In line one, paragraph one, Sylvia Plath repeats the phrase “you do not do” twice. She does this to give a preview of the poem’s theme. The phrase “you do not do” makes me think about her father because the name of the poem is “Daddy”, so maybe she is saying that he is neglectful and doesn’t carry a very parental role in her life. This feeling is amplified because she says it twice.
In lines one of paragraph two, she says “Daddy I have had to kill you” but then proceeds in the next line saying “You’ve died before I have time”. Why does she have to kill him but suddenly not have time for something. What does she want to do with her father that she has now missed out on because of his death? Maybe she wants to share her true feelings with her father that she couldn’t because of his death.
This poem talks about Sylvia Plath’s relationship with her father. A question about life that comes up when I read this poem is: What makes a good parent? Sylvia Plath has obviously had some issues with her father that she brings up a lot in the poem. I wonder what kind of things Sylvia Plath’s father has done to encourage Sylvia Plath to write a scathing review of their relationship in a poem.
Dear: Coleman
I am interested by your post “Questions about Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy”, because you talked about how the poem has problems with family like you have been placed by the speaker’s shoes. One sentence that stands out to me is “The phrase “you do not do” makes me think about her father because the name of the poem is “Daddy”, so maybe she is saying that he is neglectful and doesn’t carry a very parental role in her life. This feeling is amplified because she says it twice.” This stands out me because you talk about how the speaker has problems with her “daddy”.
Thanks for your writing. I took forward to seeing what you write next. Good looks.
Dear Coleman,
I think that you perfectly explained the poem “Daddy”, and I feel like the poem has a very interesting meaning.
But what if the poem “Daddy” was meant for her husband not for her actual daddy. What if Sylvia Plath’s was trying to say something about men in general.
What if Plath wanted to show her relationship with men in general , by describing her relationship with her father?.
Thanks for writing. I look forward to seeing what you write next because this was a wonderful poem that got my attention.