I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions.
Whatever I see I swallow immediately
Just as it is, unmisted by love or dislike.
I am not cruel, only truthful ‚
The eye of a little god, four-cornered.
Most of the time I meditate on the opposite wall.
It is pink, with speckles. I have looked at it so long
I think it is part of my heart. But it flickers.
Faces and darkness separate us over and over.
Now I am a lake. A woman bends over me,
Searching my reaches for what she really is.
Then she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon.
I see her back, and reflect it faithfully.
She rewards me with tears and an agitation of hands.
I am important to her. She comes and goes.
Each morning it is her face that replaces the darkness.
In me she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman
Rises toward her day after day, like a terrible fish.
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Comments
1 - 38 of 38
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Intriguing, complex, but wonderful
It is to the poet's credit that she makes reading this poem a kind of journey. The mirror claims that it speaks only the truth but we want it to delude us. So when we are young we see what we see. If you notice, she takes you through the different stages of life, young girl, woman and an old woman. I interpret the first two lines of the second stanza as the struggle of maturity set against the lure of the shallow standards that place such a high premium on outward beauty. The woman wants to find out ' what she really is' Will the mirror tell her? The mirror is just an observer. The mirror does not really care. But why then does the mirror pronounce such a sentence on her. ' an old woman rises toward her day after day, like a terrible fish.' -
I can see there are mixed opinions about this piece. I actually like this very much. I guess as far as the meaning goes, it all depends on the reader; their frame of mind, taste and imagination. Like I said I like this. Somehow I can relate to it. Maybe that's odd, I don't know. But then again, so was she in several ways....
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Enough
With the help of the 35 or so comments before me I understand this poem in its entirety, and for me, that is ENOUGH. -
And the dog seeking both bones lost his to the lake...
To me the terrible fish would be denial and the lake the
needless tears shed because of it.
The standard mirror can only reflect what is there, whereas a
lake is changing and can alter what is reflected in it, much like
the mirrors at the circus in the fun house.
We can deny we are aging but it doesn't change the fact that
we are and until we see the true nature of who we are, then we
will forever be like the small fish, constantly waiting to be consumed by the terrible larger one.
We see differently through tear-filled eyes and often a change of
perspective is needed to finally see what is really there and not
what we image to be. Just as an addict will never admit they have
a problem, so to many are vain and seek plastic surgery to try
to maintain their youth, but that doesn't change the inside
and they too eventually die, just as everyone else does.
We can not change what actions may come, but we will always
have the power of choice on how we REact to those actions
and there is where our salvation lies. We must accept there
is both good and bad in the world and when bad arrives we
need to hang on until we get through it and the next change comes. We can be certain it will, for life is but a series of actions and reactions, that we continue to do until the day we die.
There is a saying that "The truth will set you free" and it is true
for once you accept your mortality, then instead of spending
all your days in denial and fighting to maintain the past, you can finally start living for the future.
Eddy
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The Mirror
From guest Catarina (contact)
In this poem, Sylvia Plath revists the myth of Narcissus. In Greek mythology, Narcissus is a young boy who fell in love with his reflection in a lake (a natural mirror). The second stanza in particular reworks the Narcissus myth and adapts it to a woman's experience. In her poem, Plath explores the all-consuming nature of self-love, which she depicts as a terrible monster (i.e. the fish in the poem). -
Naomi
From guest Naomi (contact)
My idea of what this poem means, is that the mirror is the one speaking in first person, and in the first stanza it is pure and truthful - the woman who owns it is still a young girl (hence the pink and speckled wallpaper) and so sees no problem with what the mirror shows her. In the second stanza, however- the mirror is shown to be distorted - because the woman (now older) hates what she sees. I think the lake reference is a link to the instability of a waters reflection, and it links to the 'terrible fish' and the 'drowned girl'. No girl has actually been drowned in the mirror, it is more as if the mirror has taken the young girl the woman used to see and instead shows her an old woman (in the first stanza, it says the mirror 'swallows' the image and then gives it back to her) The fish implies disgust or fear, and gives the image of a disgusting fish swimming closer towards the mirrors surface, and into her reflection. ... well, thats what I think. Could be wrong.
