Esther and Buddy
We talked a lot in class about Esther and Buddy and their relationship. I think that by reading the book we got a very one sided view of Buddy from Esther. We are told he is a hypocrite because he pretended to be innocent. In reality, he was not (he had an affair with a waitress). Esther was furious at Buddy for lying to her and to society about who he really was. I think Esther was so mad because she had to stay pure "I couldn't
stand the idea of a woman having to have a single pure life and a man being able to have
a double life, one pure and one not" (Plath). I think Esther is not only mad at Buddy but at all men the society that created the double standard.
I do not think Esther is just mad because of the double standard that she has to endure but that the prize she has is now tainted. Buddy was the perfect guy, a medical student at Yale, the perfect boy on paper. Esther is used to getting all the prizes she wanted. She is always applying to scholarships and programs to make her resume bigger. Buddy is just another prize for her. Esther says that she idolized him all of her childhood she wanted Buddy. When he asks her out, all the other girls in her dorm congratulate her on it and praise her for it. Esther loves the fact that all these girls think she is special because she is with Buddy.
When Esther and Buddy have their first kiss she thinks about how she can not wait to go back to her dorm and tell everyone about it. Esther does not seem to care about Buddy in that moment. She loves it when Buddy tells her '"Wow, it makes me feel terrific to kiss you." I modestly didn't say anything. "I guess you go out with a lot of boys," Buddy said" (Plath). Esther thinks of this when she finds out that Buddy was not so innocent. She does not like how he made her feel more experienced, and then it turned out she is not.
I do not care for Buddy. I think he is very self involved. He seems to be like the guy who thinks he knows everything and can not wait to tell other people it. I think this stood out to me a lot when Esther says "I think Buddy could have been a teacher as well, he was always trying to explain things to me and introduce me to new knowledge" (Plath). Mansplaining!!! I felt really bad for Esther. She is this incredibly intelligent women, but with Buddy she is treated almost like a child, someone who does not know anything.
Esther and Buddy both have their own personal issues that make their relationship terribly toxic. I think Esther was very smart when she choose to cut off her relationship with Buddy. I also think Esther was sometimes to harsh on Buddy.
I do not think Esther is just mad because of the double standard that she has to endure but that the prize she has is now tainted. Buddy was the perfect guy, a medical student at Yale, the perfect boy on paper. Esther is used to getting all the prizes she wanted. She is always applying to scholarships and programs to make her resume bigger. Buddy is just another prize for her. Esther says that she idolized him all of her childhood she wanted Buddy. When he asks her out, all the other girls in her dorm congratulate her on it and praise her for it. Esther loves the fact that all these girls think she is special because she is with Buddy.
When Esther and Buddy have their first kiss she thinks about how she can not wait to go back to her dorm and tell everyone about it. Esther does not seem to care about Buddy in that moment. She loves it when Buddy tells her '"Wow, it makes me feel terrific to kiss you." I modestly didn't say anything. "I guess you go out with a lot of boys," Buddy said" (Plath). Esther thinks of this when she finds out that Buddy was not so innocent. She does not like how he made her feel more experienced, and then it turned out she is not.
I do not care for Buddy. I think he is very self involved. He seems to be like the guy who thinks he knows everything and can not wait to tell other people it. I think this stood out to me a lot when Esther says "I think Buddy could have been a teacher as well, he was always trying to explain things to me and introduce me to new knowledge" (Plath). Mansplaining!!! I felt really bad for Esther. She is this incredibly intelligent women, but with Buddy she is treated almost like a child, someone who does not know anything.
Esther and Buddy both have their own personal issues that make their relationship terribly toxic. I think Esther was very smart when she choose to cut off her relationship with Buddy. I also think Esther was sometimes to harsh on Buddy.
I definitely agree that the relationship is toxic going both ways. Esther seems to value the status of being in a relationship with Buddy more then the relationship itself. Buddy is a complete mess as well with that failed attempt at seduction and his mansplaining behavior. I think Plath going through the effort of describing this relationship points that maybe it has somehow contributed to the worsening of Esther's mental state.
ReplyDeleteWe definitely see buddy through esther's perspective. It's tough because in many ways esther is incredibly rational and relatable yet we can also question how biased her perception is. Her perception of buddy is certainly mixed with border criticism of gender roles for esther
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that Esther is a little harsh on Buddy. I think, like everybody around Esther at this point in her life, she stopped seeing them as completely human and instead as the grotesque caricatures they appeared to be with the belljar affecting her view of everybody. I personally just don't like Buddy, I agree that he's self-involved, but I don't think he's nearly the hypocrite Esther makes him out to see, and a lot of her frustration with him is reflective of her frustrations with society and the gender role assigned to her.
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