Her mark on the poetic world was indelible. If you like a powerful writing style and are looking for authors like Sylvia Plath, here are female writers who transformed personal experience into revolutionary art.
Of course, no two authors are entirely alike; everyone has unique features. This list is absolutely not exhaustive — just several suitable ideas. It consists of prominent female authors whose work shares similarities with Plath’s style and themes. Be it through poetry or prose, these authors explore the female identity with psychological depth and sensitivity.
Anne Sexton and her confessional approach to poetry
As for me, I am a watercolor. I wash off.
Anne Sexton was Plath’s contemporary and is considered the most similar to her in style. Both poets were influenced by the same cultural era, especially the social expectations for a woman's role. In the late 1950s, Sexton and Plath attended Robert Lowell’s poetry workshop at Boston University. Perhaps this experience and their meeting shaped their poetic similarities.
Plath and Sexton share a confessional style of poetry — a very personal, emotionally vulnerable type of work. Sexton even dedicated a poem to Plath called “Sylvia's Death,” where she addresses Plath’s suicide. Anne herself struggled with mental illness, domestic life, her complex inner life, and suicidal tendencies. Still, she’s written a lot of highly acclaimed poetry, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Live or Die (1966).
Virginia Woolf and her lyrical prose
A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.
Although more famous for her prose, Virginia Woolf has influenced many poets, including Sylvia Plath. Both Plath and Woolf grappled with mental health difficulties and depicted the experience of depression in their works.
But the similarity doesn’t stop there. Both authors wrote about the constraints placed on women's lives. Virginia Woolf’s essay A Room of One's Own (1929) centers on female independence, especially if the woman has creative pursuits. If you’re looking for a more lyrical piece of fiction, read Woolf’s To the Lighthouse (1927) or Mrs. Dalloway (1925). These two works show Virginia’s signature stream-of-consciousness narrative — an excellent choice for reading on a train or by the sea.
Margaret Atwood and her feminist perspective
You are a woman with a man inside watching a woman. You are your own voyeur.
Margaret Atwood is a Canadian author working in the genres of speculative fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy. Like Plath, Atwood puts the female experience on center stage in her novels. She addresses the psychological challenges and vulnerabilities of women under patriarchy. Additionally, both Plath and Atwood are great at creating powerful and sensitive metaphors.
You’ve probably heard of The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), Margaret Atwood’s dystopian masterpiece. It paints a world where women are forced to live in an oppressive totalitarian society governed by men and religion. This mirrors the confining traditional female roles Plath was writing about. If you’ve already read The Handmaid’s Tale and liked it, you should also add Alias Grace (1996) to your TBR list. It is the story of Grace Marks, a maid who was convicted of murder in 1843.
Emily Dickinson and her evocative verses
I am out with lanterns, looking for myself.
Emily Dickinson and Sylvia Plath were writing at different times in history but could’ve easily been friends. Dickinson captured the essence of female life in the 19th century, just as Plath did in the 20th. They also both covered existential themes, alienation, loneliness, and psychological yearning. Sadly, both writers gained recognition posthumously.
Emily Dickinson’s poems are rich with imagery and emotional expression. Dickinson is considered an unconventional poet — she often used slant rhymes, short lines, and dashes. This is one of the reasons why her poems are still so popular, inspiring new poets around the world. To get to know Emily’s style through her verses, we suggest starting with poems “Because I could not stop for Death,” “If I can stop one heart from breaking,” and “They shut me up in Prose.”
Edna O'Brien and her literary courage
History is said to be written by the victors. Fiction, by contrast, is largely the work of injured bystanders.
Does the exploration of femininity interest you? Do you get angry because of societal expectations put on women? Read Edna O’Brien! Like Sylvia Plath, this Irish writer did not shy away from the subject of female sexuality. They share the ability to confront sexual taboos with remarkable frankness. This frankness is another thing that unites them — these women refuse to stay quiet and conform.
O'Brien’s debut novel, The Country Girls, is a coming-of-age story about two girls finding their path in life. Sounds simple and innocent, right? But imagine, this book was banned by the Irish censorship board and even the church! One can say that the sexual content was the reason. But more likely they didn't appreciate O’Brien’s suggestion that women can be happier outside marriage and motherhood.
Djuna Barnes and her aesthetic choices
The unendurable is the beginning of the curve of joy.
If what you like about Sylvia Plath is her rejection of literary and social norms, you might also find Djuna Barnes fascinating. Barnes was an American novelist of the Modernist movement and was known for her dark, surreal, avant-garde style. Both Barnes and Plath employed experimental techniques — their writing is filled with symbolism and surrealism. Thematically, Djuna Barnes and Sylvia Plath wrote about female alienation and stepping out of societal boundaries.
Djuna Barnes was also controversial due to the depiction of queer love, as Barnes herself was romantically involved with women. Her Nightwood (1936) — a book Djuna Barnes is famous for — depicts the complexity of female desire. She portrays the expatriate life in Paris between the world wars in a dark, emotional way. In her later years, Djuna Barnes retreated into relative obscurity. However, her work has experienced a significant critical revival since the 1970s, especially among feminist and queer theorists.
So, if you’ve already read all of Sylvia Plath’s books and want something similar in style, now you have several ideas for what to start next. Perhaps you’ll find your next favorite poem among Anne Sexton’s verses, or will lose track of time in Margaret Atwood’s worlds. Whatever you choose, the introspective writing of Virginia Woolf or the gritty style of Edna O'Brien, remember the women behind these books. They lived, created, suffered, and loved just like we do. And when you’re ready, you can seek out even more works and authors like Sylvia Plath.
