Modern day feminists' enjoy looking into the past to find examples of female oppression. This tactic is employed in the hopes of demonstrating that oppression of their sex by the evil male populous has been going on for decades. One such work that is cited by feminists to showcase just how terrible women were treated in the first part of the twentieth century is Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper." Feminists' are quick to point out that the main character in this story is driven down the path of insanity by her uncaring husband. It is of their opinion that John, the main character's husband, consistently neglects her by keeping her locked away upstairs. Other feminists argue that the main character was not actually insane, rather, she was pushed into a temporary state of delirium as a result of the state of confinement that her husband subjected her to. These same feminists will say that John's consistent misdiagnosis of his wife's condition smacks of incompetence. It is their theory that if the main character were a man during this same period of time, doctors would have treated the condition differently. In other words, men were not diagnosed with hysteria and bedridden for three months when they became depressed. As mentioned before, this is what some modern day feminists think. This is in stark contrast to the interpretation by us modern day realists. John was a good husband that cared deeply about his wife's condition. He is described at the beginning of the story as being "a physician in high standing" (The Norton Anthology, p. 658). This description alone offers deep insight into what kind of treatment his wife was receiving. It is hard to imagine that any woman who is married to an extremely prominent doct...
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...he would have taken that golden opportunity to flee the so-called dungeon that her husband had created for her. It can only be assumed that she enjoyed the prison that she created for herself since she didn't flee at any moment of opportunity.
In summary, John should be championed as a role model for all aspiring husbands. He consistently showed complete devotion and concern for his wife throughout the story. He did everything within his power to make sure that she would have an expedited recovery from her ailments. John bent over backwards to ensure that all of his wife's needs were taken care of. Leave it to modern day feminists to find harm in that.
Bibliography
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper". The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Ed. Nina Baym. Fifth Edition, Volume 2. W.W. Norton & Company, New York. 1998. P. 657-69.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” 1892. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1998.
support is a pathetic effort to protect his identity. Linda will never admit to herself,
Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, Americans have idealized the journey towards economic success. One thing people do not realize, however, is that journey is not the same for every individual. Media often leads its viewers toward a “one size fits all” version of success that may help themselves, but will rarely help the viewers. This is seen in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. Miller includes multiple instances of symbolism and personification to reveal to the reader the situational irony in Willy’s life, underlining the theme of self-deception in regard to the American Dream. This American Dream, fueled by money, is the main source of anxiety in Willy’s life. The anxiety of income is reflected today in the issue of minimum wage. James Sherk, a writer of the Tribune News Service, plots thoughtful points against raising the minimum wage. However, his use of over-exaggeration and odd comparisons leave his argument less than convincing.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper." 1892. The New England Magazine. Reprinted in "Lives & Moments - An Introduction to Short Fiction" by Hans Ostrom. Hold,
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper," is the disheartening tale of a woman suffering from postpartum depression. Set during the late 1890s, the story shows the mental and emotional results of the typical "rest cure" prescribed during that era and the narrator’s reaction to this course of treatment. It would appear that Gilman was writing about her own anguish as she herself underwent such a treatment with Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell in 1887, just two years after the birth of her daughter Katherine. The rest cure that the narrator in "The Yellow Wallpaper" describes is very close to what Gilman herself experienced; therefore, the story can be read as reflecting the feelings of women like herself who suffered through such treatments. Because of her experience with the rest cure, it can even be said that Gilman based the narrator in "The Yellow Wallpaper" loosely on herself. But I believe that expressing her negative feelings about the popular rest cure is only half of the message that Gilman wanted to send. Within the subtext of this story lies the theme of oppression: the oppression of the rights of women especially inside of marriage. Gilman was using the woman/women behind the wallpaper to express her personal views on this issue.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Booth, Alison and Kelly J. Mays, eds. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. New York: Norton, 2010. 354-65. Print.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper”. The Story and Its Writer. Ann Charters. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. 462-473. Print.
