Confessional poetry emerged in the United States in the 1950’s. It was the first time a poet told his or her story through their poetry. It often explored ideas that were thought of as taboo in those times such as mental illness, sexuality, and suicide. Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton were two famous confessional poets. They both also suffered from mental illness which is often expressed in their poetry. Sylvia Plath’s “Lady Lazarus” and Anne Sexton’s “Her Kind” both use allusions and imagery to convey their emotions to the reader. In Sylvia Plath’s poem, there is an allusion in the title itself, “Lady Lazarus.” Lazarus refers to the biblical figure that was resurrected by Jesus Christ. It’s ironic that the speaker would choose a biblical reference when comparing it to her suicide attempt. Her ”resurrection” happened because she failed at taking her own life. Another allusion occurs at the end of the poem: “Out of the ash, I rise with my red hair, And I eat men like air.” She is referring to the phoenix found in Greek mythology. A phoenix is a long-lived bird that is frequently reborn. The speaker is obviously unhappy with life yet she uses allusions that represent a positive rebirth. The first lines of her poem state “I have done it again. One year in every ten I manage it—“ referring to the fact that she has attempted to commit suicide at least once per decade. “The second time I meant to last it out and not come back at all. I rocked shut as a seashell. They had to call and call and pick the worms off me like sticky pearls,” refers to the second time she attempted suicide. She took a bottle of sleeping pills and hid herself in a little corner of her cellar. Her mother and brother found her three days later barely alive with earthworms crawling all over her. The last stanza in Anne Sexton’s “Her Kind” is an allusion