The Bell Jar: Sylvia Plath

The first edition of The Bell Jar was published in England on January 14, 1963 under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas. The novel was not published in the United States until 1971 because Aurelia Plath was embarrassed by her daughter’s portrayal of their family and friends.

Ann Safford Mandel ’53 launched the Sylvia Plath and Virginia Woolf collections at Smith College by donating first editions of their work to the rare book collection, including The Bell Jar.