Journal of Literary Writing and Evaluation

JLWE, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2025, pp.258-274.

Print ISSN: 3078-8129; Online ISSN: 3104-5073

Journal homepage: https://www.lwejournal.com

DOI: Https://doi.org/10.64058/JLWE.25.2.08

The Feminist Analysis of Visual Features in Sylvia Plath’s Bee Poems

刘姗妮（Liu Shanni），陈晞（Chen Xi）

Abstract: Including five interlinked works featuring “the queen bee” and a female speaker, The Bee Poems of Sylvia Plath are significant late works of hers. Although embodying a profound feminist critique through visual modes that disrupt patriarchal narrative structures, The Bee Poems are often read autobiographically similar to her other confessional poems. This paper explores the visual dimensions of these poems through three distinct visual perspectives: panoramic scenes, foreground compositions, and close-up images. Drawing on W.J.T. Mitchell’s visual theory and Laura Mulvey’s concept of the “male gaze,” this paper reveals how Plath transforms traditional ekphrastic modes into feminist interventions. The poems first depict a patriarchal world in which female beauty and fertility are objectified with three panoramas. Second, The Bee Poems trace the speaker’s growing feminist awareness and identification with collective feminism through three foregrounds. Third, these poems enact a symbolic demystification of patriarchy with four close-ups. Through these visual strategies, Plath reclaims the female gaze and reconstructs poetic space as a site of resistance.

Keywords: Sylvia Plath; The Bee Poems; Visual Features; Feminism

Author Biography:  Liu Shanni, Ph.D. Candidate at the School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University. Research Areas: British and American Literature, Literary Ethical Criticism. Email: 137727107@qq.com. Chen Xi (Corresponding Author), Professor and Ph.D. Supervisor at the School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University. Research Areas: British and American Literature, Comparative Literature, Literary Ethical Criticism. Email: traceycx@126.com.

题目：论西尔维娅·普拉斯《蜜蜂组诗》的女性主义视觉特征

摘要：西尔维娅·普拉斯的晚期的重要诗作《蜜蜂组诗》包含五首以“蜂后”和一位女性叙述者为核心的，相互关联的作品。学界常将其与普拉斯的其他自白诗相提并论，并对其进行自传性解读，忽略了该组诗所蕴含的深刻的女性主义批判和其挑战了传统父权叙事结构的颠覆性视觉模式。本文从全景、前景和特写这三个独特的视觉视角，探讨《蜜蜂组诗》的视觉维度。基于W.J.T.米切尔的视觉理论和劳拉·穆尔维的“男性凝视”概念，本文揭示了普拉斯如何超越传统的“艺格敷词”模式并将视觉写作与女性主义相结合。首先，组诗通过三幅全景图描绘了一个女性之美与女性生育能力被物化的父权世界。其次，组诗通过三个前景构图，阐述了诗中的女性叙事者日益增强的女性主义意识及其对集体女性主义的认同。最后，组诗通过四组特写图像，象征性地实现了对父权制的祛魅。通过这些视觉策略，普拉斯夺回了女性凝视权，并将诗歌空间重构为一个抵抗父权的场域。

关键词：西尔维娅·普拉斯；《蜜蜂组诗》；视觉特征；女性主义

作者简介：刘姗妮，湖南大学外国语学院博士研究生，研究方向：英美文学、文学伦理学批评。电邮：137727107@qq.com。陈  晞（通讯作者），湖南大学外国语学院教授、博士生导师，研究方向：英美文学、比较文学、文学伦理学批评。电邮：traceycx@126.com。

    Received: 21 Sep 2025 / Revised: 1 Nov 2025 / Accepted: 8 Nov 2025 / Published online: 30 Nov 2025 / Print published: 30 Dec 2025.