The Bell Jar - Feminist ThoughtThe Bell Jar This autobiographical novel by Sylvia Plath follows the story of Esther Greenwood, a third-year university student who spends the summer in a women's fashion magazine in Manhattan. But despite her high expectations, Esther becomes bored with her job and uncertain about her future. She even distances herself from her traditional-minded boyfriend, Buddy Willard, a medical student who was later diagnosed with tuberculosis. Upon returning to the New England suburb of her hometown, Esther discovers that she was not selected to take a Harvard summer school fiction class and subsequently begins to slip into depression. Esther finds herself unable to concentrate and carry out daily activities. He therefore decides to undergo some sessions with Dr. Gordon, a psychiatrist, and also undergoes electroshock treatments. As depression sinks in, Esther becomes obsessive about suicide and tries to kill herself by crawling into the cellar where she subsequently ingests a bottle of sleeping pills. Esther's attempt fails and she is taken to a city hospital, and then to a private psychiatric institution thanks to the intervention of a benefactor. As Esther begins to recover, she develops a close relationship with her psychiatrist, Dr. Nolan, and eventually leaves the hospital a transformed woman. This transformation, spiritual reevaluation, or moral reconciliation is exactly the kind of happy ending described by Fay Weldon. In The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath ends the book with the scene of Esther meeting the doctors of the mental evaluation board. She stands outside the room with Dr. Nolan, observing the people around her and making observations about herself: "Don't be afraid," Dr. Nolan had said. But despite Dr. Nolan's reassurances, I was scared to death. , I thought, that it was a ritual to be born twice patched, rebuilt and street-legal, I was trying to think of an appropriate one when Dr. Nolan appeared out of nowhere and touched me on the shoulder. Okay, Esther. I stood up and I followed her to the door...and guided by them (the doctors), as if by a magic thread, I entered the room. (pg.199) This particular assessment is significant for the rest of the work because Esther goes through a drastic change to get to where she is now. At the beginning of the novel, Esther is considered very intelligent, but faces the woman's dilemma of choosing between career and family and the ambivalence of remaining a virgin..