Helen Lives In Esther's Nightmare

 


Helen is a woman of many talents, and yet we are introduced to her in a state far beyond her prime. In every panel we see of her, we can see the visible signs of her aging state, such as her eyebags and sad eyes. Yet it seems strange that a woman of such potential would fall to such a position, essentially becoming a housewife satisfying her disloyal husband, and not take action to improve her life. This lifestyle of submission reminded me of what Esther in The Bell Jar dreaded as a potential future for herself, living as a housewife for Buddy Willard. I thus decided to look deeper into how Helen, who much like Esther was very skilled at her craft, ended up in this position, as I wanted to see if Esther was following a similar path as her.


I find the narration of Helen’s past in Chapter 3 to be a strong example of how Helen changed as a result of her following the path Esther wishes to avoid, which is that of a housewife. On page 69 (at least on my copy), we can see Helen looking proud, independent, and youthful, with energy inspiring a young Bruce on her side. We continue to see this energy from her page 71, where Helen is seen stumbling out of Bruce’s car after realizing that Bruce is gay and has had affairs with other men. That last panel on the page stuck with me in particular, as we see the utter confusion and shock Helen is dealing with. While Esther had no such experience, she had her own eye opening experiences, such as when Buddy Willard revealed his naked body to her or when he showed her the woman giving birth. Esther must have felt a similar feeling of dread and confusion, and yet she wasn’t bound to it yet as Helen was. Helen was already married to Bruce, while Esther was still not married to Buddy, even though there were plans for them to be. This separates the two, as Helen feels already defeated and bound to Bruce, as seen on page 72 where she returns to Bruce’s car, completely submissive.


I find the picture associated with Chapter 6 to summarize Helen’s state throughout the rest of her married years with Bruce, as it captures not only her aged state but also her efforts to preserve her youth and passion. The lines drawn on her face and the eyebags show her older and defeated state, and yet she is applying makeup, trying to make herself appear more alive. This all coupled with the title “The Ideal Husband” shows how Helen’s life was disappointing for her, and yet she is trying to make the best of it. Her life thus represents the path Esther would perhaps have followed had she accepted the life of a subservient wife to a man, most likely Buddy Willard. For both Esther and Helen this fate is difficult, but for Esther it would likely be even harder, as she is in a more sensitive mental state than Helen. Also, Sylvia Plath’s own story shows what could have happened to Esther if she had taken a more domestic role, which is quite sad.

Comments

  1. Connor G.April 1, 2025 at 8:12 AM

    I liked how you focused on Helen in this story, everyone else, including me, focused on Bruce and Allison. I think your comparison to Esther from the Bell Jar is perfect. She really hates her role in the house, and Bruce is not helping her in the least. One thing brings her joy though, and it's pretending to be someone else. Great post!

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  2. RicoApril 1, 2025 at 12:08 PM

    This is a super well-thought-out blog. The connection you make between Helen and Buddy Willard's mom -- what Esther views her future with Buddy as -- is quite accurate. Both Esther and Helen appear quite capable people who are threatened by submission to less-than-ideal men. The transition of Helen's image and her efforts to preserve her youth are reminiscent of Esther's struggles since they both have what feels like no control over their circumstances. Great post!

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  3. JessyApril 1, 2025 at 6:57 PM

    Your focus on Helen’s decline and her struggle to maintain a sense of self is really good, mostly in how you connect it to Esther’s fears in The Bell Jar. The way you analyze Helen’s transition from a confident, independent woman to someone trapped in submission makes her story even more tragic. Great post!

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  4. MitchellApril 4, 2025 at 1:00 PM

    This is an insightful discussion, and I like the emphasis on how this sense of Helen being "stranded" in Beech Creek echoes Esther's anxieties about marriage as making her "a numb slave in a totalitarian state." Bruce doesn't *quite* run a "totalitarian state" in his home, but close enough, we might say. And I like your observations about how the weight of "settling" for this talented and highly literate woman are reflected in the drawings, in particular the bags under her eyes--it really LOOKS like she's being "weighed down." And it's strongly implied that she is potentially cut out for bigger and better things than this community theater.

    If you want to read more about Helen and her experience, as Alison Bechdel understands it AND as Helen herself does, I do commend to you the follow-up to _Fun Home,_ _Are You My Mother?_ Helen is the main focus, and mostly AFTER the first book is published, so you see her reaction to her daughter bringing the family's dirty laundry into the light. But Sylvia Plath and specifically her relationship with her mother is an "intertext" in the second book--so Bechdel herself indirectly explores the connection you point out here, using Plath and her mother as a reflection of herself and her mother. The second book might lead you to want to read the collected letters of Plath, many of which were exchanged with her mother--they are quoted widely in the book, and a much more complex relationship emerges, compared to Esther and her mother in the novel. And at the same time, Helen emerges as a more complex character than she seems in _Fun Home._

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  5. PieterApril 5, 2025 at 3:53 PM

    Helen as a focus is a very unique approach to this blog post. I was reading Sandaru's blog earlier, where Helen is also touched on, so reading this blog post is a great way to dive deeper. After reading these posts, my perception of the relationship between Bruce and his "wife" has changed. Helen's selflessness deserves to be highlighted and I think you do a really good job of that.

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  6. leoApril 6, 2025 at 10:01 AM

    I think your idea of Helen already "defeated" by Bruce compared to Esther's relationship with Buddy paints a really interesting parallel between both stories. However, I think something to explore might be how Esther's depression might be affecting this. If Helen also had the same issues as Esther, would she still be in the same situation as now?

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