BANG! Your father is dead. Within a few seconds, although he attempted many times, your father dies. He gave up. All the fights, all the disrespect, and all the struggles are behind you. However, all the hope, all the passion, and all the love is still there. In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, the main conflict is between Willy Lowman and his son Biff. Most of their struggles are based on disrespect; however, much of the tension throughout the play is also caused by the act of giving up.
...ssion and intrusiveness. John’s lack of having an open mind to his wife’s thoughts and opinions and his constant childish like treatment of his wife somehow emphasizes this point, although, this may not have been his intention. The narrator felt strongly that her thoughts and feelings were being disregarded and ignored as stated by the narrator “John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him” (Gilman 115), and she shows her despise of her husband giving extra care to what he considers more important cases over his wife’s case with a sarcastic notion “I am glad my case is not serious!” (Gilman 115). It is very doubtful that John is the villain of the story, his good intentions towards doing everything practical and possible to help his wife gain her strength and wellbeing is clear throughout the story.
In literature, women are often depicted as weak, compliant, and inferior to men. The nineteenth century was a time period where women were repressed and controlled by their husband and other male figures. Charlotte Gilman, wrote "The Yellow Wallpaper," showing her disagreement with the limitations that society placed on women during the nineteenth century. According to Edsitement, the story is based on an event in Gilman’s life. Gilman suffered from depression, and she went to see a physician name, Silas Weir Mitchell. He prescribed the rest cure, which then drove her into insanity. She then rebelled against his advice, and moved to California to continue writing. She then wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper,” which is inflated version of her experience. In "The Yellow Wallpaper," the main character is going through depression and she is being oppressed by her husband and she represents the oppression that many women in society face. Gilman illustrates this effect through the use of symbols such as the yellow wallpaper, the nursery room, and the barred windows.
Biff Loman, son of Willy Loman, is a man who begins the play blinded about the nature of him self. Taught to be well liked and stand out by his father, Biff’s whole life goal is to live up to Willy’s expectations and make Willy proud of him. After a visit to Boston to see his father, a trip to confess his failure in math soon turns into Biff’s self-realization about his true nature once catching Willy with a mistress. In a argument with Willy, Biff states, “And I never got anywhere because you blew me so full of hot air I could never stand taking orders from anybody! That’s whose fault it is (1855).” Biff is confronting Willy about certain actions he has taken in his life after high school. Why he never graduated from high school, why he never became a successful businessman like Willy always wanted him to be, why he ran off out west and became a nobody in Willy’s mind. “I am not a leader of men, Willy, and neither are you. You were never anything but a hard-working drummer who landed in the ash can like all the rest of them! I’m one dollar and hour, Willy! I tried seven states and couldn’t raise it. A buck an hour! Do you gather my meaning? I’m not bringing home any prizes any more, and you’re going to stop waiting for me to bring them home,” Biff states (1856). Here Biff is finally laying on Willy that he is not a businessman, a super star, or a leader. Biff is attempting to clarify to Willy that Biff knows what he really is, what he really likes, and why he did the things he did after high school. Willy could not force Biff to be something he is not, and after Biff caught Willy with the mistress, Biff never again confused about the true nature of him self. Brought up ...
Wohlpart, Jim. American Literature Research and Analysis Web Site. “Charlotte Perkins Gilman, “The Yellow Wallpaper.”” 1997. Florida Gulf Coast University
Late twentieth century society has made the transition from agrarian and rural communities to massive urban industrialization. These changes can and have been monitored; they are tangible. Small family operated businesses and farms have been gobbled up by multinational conglomerates. The days of the employer as a sort of surrogate parent to his or her loyal employees are over. Our world no longer has time for Willy Loman. We discard these people as inefficient, burdensome, and unnecessary, all in the name of progress. Willy Lomans are expendable commodities to be used up and cast aside. This change in societal attitudes, though perhaps not as tangible, is very real. A social theory as well as a literary one is needed, therefore, to reconcile Miller's play with the modern world.
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." The story and its writer: An introduction to short fiction. Ed. Ann Charters. Compact 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. 340-351.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper" The Harbrace Anthology of Literature. Ed. Jon C. Scott, Raymond E. Jones, and Rick Bowers. Canada: Nelson Thomas Learning, 2002. 902-913.