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From guest morgan (contact)
this poem is amazing!! it really shows you how people look to mirrors to see what is on the inside but they dont realize that it only shows the outside!! -
wow!!!!
From guest Elizabeth (contact)
I love this poem! I have an assignment and I was having a lot of trouble with it because I'm not a poet, but this poem has helped me out a lot and should open the minds of many people. It's great, I really like it. -
?
From guest Amber Edmondson (contact)
Ok, first off what is the surface meaning of 'mirror'? im no wuite sure, also what exacly is hppening, my initial thought was that she is aging through a mirror and doesnt like what she sees, and she cries? hmm she is a great writer very inspriring, -
From guest Gabby (contact)
I thought this was a great poem. Once you analyze this poem, you can understand the time change and the different speakers and positions. It is telling of this woman over the course of her life. If you dig deeper, our society is very similar to this poem: always demanding perfect looks, figure, and attitude. While we are so concerned about these little things, we miss out on doing something with our lives, like getting an education. -
huh???
From guest oli (contact)
this poem is confusing and not vry goodin my opinion...also, what exactly is a terrible fish? a fish that i mean to the other fish? or steals from the fish bank???? what on earth is it? -
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A fish is a creature swimming in the lake that Plath is envisioning in the poem. A terrible fish is simply a fish that inspires terror.
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What?!?!
From guest BoomShackaLocka (contact)
The poem has good flow and makes a lot of sense. The one thing that puzzles me, is how it goes from a mirror into a lake? -
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This is the first time I've read this poem so I'm not positive that what I'm saying is correct. But it appears to me that in both stanza there exists a sort of "mirror" or agent of reflection. In the first stanza, the perception is of an exact reflection. This mirror tells the truth, or at least it appears to.
In the second stanza, however, the agent of reflection switches to a lake. If you've ever looked at your reflection in a lake, you would agree that your reflection would look distorted by the ripples and such. The idea of the distortion is further affirmed by her allusion to the moon and candles as liars. Once again, if you've ever looked at someone in the candle light you would agree that they appear differently from what they really look like.
I think that the idea is that as she ages, Plath sees herself in a distorted manner. Her youth is swallowed up and her reflection no longer exudes her true nature. Anyway, I hope this helps. Any one is welcome to correct me if I'm wrong; I'm just making some conjecture.
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From guest Mo mo (contact)
This is a very good poem. I only just read it cause my mom said it was good and cause I need ten poems for a project in lit, and this has so much emotion in it. I can see a good poem when i read one, and this is a great poem. Thank you Sylvia. -
nice
From guest shona shah (contact)
it is a nice poem but i didnt understand it because my teacher didnt teach me. -
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For guest Shona Shah
Do you really need a teacher to explain everything. Read and re-read it a few times and think about the lines and their normal meanings. Then think of purring them together implies some extra meaning. As a rule of thumb I would say read once for an impression, twice for some meaning and thrice for enjoymnet (and deeper meaning).
Also there are a couple of dozen comments from other people under this one which should help.
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The first 4 lines
From guest Ricky Carlson (contact)
If anyone can explain to me the meaning of the first 4 lines of the first stanza I would appreciate it. Great poem so much meaning and emotion. -
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I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions.
Whatever I see I swallow immediately
Just as it is, unmisted by love or dislike.
I am not cruel, only truthful‚
A mirror is "silvered" which is a process by which a molten substance is applied that will become a reflective surface beneath the glass. The mirror (which is a metaphor for a person) is therefore "silver" and exact in its reflection. It swallows whoever is looking into it and reflects them back - not in any emotional light that love or dislike would lend, just literally as you are. In this sense, a mirror is truthful, not cruel or distorted, and can be depended upon not to gloss over the surface. The next line goes on to descibe the four corners of the mirror, another aspect of its "exactitude." It gives me a sense of the way people judge themselves while staying separate and apart from the opposite wall (perhaps the crowd).
