for educators, parents, and anyone interested in the work and life of Sylvia Plath.”
At just under 100 pages, it’s a quick read offering a general overview of Plath’s life and work. I think it’s a decent introduction for people unfamiliar with Sylvia Plath. Also, die-hard fans who devour any and all material about Plath may be interested.
✳️ Just note that in the portion of the book where some of Plath’s poems are analyzed - the actual poems being discussed are not included, which I thought was odd. I happened to have Plath’s Collected Poems so I was able to reference the poems, then read through Patricia Grisafi’s interpretations in Breaking Down Plath.
At just under 100 pages, it’s a quick read offering a general overview of Plath’s life and work. I think it’s a decent introduction for people unfamiliar with Sylvia Plath. Also, die-hard fans who devour any and all material about Plath may be interested.
✳️ Just note that in the portion of the book where some of Plath’s poems are analyzed - the actual poems being discussed are not included, which I thought was odd. I happened to have Plath’s Collected Poems so I was able to reference the poems, then read through Patricia Grisafi’s interpretations in Breaking Down Plath.
August 27, 2022
Dr. Patricia Grisafi's Breaking Down Plath offers a smart take on Plath that is particularly useful in the classroom. There are definitions of terms and an accessible and incisive take on Plath's body of work. Grisafi approaches Plath's life and writing with empathy and intelligence. She also allows for the trickier aspects in sections such as "The Risks of Reading Autobiographically" and "The Trouble with Biography." Grisafi explores complex territory such as domesticity and violence as themes in Plath's work without being heavy-handed. This is a thoughtfully crafted take on Plath's legacy.
August 4, 2024
A slim volume but very interesting, Designed for students, it weaves biography in with critical insights and historical context. My favorite part was that the author repeated that while a writer's biography influences writing, one should not try to read strict autobiography into the work. It's art. Drawback is that the poems analyzed were not included, probably copyright issues. Informative.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews