Yet I loathe the thought of annihilating myself quite as much now as I ever did. I think with sadness of all the books I’ve read, all the places I’ve seen, all the knowledge I’ve amassed and that will be no more. All the music, all the paintings, all the culture, so many places: and suddenly nothing.. If it had at least enriched the earth; if it had given birth to… what? A hill? A rocket? But no. Nothing will have taken place. I can still see the hedge of hazel trees flurried by the wind and the promises with which I fed my beating heart while I stood gazing at the gold-mine at my feet: a whole life to live. The promises have all been kept. And yet, turning an incredulous gaze towards that young and credulous girl, I realise with stupor how much I was gypped. Simone De Beauvoir
About This Quote

This poem by Sylvia Plath is an incredibly powerful one. It shows how hard it is to admit that you were wrong. The poet began by making promises to herself, then to others, and to the world at large. And then, in the end, she realizes that she was not completely fulfilled by her life.

She had not gotten everything she wanted to out of her life, but she had gotten much more than she bargained for. The realization that money, fame, and knowledge do not make a good life is a painful one. This is perhaps the most important lesson in this poem: there are many things in life that can make us happy, but only if we let them.

Source: Force Of Circumstance

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