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to sylvia plath
From guest pratima (contact)
i like this poem....this also helped me in makin 1 of my projects.... -
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question
From guest Sally (contact)
What is the impact of this poem on the world and where did the mirror go -
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Who can say what impact it has on the world. I can say it's impact on me is minimal. It is a nice poem and I am happy to have read it but that's all.
As for where did the mirror go? I believe life is the mirror and it is still there but very few people have the courage to look into it. Plath did and look what happened to her.
Jim
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:)
From guest Destiny (contact)
I like this poem, I think it really explains how we see and WANT to see ourselves. -
From guest Courtney (contact)
i like this poem. It deals with a lot of ageing and how most women fear to age. -
Mirror
From guest Lilly. (contact)
The poem deals with a wide variety of themes, but the main one is really just Plath's negative view on the ageing process. Wether its personal to her or she just understands what we (women in paticular) go through when we age particurly those of us who are vain. The frist stanza just builds up the powerful and unbiased qualties that the narrator has and the second goes into the pessimisstic vies of ageing (thats why the narrative changes to a lake to allow for the water-based imagery later on and it recalls the myth of Narcissuss which further emphasizes the vanity aspect). And with most of her work Plath supplies sudden dark imagery that she is known for. This poem is a fairly simple one to read into but its personal to each person as all poems are. -
mirror's comment
From guest rana girgis (contact)
i didn't understand anything in this difficult poem...can anybody help me & thx -
sweety89
From guest sweety89 (contact)
I like this peom because it gives us a lesson that we shouldn't make a wrong judgements and reflect what we see and deal with, I like this peom so much. -
WOAH
This peom is beautiful... and makes me speechless -
omg
From guest purplepunkerx33 (contact)
oh i got this poem in my class test at school! i think this poem is quite good, easy to understand too. -
From guest KANON (contact)
i have to write a 6 paragraph essay on this? this sucks, this poem is ok, but there are so many better than this. it lacks in feeling, rather, it seems more like her thoughts are just a mesh and she put it down, moreover, she should have put more effort into it, it could've been much better and with more feeling -
Terrible fish
From guest Louuuu (contact)
The terrible fish element is not meant to be read in to; simply it is just revoltion at the ageing process on her beauty. Like a dead fish in a fishmongers. -
From guest WILFRED JOHN (contact)
A PAUSE BEFORE THE FLOWER BLOOMS A break before the flower blooms Petals vibration Wet with dew Natures tears as the effective begins. I guess every one of us Is just hoping to turn out to be one Of those forgotten little chosen ones, right Man, you know about spells There are so many Reaching the sun warms embracing delicate stems Drawing its beauty From within. She sighs at the sight Captivated by the moment, A pause before the flower blooms. And life Would pay no more A breath held Before the kiss Of ecstasy arrives. WILFRED JOHN -
threw the worlds eyes
From guest Gaara Omega (contact)
I think its the Reflection (be it a mirror or a lake) talking about what it see's from day to day, and i believe it's are self's talking about what we see in the reflection. It's all about how the world see's us and how u believe (think) we look to the world -
For what u are
From guest Lawrence Mcbride (contact)
I Think it's the reflection (be it a mirror or a lake) talking about what it sees from day to day and what We are self's see from the reflection. I believe it talk to Us about what are minds see, and what the world see's us as. -
Just for lulz
From guest Lollerskate (contact)
I think the poem is about her seeing who she is becoming and who she really is. She is becoming crazy with her age and she hates it. -
Realistic
From guest xyz (contact)
This poem shows how humans try to escape from harsh inevitable realities of life like aeging..This poem inspires us to deal with them.. -
From guest Cah (contact)
Reading over the comments there seems to be some confusion about the old woman/ terrible fish element. The poem is NOT saying that the woman is old but that she can see the old woman she will become riseing from the depths of the miror/ lake. -
Love it. Some of her poems are a bit...ooeer, can't think of the right words...not for me, anyway. But this I did enjoy.
