Male Dominance in The Yellow Wallpaper

589 Words2 Pages

Male Dominance in The Yellow Wallpaper

The story of The Yellow Wallpaper reflects the period where men

dominated women. The real meaning of this story is written

hidden behind it. The author had used a writing style that is taking

objects portraying men, women, and society.

The story first starts off a couple have moved to a house. A so-

called haunted house, her wife describes it. The wife, who is a patient of

her husband, has moved here to cure her sickness. She does not admit that

she has a problem. Everyday she keeps looking at the tore yellow wallpaper.

She finds it really interesting observing it. She likes writing

personally. And so she writes about the yellow wallpaper. Everyday she

would find something new to write about.

The wallpaper really represents the society. Those bars, which she

sees in front of the wallpaper, represent freedom. It is the boundary that

woman wants to break open of. Women image behind the bars, tries to

escaped from the control of men will eventually be twisted up. The lights

that shined through the window present the dominant of men. The wife

observes that patterns of the parts where lights shine right at it is the

non-active parts. It symbolizes women are more settle when men are

watching over them. Under their pressure, they don't dare to rebel against

them. Her wife sees images moving around on the dark side. That brings up

a big contradicting point comparing this to our present society. Back then,

woman does not have much freedom. They are under man's hands. Secretly

they tired to struggle through this strangle. But they failed after all.

My favorite passage of this story is on page 163. The detailed

description that the wife describes really draws much attention to me. It

talks about some details that the wife finds looking at the wallpaper. And

one interesting point, that she sees John and Jennie put their eyes on the

wallpaper too. That she was surprise John and Jennie may see there is

something going on about the wallpaper. But I don't know if that is what

the wife is determines or have a guess that's what they are doing also.

Last sentence of the passage: "But I Know she was studying that pattern,

and I am determined that nobody shall find it out but myself!" She was

very into examining the wallpaper, she is full of confidant that she shall

be the one finding out what's behind the wallpaper. It is quite freaky to

hear that from her. Because she is a patient, and now here she is

Open Document