Davis 1

Shannon Davis
Mrs. Carter
AP Language
8 March, 2014
Explication of Mirror
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. 5
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 a 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, 10
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. 15
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
Sylvia Plath (1932-1963)
Comment [S1]: Change t o: Literature
Comment [S2]: Del ete
Davis 2

The most expressive feature of the poem, Mirror, by Sylvia Plath, is that it is based on
personification, but uses other figures of speech to further exemplify its meaning.
In stanza 1, lines 1-5, the speaker describes itself using imagery through first-person
point-of-view. It is silver and exact and four-cornered, indicating the speaker is the mirror
itself. It characterizes itself as being unbiased in line 1, and uses the word swallow, in line 2, to
metaphorically stand for the things it reflects. In line 3, the mirror describes its reflections as
being unmisted by love or dislike. The word unmisted is connoted as unchanged. So this
phrase is a metaphor for the mirrors reflection being unchanged by neither love nor dislike.
Lines 4-5 also characterize the mirror. In line 4 it says it is not cruel, only truthful. It only
shows what it sees, whether good or bad. The dash following line 4 indicates denotation to
further explain it in the following line. In line 5 the mirror compares itself to the eye of a little
god, metaphorically standing for its power and confidence in what it does and noting that a god
is not cruel but truthful.
In stanza 1, lines 6-9, the mirror describes its setting. The mirror focuses on the opposite
wall for most of its time. It describes it as being pink, with speckles, possibly indicating the
room it is in could be a girls bedroom or bathroom. It says because it looks at the wall for such a
long time it feels as if it is a part of [its] heart. It is addressing the inanimate object as if it also
has human qualities. Therefore, the author has used apostrophe to figuratively represent the
feelings the mirror has towards the wall. Almost as if the mirror and wall communicate. The
second sentence in line 8 expresses a flaw the wall has: it flickers. The mirror and wall are
separated by faces and darkness; the mirror reflects the faces of people and when they leave,
they turn the lights off, leaving it to reflect only darkness.
Comment [S3]: Del ete
Comment [S4]: Comma on t he i nside of
quot ations
Comment [S5]: Tal k more about diction- why
di d t he speaker use this word i n place of
unchanged?
Comment [S6]: Change t o: also means
Comment [S7]: Del ete. Change to: The dash
fol l owing l ine 4 i ndicates a furt her explanation ofi t
i n t he fol lowing l ine.
Comment [S8]: Tal k about why Plath uses t hat
met aphor and how i t adds t o t he story as a whole.
Comment [S9]: Tal k about i magery
Comment [S10]: Add: indicating i t i s a candle
l i ght before t he period. Also add i n t he effect t hat
t he sound oft he word adds t o t he poem.
Comment [S11]: Tal k about t he contrasting
i magery t his l ine evokes.
Davis 3
In stanza 2, line 10, the mirror shifts its tone and setting, while still personifying itself:
Now I am a lake. This also indicates a chronological progression from the beginning of the
poem. Shifting from many faces in stanza 1, to a single woman in stanza 2 foreshadows
events told about this woman and that she is now the mirrors only focus. The mirror describes
the woman to be searching [its] reaches for what she really is as she bends over [it], not only
looking at her reflection, but also at her inner-self. This highlights the significance of the mirror
to the woman and also represents the internal struggle the woman is dealing with.
Line 12 begins with Then, indicating another shift of tone. Then she turns to those
liars, the candles or the moon. The woman is unhappy with her reflection in the lake so she
turns to other sources of reflection, possibly hoping to find something about herself that she
likes. In stanza 1, the mirror describes itself as being truthful and unbiased. This supports the
mirrors comment in line 13. It says, I see her back, and reflect if faithfully. The mirror
continues to reflect the woman, even when she is turned around to liars. The mirror is the only
faithful thing the woman has. Still upset with her appearance, the woman uses the lake to take
her frustration out with tears and an agitation of hands, using it to physically distort her
reflection. The mirror takes this as a reward from the woman and sees itself as being
important to her, which also symbolizes an appreciated tone from the mirror. Also referring
back to stanza 1 when the mirror talks about seeing faces when it is light and nothing when it is
dark, line 16 says the womans face is what replaces the darkness every morning, symbolizing
her importance to the mirror.
The last two lines, 17-18, represent the major theme of the entire poem: time. The mirror
has reflected this woman throughout her entire life, only the mirror hasnt changed. The woman
is the one that gets older and older each day. The mirror says, In me she has drowned a young
Comment [S12]: Expl ai n how t his l ine i n t he
poemhas shi ft ed t one and setting.
Comment [S13]: Add i n ri ght aft er: like candles
and t he moon,
Comment [S14]: Add ; the candles and moon.
Before t he period to help clarify t he meani ng oft hi s
l i ne.
Davis 4
girl, and in me an old woman / Rises toward her day after day. The woman has realized that her
past is sinking and a horrible future is rising to meet her. The mirror uses a simile to compare this
aging to a terrible fish rising towards her. This example the mirror gives creates an image of a
dead fish rising to the surface of water, disturbing the womans reflection.
Another major theme this poem conveys is a stereotype of women. The mirror, claiming
to be unbiased, explains the way the woman looks at herself, what is important to her, and how
she feels about herself towards the end of her life. Being of no opinion or sense of cruelty, the
mirror has explained the average womans thoughts and emotions.
This poem focuses heavily on progression of time and the effects it has on people,
particularly women. The author conveys this through having an object tell the story as if it were a
human, with human qualities and emotions, using descriptive imagery, details and other
figurative language.
Comment [S15]: Change t o: Plath uses
Comment [S16]: Al so t alk about how t he dead
fi sh represents t he womans aging.
Comment [S17]: Del ete.
Comment [S18]: Tal k about why t he mi rror is
t el l ing t he story and not an actual person. The mi rror
makes t he moral oft he st ory more believable
because it i s unbiased.