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This poem is at least better than "Daddy," which I found totally nauseating at age 18. It put me off reading Sylvia Plath until now, when I'm 43.
I actually like this poem, particularly the first half. The first four lines re my favorite. -
Quite an accessible poem...speaks from the soul of the poetess...deeply poignant and profound in that remarkable way only this poet herself can portray....tk u for sharing...PS
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very good
wow
too deep for me
but
an enjotable read, nonetheless -
sylvia plath was one of the greatest poets in my opinion...her metaphors are clear yet still leave an air of mystery. I love her style of writing in both her poetry and her book, 'the bell jar' My personal favourite by her would be 'edge'; the very last poem she wrote before she killed herself....speaks volumes and is very powerful yet beautiful. Long live her poetry!
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Have heard so much about this poet while on AP, but have not read any of her works. This is the first poem of hers I have read and find it quite deep - she has a unique way of writing - very matter of factly and straight forward, yet filled with metaphoric meaning.
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I have yet to find a true mirror. Mz Plath's must be unique as my mirror image parts its hair on the wrong side, wears badges on the wrong side etc. They're all liars!
However it is a nice idea for a poem and, as usual, she has sime interesting ways of looking at things (pun intended
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Jim -
amazing
i love this poem now. -
horray for silvia plath!
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Compare of Night and Mirror
From guest Jezzy (contact)
This mirror is not a mean or biased mirror just truthful. It also has an owner who looks at the mirror to find who she really is. The mirror calls candles and the moon a liar because it tells this person she is young while the mirror shows the owner as she really is, old. The last couple of lines in Mirror are almost eactly the same as Night by Elie Wiesel, but Night shows the poem from the owner's perspective. Elie looks into a mirror and sees an old corpse. In Mirror, the owner looks into the mirror and also sees an old face that has drowned a young girl. In conclusion, all one thinks or hears might not be true but if one reflects like a mirror, the truth is opened up and shown to him or her. -
I've recently discovered Ms Plath, the only good thing the Leaving Cert (big, scary Irish exams before college, that determine what your life will become) has brought me.
This poem is my favourite. The imagery is wonderful - quite pretty - and yet looking deeper you can see the turmoil this woman experiences just living in her own skin. It's brilliant. Perfect! -
From guest sexyninja (contact)
as amazing as one would hope for from such a tragically tormented yet beautiful soul that was is and will forever be miss Sylvia Plath -
From guest MariCole (contact)
"I see her back, and reflect it faithfully. She rewards me with tears and an agitation of hands." This line personally this peom made me think about how western civilazation cares so much about how people look. -
From guest Dionicia Caudill (contact)
this has a lot of meaning to me. not too many people know why. but this poem decribes my life -
From guest Mushroom (contact)
I think this poem is both beautiful and sad. It says that the lake has no opinions, yet it judges the moon I think it has a very powerful message -
I really love those last two lines - what a powerful image and a unique way of looking at the journey of life and the aging process. Plath's imagery is brilliant.
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From guest spaz attack (contact)
An amazingly complex poem that shows all the values of women both now and past. The poem talks about truth and lies which could relate to the miscarriage that she had earlier the same year, truth she has a child the lies it is taken from her. Sylvia Plath commited suicide 2 years after this due to depression, this depression is clearly shown in her poetry 'in me an old woman' she is only 29, she is successful but this is how she sees her life - as an underachiever. An amazingly depthful poem that i enjoyed researchimg and reading - a true classic that will last through the ages. -
From guest Carly Roberts (contact)
In the year that this was written Plath suffered a miscarrige. This could explain her wish to explore ideas of feminicity and th differences bewteen external and internal physiological changes. Although 28 is not an old age as Plaths life ended at 30 then this is towards the end of her life. Plath grew up at an early age following the death of her father at just 8 years old. The young girl that is refered to deid long before she wrote this poem. Plath was deeply depressed at a young age ahain lending eplaination to her interest with internal factors of personality and life. -
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This is a wonderfull poem and what i got out of it was that the mirror in the poem only shows the truth. The young woman is beautifull at the beginning and then turns into an old woman and doesn't want to accept that she is not beautifull anymore and sees herself "like a terrible fish".
