...we shall board our imagined ship and wildly sail among sacred islands of the mad till death shatters the fabulous stars and makes us real.
Sylvia PlathRead
As I lay on my back in bed staring up at the blank, white ceiling the stillness seemed to grow bigger and bigger until I felt my eardrums would burst with it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the overwhelming nature of stillness and silence, suggesting a deep introspection and the weight of one's thoughts.
In this quote, Sylvia Plath describes a moment of intense stillness that envelops her as she lies in bed, staring at the ceiling. The imagery of the 'blank, white ceiling' conveys a sense of emptiness, while the growing stillness amplifies her awareness to the point of discomfort, illustrating how silence can sometimes be heavier than sound and can lead to profound introspection or anxiety about one's thoughts and feelings.
Themes
StillnessSilenceIntrospectionThoughtsAnxiety
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about mental health and the importance of addressing one's thoughts.
More from Sylvia Plath
All quotes →The hardest thing, I think, is to live richly in the present, without letting it be tainted & spoiled out of fear for the future or regret for a badly-managed past.
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It is as if my life were magically run by two electric currents: joyous positive and despairing negative--which ever is running at the moment dominates my life, floods it.
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You walked in, laughing, tears welling confused, mingling in your throat. How can you be so many women to so many people, oh you strange girl?
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I keep wanting to crawl back into the womb.
Sylvia PlathRead
It's the living, the eating, the sleeping that everyone needs. Ideas don't matter so much after all. My three best friends are Catholic. I can't see their beliefs, but I can see the things they love to do on earth. When you come right down to it, I do believe in the freedom of the individual.
Sylvia PlathRead
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