The Bell Jar Blog 9

• Blog – What does Esther mean when she says she feels trapped under a bell jar?

“I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air.” (Pg. 185) She is saying that no matter what, she will always be stuck. The bell jar she is referring to is not an actual jar; it is more of her imagination. The beginning of her strange behavior starts after she discovered that Buddy had cheated on her she came up with two different types of people, people like Buddy, and people like her, who are pure. From there she is put into a hospital so that she can be cured. She mentions being trapped by the “bell jar” several times while in the various hospitals, so to me she feels more confined when she is in the hospitals. In the hospitals she is constantly being watched. However, while she is in these hospitals she is unable to commit suicide, so in a way her “bell jar” could be what is helping her to stay alive.