I haven't read the Bell Jar. I can't even honestly say that it's on my list of to-reads. Even though my love for Virginia Woolf is real and I'm fascinated by mental illness in literature and art and I feel that African society could seriously benefit from making a serious effort to understand mental illness and those who suffer from it and I think feminist publishing and writing are the future and and and - Silvia Plath is a little bit of a downer, even for me.
I have however found much amusement in the recent 50th anniversary re-issue of her iconic book by UK publisher Faber with a brand-new cover featuring a stock image of yet another pretty but bland (also as per the usual, sorry for saying it) white girl. Because of course the images featuring not-skinny, not-conventionally beautiful, non-white, oldish women are just not suitable for a book for the ladies. Naturally, the Internet is not so sure Ms Plath would have been amused. And so the parodies of the Bell Jar cover have begun:
See more over at Salon.com.
(Incidentally, HuffPost had a different perspective on the new cover haters and while it was food for thought, I'm not sure it really gets to the heart of why people are upset. While I think the point about women hating on chick-lit is valid, Bell-gate is not so much about a disrespect of chick-lit as it is about a need for to respect and accurately promote the writing for women in general. Even chick-lit covers deserve thoughtful and representative design.)
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