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From guest Trent Slayton (contact)
This is a wonderfull poem and what i got out of it was that the mirror in the poem only shows the truth. The young woman is beautifull at the beginning and then turns into an old woman and doesn't want to accept that she is not beautifull anymore and sees herself "like a terrible fish". -
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poem
From guest ADITHYA (contact)
IT WAS REALLY EXCELLENT AND WAS REALLY REVIVING. FROM MY POINT OF VIEW IT IS REALLY FANTASTIC. GOOD POEM.!!! -
wow
From guest 16yrold (contact)
DOES ANBODY know what the style of writing that Plath uses in this poem? im writing a research paper for english... thanx... -
Here is my interpertation of the poem
From guest Fran (contact)
I am silver in color and have no preconceptions of my own I engulf the viewer with their own image I am not tainted by emotions I reflect exactly what is in front of me Like a god I have four corners (4 corners of the universe) Most of the time I sit on the wall reflecting the opposite wall The opposite wall is pink with speckles, I look at it so long that I think it is part of me (maybe my heart) only faces and darkness keep me from (my heart) Now I am reflecting a women who is looking in a lake she is looking to find herself in me the liars are dimly lit places like moonlight and candles (emotions) I am always her true image she cries and is agitated but always comes back to me in me, she has seen her youth vanish and she can see herself growing old and she continues to live day after day like a fish out of water (a terrible fish could also be her desire to die, to drown with her youth) -
like a terrible fish?
From guest rachel laine (contact)
there's only one thing i don't get about this heart warming poem, why a fish? how is it symbolic to the youth killing mirror? love rachel -
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The stanza opens by likening the mirror to a lake and fish swim in a lake ?? perhaps that's it ??
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i love this poem
From guest rachel laine (contact)
i love this poem, i think it is very good in style sense. plath has thought very hard about this poem. she has such a way of wording her work. i have recently done an analysis of Mirror.and i completely understand the body of this poem. -
Love it
From guest Calley (contact)
This an absolutly fantastic poem i love i have it written all over my bedroom wall!! Calley -
I think the first stanza is strong
embellishing the spirits/minds ability to flow into objects
setting the stage
In the second stanza
she bares to explain the consumption of youth through the journey of age
trying to catch it in the still point of existence out side of time
while the fish describes her own meaty finality
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gorgeous
From guest Travis (contact)
Plath writes an accurate personification of a mirroir through beautiful language -
From guest Conny (contact)
Plath describes a mirror in terms of something true... like an outsider of life, watching... and only telling facts not making judgements, she shows the purest personality of a human being... the innocence...of being immortal, an object. her personification is clever and you feel the sympathy of the mirror watching the woman grow, the tears... the maybe hatred of her own appearance... this poem is spectacular... as plath always is... perfect. -
Aww this is really sad. Some of her metaphors are a little strange but I know what she's getting at, and it is really really sad.
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Wonderful!
This is a very beautiful poem indeed.
Though structured small, the depth of words are par excellence! The poem has brought out the human emotions of fear and anxiety wonderfully! Personification is beautiful. Similies and metaphors are excellent. Wonderful work by Sylvia Plath here! -
beautiful
What a fascinating way to depict life through her eyes, through an object. Unbiased yet able to see everything, a mirror, no matter what kind, is the true documenter of life. Even as a lake, as Plath describes, it sees all. I would imagine if a mirror could speak, it would not only convey these events but I would picture it conveying a sense of sadness, and a desire to shrink away and close its eyes for a moment, just to be blind to the world for a little while, just as we all can do. I feel as if Plath is saying we should be lucky to have the gift of closing our eyes to tear ourselves away from the grief life has to offer. -
Brilliant poem
The mirror is universal - objective, non-judgemental, fair. It remains constant. It is god-like in its power over us " like a god" But yet we love the " liars" the candles and the moon casting shadows and showing us as younger and hiding the defects in our complexion. Truth is something we do not like do we? I love the words " In me she has drowned a young girl... " haunting lines. Reminds me of Oscar Wilde's famous book. -
i like the parallelism of the mirror and the lake. how the poem moved from a level to another. of looking, of a gaze-- of the self looking inward/outward and back again. the conscious effort to see the inside/outside, the real/ideal, always in the binary of what is and what is beyond.
