Ted Hughes and his children , Frieda and Nicholas Son of Sylvia Plath Commits Suicide by Anahad O ' Connor Nicholas Hughes , the son of the poet and novelist Sylvia Plath and the British Poet Laureate Ted Hughes , killed himself at his home in Alaska , nearly a half - century after his mother and stepmother took their own lives , according to a statement from his sister . Mr . Hughes , 47 , was a fisheries biologist who studied stream fish and spent much of his time trekking across Alaska on field studies . Shielded from stories about his mother ’ s suicide until he was a teenager , Mr . Hughes had lived an academic life largely outside the public eye . But friends and family said he had long struggled with depression . Last Monday , he hanged himself at his home in Alaska , his sister , Frieda Hughes , said over the weekend . “ It is with profound sorrow that I must announce the death of my brother , Nicholas Hughes , who died by his own hand on Monday 16 th March 2009 at his home in Alaska , ” she said in a statement to the Times of London . “ He had been battling depression for some time . ” Mr . Hughes ’ s early life was darkened by shadows of depression and suicide . Ms . Plath explored the themes in her 1963 novel “ The Bell Jar , ” which follows an ambitious college student who tries to kill herself after suffering a nervous breakdown while interning at a New York City magazine . The novel reflected Ms . Plath ’ s own experiences , including her early struggles with depression and her attempt at suicide while working at Mademoiselle in New York as a college student . After a stay at a mental institution , Ms . Plath went on to study poetry at Cambridge University , where she met Ted Hughes , who was on his way to world fame as a poet . The two were married in 1956 , and had two children — Nicholas and Frieda — but separated in 1962 after Mr . Hughes began an affair with another woman , Assia Wevill . Ms . Plath killed herself at the age of 30 by sticking her head in an oven in her London home on Feb . 11 , 1963 , as Nicholas and Frieda slept nearby . Six years later , Ms . Wevill , who had helped raise Nicholas and Frieda after Ms . Plath ’ s death , killed herself and her 4 - year - old daughter , Shura . Ms . Wevill styled the murder - suicide in the same manner , using a gas stove . Mr . Hughes , who became Poet Laureate in 1984 and was widely regarded as one of the greatest poets of his generation , resisted speaking openly about the deaths for many years . But in his last poetic work , “ Birthday Letters , ” published in 1998 , he finally broke his silence and explored the theme . He died the same year , as the book — in some ways considered a quest for redemption — was climbing best - seller lists . Mr . Hughes was said to have protected his children from details about their mother ’ s suicide for many years . But in at least one poem he seemed to indicate that Nicholas , who was only 1 at the time of her death , was pained even as a small child , recalling in one stanza how Nicholas ’ s eyes “ Became wet jewels / The hardest substance of the purest pain / As I fed him in his high white chair . ” Nicholas had a passion for wildlife , particularly fish . As a young adult he studied at the University of Oxford , where he obtained a bachelor of science degree in 1984 and a master of arts degree in 1990 . Afterward , he traveled to the United States , earning a doctoral degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks , where he became an assistant professor at the School of Fisheries and Ocean Science . According to the University , Mr . Hughes was an expert in “ stream salmonid ecology ” and carried out his research in Alaska and New Zealand . He resigned from the faculty in 2006 but continued his research , the school said . One graduate student there , Lauren Tuori , recalled a peculiar habit of Mr . Hughes ’ s , saying he would often “ seek out a larch tree in a forest of spruce . ” She added , “ Alaska could use more biologists like Nick who still display wonder at the small things around them . ” < Published in The New York Times : March 23 , 2009 > 뉴욕 타 임지 에서 읽 은 이 기사 에 또 다시 마음 이 아팠 다 . 부활절 이 다가오 면서 예수 님 의 생명력 에 뛰 며 날 며 기뻐해야 할 즈음 에 왜 이런 죽음 의 세력 에 휘둘리 는 모르 겠 다 . 시인 Sylvia Plath 는 내 가 청춘 을 걸 고 공부 하 고 싶 었 던 여인 이 었 다 . 그리고 그녀 의 작품 들 과 인생 에 젖 어 나 또한 너무나 힘겨운 삶 을 숨쉬 고 있 었 다 . 그녀 의 아들 이 겨우 47 세 에 엄마 와 같 은 길 을 스스로 가 게 되 었 단 소식 에 한동안 멍한 기분 을 떨치 질 못했 다 . 물론 나 는 더 이상 그녀 의 공부 를 하 지 않 고 있 을 뿐 아니 라 그녀 의 잔재 를 뿌리 채 뽑 아 낸 , 예수 님 의 부활 , 그분 의 산소 망 ( Living Hope ) 을 덧입 고 살 고 있 다 . 며칠 전 의 기형 도 시인 이나 , 플라스 시인 에 대한 기억 들 에 부활절 이 무색 한 날 들 을 보내 고 있 는 것 이 무척 챙피 하 다 . 근데 난 솔직 하 고 싶 다 . 하나님 의 일 을 하 는 선교사 는 죽음 에 무감 하 고 부활 의 산소 망 으로 매일 이 희망차 고 행복 해야 하 지만 지금 이 시간 나 를 괴롭히 는 죽음 의 세력 에 휘둘리 는 나 를 드러내 고 싶 다 . 이런 불 필요 한 나만 의 ' 장치 ' 가 어찌하 든 치료 가 되 길 바라 며 기도 한다 .