Sentimentality at the School of Confessional Poets

Sentimentality at the School of Confessional Poets

Poets of the Confessional School are easily inclined to fall into the trap of sentimentalism when they open up their heart to express their internal feelings. Some poets succumb to the temptation while some others survive over it. Sylvia Plath has certainly failed in the trap. Her life is deeply influenced by the close attachment she had with her deceased father. The sentimentality kicks in as she could not mentally accept to surrender to the reality that her father had already passed away. She is till emotional about her relationship with her father as if he is still walking around and alive. In her poem “Daddy” the second stanza captures her state of minds with the following terms:

“Daddy, I have to kill you
You died before I had time
Marble-heavy, a bag full of God,
Ghastly statue with one grey toe
Big as a Frisco seal”

Plath who still addresses her father in the poem, reminds herself that he died too soon before she even had enough time to enjoy his presence. She is deeply attached to the memory of her father although she recognizes she should not fail to move forward with her life and let him rest in peace.
Anne Sexton on the other hand is an example of a poet who has avoided sentimentalism in her work. In her poem “The Truth the Dead Know”, she kept her emotions from derailing. This fact is demonstrated by her selected choice of language, which conveys to the reader the sense that she has finally accepted the reality of the deaths of her parents. The first stanza for example confirms that her poem is certainly composed by a mindset cleared from any outburst of excessive emotions:

“Gone, I saw and walk from church,
refusing the stiff procession to the grave,
letting the dead ride alone in the hearse.
It is June. I am tired of being brave.”