In the poem “The Mirror” Sylvia Plath
uses a mirror to symbolize the way perceptions change over time, specifically
those of a woman. At the beginning, Plath makes the point the mirror is “exact”
and “truthful.” She does this to emphasize the point that perceptions are what
change, not the actual reflection. It is how the person sees this reflection
that is constantly changing. To further prove this point, the author uses many
different types of mirrors like a lake or candle light. The author implies that
no matter what the mirror may be, it will always give back a truthful
reflection. The mirror is unlike a person in many ways. The mirror has no “preconceptions”
or judgments.
The poem takes the reader through
the life of a woman, at the beginning she is a little girl. This is inferred
when the author speaks of “pink” and “speckles” creating the image of a young
child. She also says that the speckles and pink have become “part of [her]
heart” implying that her inner child will always exist. The speaker grows in
age throughout the poem and in the end is an “old woman.” But, the middle phase
is the lake. Here, the speaker of the poem seems to be in a much darker place
than the previously mentioned speckles and pink. The lake seems to be the place
where the speaker is looking for herself. This is because the speaker must “bend
over” to see her reflection, while as a child the mirror was just always there.
The bending over suggests some sort of struggle and effort that must be in to
see herself clearly. The lake becomes almost upset with the speaker when she
turns to other mirrors. As the speaker ages, she seems to be upset with it and
views it as closer and closer to death rather than a celebration of longevity. The
mirror compares the speaker to a “terrible fish,” which becomes smellier and
smellier with each day.
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