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Plath's German.

  • Published In: ELH, 2024, v. 91, n. 1. P. 239 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Hammer, Langdon 3 of 3

Abstract

This essay explores Plath's conflicted attitude toward the German language, which she tried and failed to learn. For Plath, German stood in relation to English in the position that the pre-linguistic verbal activity of the infant stands in relation to the acquired language. A language both intimate and foreign, familiar and alien, forgotten and never mastered, German was the language inside the language of her poetry, binding her to German history and culture. In "Daddy," Plath's play with word-sounds brings the dynamics of language learning into contact with sado-masochistic fantasy and the history of the Holocaust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:ELH. 2024/03, Vol. 91, Issue 1, p239
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Literature and Writing
  • Publication Date:2024
  • ISSN:0013-8304
  • DOI:10.1353/elh.2024.a922015
  • Accession Number:176096184
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of ELH is the property of Johns Hopkins University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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