As the third section of The Bell Jar begins, Esther is in a room that feels safe “because there were no windows” (127).   This is the office of Doctor Gordon, and from her description it is clear she is stuck beyond getting herself out of the bell jar.  He decides the best way to aid is by giving shock treatment. 

Nonetheless, despite this treatment, Esther continues to think of her suicide.  She carries around with her a “blue jiffy box containing nineteen Gillette blades” should the perfect moment arise (146).   She goes on for days thinking of the best ways to carry out this deed, and eventually gets up her courage.  “I took the glass of water and the bottle of pills and went down into the cellar” (168).  For days she was asleep, lost to the world, but by chance she was found, and as I suspected from the beginning, ended up in a hospital.

During her stay, the nurses make it a point to hide Esther’s reflection from her.  Mirrors, as the one she saved for her friend at a dinner party in New York, come back into play.  She eventually gets a hold of one and is shocked.  “You couldn’t tell whether the person…was a man or a woman, because their hair was shaved off…One side of the person’s face was purple” (174).  The only way Esther realizes this is her is that the picture smiles when she does.  Her inability to recognize herself shows her struggle to understand all that happened. 

Confused just as Esther, I still wondered whether she would take a turn for the better.  Her rescue after the incident with the sleeping pills seemed hopeful, but her failure to recognize herself and the care at the state hospital seemed to suggest otherwise.  When a rich writer friend of hers came along, I felt the same hope I ended the previous section with.

Due to the kindness and money of the writer, Esther was moved to a private hospital with better care for her illness.  Although she had to obey many rules and was under constant watch due to her suicide attempt, this care made me feel she could and would overcome her struggles.  Being a way for Sylvia Plath to deal with her stay at McLean, I was nervous the book would end in a similar way her life did.  This turning point also made me think of how Plath felt when leaving the hospital.  After the expert care she received due to taking many sleeping pills herself, I was glad to know at the time of the book she felt hopeful for her own case as well.