Otto Plath
| Otto Plath | |
|---|---|
Plath in 1930
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| Native name | Otto Emil Plath |
| Born |
April 13, 1885 Grabow, Germany |
| Died | November 5, 1940 (aged 55) |
| Occupation | Author |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | German |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Spouse | Aurelia Plath |
| Children |
Sylvia Plath Warren Plath |
Otto Emil Plath (April 13, 1885 – November 5, 1940) was a German American author, a professor of biology and German at Boston University, and an entomologist, with a specific expertise on bees. He was the father of American poet Sylvia Plath, Warren Plath, and the husband of Aurelia Plath. He wrote the 1934 book, Bumblebees and Their Ways. He is notable for being the probable subject of one of his daughter's most well-known poems, Daddy.
Otto Emil Plath was born on April 13, 1885 in Grabow, Germany. He was the oldest of six children of Theodore Plath, a blacksmith, and Ernestine Plath (née Kottke). Recognizing that the demand for blacksmiths in Germany was decreasing due to increased industrialization, he sailed to the United States in September 1900, when he was 15 years old, aboard the Auguste Victoria. When he arrived in New York Harbor, Plath became infatuated with the city. He decided to stay in New York for a while instead of following his original plan to go immediately to his grandparents' house in Fall Creek, Wisconsin. While Plath was living with his uncle, he clerked at his uncle's store and attended English classes.
Plath's grandfather in Wisconsin, John, agreed to finance Plath's pursuit of higher education on the condition that he became a Lutheran minister. Plath agreed to this condition, and moved in with his grandparents. In the fall of 1906, Plath enrolled in Northwestern College, majoring in classical languages. After graduating in 1910, Plath began to attend the Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Wauwatosa. Within weeks, Plath became disillusioned with the church, and quit, despite threats from his grandfather warning him of serious consequences if he did so. His grandfather then ceremoniously crossed out Plath's name from the family Bible with a pencil, symbolizing the disowning of Plath from the family. Plath moved to Seattle, Washington where he taught German at the University Heights School, while also taking advanced studies in German at the University of Washington. After reading the writings of Charles Darwin, Plath also developed an interest in biology. In the following years, Plath taught and studied in both German and biology. In 1912, he earned an M.A. from the University of Washington. Beginning in 1922, Plath taught at Boston University. In 1925, Plath earned an M.S. from Harvard University, and in 1928, he earned a Ph.D in science, also from Harvard. Via a friend, Rupert Bartz, Plath met and later married Lydia Clara Bartz, Rupert's sister, although the couple was only together for a few months before the two drifted apart without legally ending the marriage.
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