"i am not cruel, oinly truthful"
"i see her back, and reflect it faithfully", these two lines impress on me, how an individual looks at the ideal, the self, or the non-self, the inexistent, evanescent-- intangible. but still, looking at it as real. how penetrating or piercing, the image of the self look at the Other, turning away, the self in division, looking as it is. the confrontation at the line where the real and the ideal meet. -
Hey all, I think this is an excellent poem. You know i think it applies to alot of women of today though since so much pressure is put on us from the media and society that we have to look young to be attractive. Anyhow i really need help with subject matter and theme of this poem im writing an oral about it for class could anyone lend me some assistance? Let me know please.
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I think this is a great poem, I too liked the way that the narrative voice was the mirror/lake. The mirror tells no lies/shows what is really there.
'Unmisted by love or dislike' gave an every day/ordinary sense of the mirror. This is different to the moon and the candles because they give a more romantic, less honest account of a person.
The woman seems to be wanting honesty, so she looks for reality in her reflection, but dislikes what she sees and searches for a more romantic image. I think that shows the insecurity of the woman.
Pozo
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I think that the mirror could be just that...personified as seemingly obvious, but then there are times that the mirror may just be a person. There are those people out there that have this effect on us...bringing out our authentic selves...the good with the bad, the real US. I love the way she refers to the moon and candle light as liars...sure they are brighter and much glamour is associated with them, but they can be deceiving...making us look "better" or just different then what we really are. Hey, don't we all look better in moonlight or candlelight????
Beautiful piece, and thanks to those that came before me discussing the movie "Sylvia" , I shall have to check it out!
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Hey, don't we all look better in moonlight or candlelight????
a well light image contains more detail which must be processed
people close their eyes when they kiss to focus on other sensations
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I love how she personifed the mirror, and even took on the perspective of the mirror. "I am silver and exact." Truthful and raw and emotionally riveting.
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she became the mirror
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I love this poem too!! I hadn't read it in a couple of years and thought I'd search for it, just to read it, enjoy it again. I have read this poem more times than any other poem. There is something about it that I relate to, something that speaks to me in her words. I too have seen the movie "Sylvia". Excellent movie. I loved it. It's sad that she felt so alone, so left out in this world that she ended up committing suicide. Once again, lovely poem. I truly do admire Sylvia PLath.
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Well, I had to write about this poem to get into an advanced placement English coarse today, and I liked the poem so much I decided to find it and bookmark it. All my friends who took the test liked it too, but found some difficulty with writing about it. I personally loved the personification of the mirror, so that it tells of all it sees. I found that the mirror seemed to reflect what people really were, and this is what many strive to to do, find out who they are and what they should be. Now that I have read this poem, it makes me want to read more of Plath's work. A beautiful poem indeed.
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Can somebody explain this poem to me???
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I think this is one of the greatest poems ever, how could she write an in depth poem about a mirror, it is quite profound and reflective(i know, i know), this poem really makes me feel good about life, myself, and writing, if I could strive towards making an object completely personified, in depth and profound then maybe my toiling away in notebooks will be worth, what amazing skill this woman had!!!
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She is truly amazing.
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excitingly interesting
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ahhh... i love this poem soooooooo much
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If you weren\'t dead, I\'d tell you to never stop writing
Too Bad Silvia Plath is dead (she killed herself)... you should see the new movie about her life, "Silvia", Gweneth Paltrow plays Silvia Plath...
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