Ariel

Ariel is a posthumous poetry collection by Sylvia Plath, published in 1965. Written during the final months of her life, the collection captures intense emotional states shaped by her struggles with identity, mental illness, and societal expectations of women. The title refers to both a spirit from The Tempest and the horse she rode, symbolizing freedom and transformation.
The poems are vivid, confessional, and often unsettling. Plath uses powerful imagery, such as in "Lady Lazarus" and "Daddy," to explore themes of death, rebirth, trauma, and female oppression. Nature, violence, and the body appear throughout, reflecting her internal turmoil and search for liberation. Her tone shifts between despair, irony, and defiance.
Ariel redefined modern poetry with its raw honesty and lyrical power. It remains a groundbreaking work in feminist and confessional literature, offering insight into Plath's psyche and broader human experiences of pain, power, and identity.
Contents:
 Morning Song 
 The Couriers 
 Sheep in Fog 
 The Applicant 
 Lady Lazarus 
 Tulips 
 Cut 
 Elm 
 The Night Dances 
 Poppies in October 
 Berck-Plage (1-7) 
 Ariel 
 Death & Co. 
 Lesbos 
 Nick and the Candlestick 
 Gulliver 
 Getting There 
 Medusa 
 The Moon and the Yew Tree 
 A Birthday Present 
 Mary's Song 
 Letter in November 
 The Rival 
 Daddy 
 You're 
 Fever 103°   
 The Bee Meeting 
 The Arrival of the Bee Box 
 Stings 
 The Swarm 
 Wintering 
 The Hanging Man 
 Little Fugue 
 Years 
 The Munich Mannequins 
 Totem 
 Paralytic 
 Balloons 
 Poppies in July 
 Kindness 
 Contusion 
 Edge 
 Words