PART TWO
The novel “The bell Jar” has been portrayed differently all around the world. For my cover I have chosen to represent the most symbolic symbols noted in the novel. These symbols include mirrors,fig tree, blood,and heartbeats. I choose my cover to represent these symbols because I believe these symbols depicts important moments in the novel. In the novel Esther worst enemy is herself,she knows that she wanted to kill herself but doesn’t have a logical reason as to why. As shown in the novel, Esther constantly confronts reflection on herself. After her shock treatment with Dr. Gordon she thinks her reflection is another women in the room and even more so after her last attempt to kill herself she couldn’t recognize herself in the mirror.
This moment is demonstrated in my cover in the reflection of the fig tree. The fig tree is also another important symbol in the novel. The fig tree is mentioned multiple times in the book. In Esther’s case, the fig tree represents a different life and she can only choose one. She struggles with the decision to make a choice. Esther’s inability to make a decision leads us to another symbol that is constantly used in the novel, which is blood. The shedding of blood marks transitions in Esther’s life. This includes when Marco tries to rape her and he smeared blood on her, when she loose her virginity she bleeds heavily, and when she decides to kill herself, she slashes her calf for preparation to slash her wrists. Esther slashing her wrist is shown vividly in my cover because this was the moment she first attempted to kill herself. The presence of blood shows that Esther will sacrifice her body for peace of mind.
Although she wanted to kill herself, she was unsuccessful in all attempts. Her failure to successfully kill herself is shown through another symbol of the novel, heartbeat. Her body was determined to live in all attempts. The beating heart symbolizes this bodily desire to live. In her attempt to drown herself, her heart beats ” I am I am I am.” The heartbeat is represented in my cover through the red heart by the hand. The mirror, fig tree, blood, and the heartbeat are very important aspects of the novel. I’ve tried my best to portray this idea in my cover by using four simple photos and combining them together to make one thing.
