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Literary Topics Videos 221 videos

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The Mirror 1299 Views


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Description:

Mirror, mirror on the wall, what site is the fairest of them all? What? IntelligenceHut.com? Are you sure? Ugh, we want a refund.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:04

LIT.136 Mirror (2B) Mirror, a la Shmoop.

00:06

It must be difficult to be a mirror. You have to see the same thing day after day after

00:12

day...

00:12

...usually the same person...

00:16

...with no ability to look away. In Sylvia Plath's poem, “Mirror”...

00:23

...a mirror describes the things it reflects, including the woman who uses it regularly.

00:29

Why might the mirror be important to this woman?

00:31

Could it be because she’s vain and likes to look at herself?

00:38

Perhaps the woman is so preoccupied with her appearance that she can't help looking at

00:42

her reflection in the mirror again...

00:43

...and again...

00:45

...and again.

00:46

That would certainly make the mirror feel important...

00:48

...or maybe just put-upon. Or could the mirror be important to the woman

00:52

because it helps her see… what she wants to see?

00:55

The mirror shows the woman her reflection...

00:58

...but that doesn't mean she can't focus only on certain aspects of what she sees in the

01:02

mirror. Or could the mirror be important because it

01:05

shows her the truth?

01:06

If the woman has a piece of broccoli stuck in her teeth, the mirror isn’t polite about

01:11

it...

01:11

...and, as the woman grows older, the mirror shows she's aging.

01:15

Maybe what the woman really wants is to know what she truly looks like…

01:19

…even when there are things about her appearance that she can't change.

01:22

So, why is the mirror so important?

01:25

Is it because the woman is vain about her appearance?

01:27

Is it because it allows her to see what she wants to see?

01:30

Or because it shows her the truth about how she looks?

01:36

Shmoop amongst yourselves.

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