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A Critical Analysis of “The Yellow Wallpaper”
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Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” depicts a young woman suffering from depression after the birth of her child. This woman is sheltered away by her husband to a mansion in the country, where she persists to retreat into her mind from lack of other stimuli. Through the narrator’s drastic plunge to insanity, Gilman accurately depicts the limited roles available to women of the nineteenth century and the domineering and oppressing actions men took toward them.
In just the first five lines Gilman illustrates the male-dominated society and relationship. "John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage." It was customary for men to assume that their gender knew what, when, how, and why to live. John, the narrator’s husband, is a prominent doctor, and both he and his wife’s words and actions reflect this stereotype of stature and authority. The aforementioned quote demonstrates the belittling of the narrator by her husband, and his lack of concern for her thoughts and opinion.
The narrator’s husband, John, does not believe that she is sick, while she is really suffering from severe depression. He neglects to listen to his wife in regard to her thoughts, feelings, and health. According to him, nothing wrong with her except for temporary nerve issues, which should not be serious. The only proper cure stated in the story is a reference to the actual cure proscribed at that time period, a Rest Cure dictated by neurologists Weir Mitchell. This “cure” included total bed rest and isolation. When the narrator’s husband threatens to send her to Mitchell if she does not get better more quickly, she responds, “But I don’t want to go there at all. I had a friend who was in his hands once, and she says ...
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...uffered from a “nervous breakdown” shortly after the birth of her daughter. Her doctor put her on the famous “rest cure,” and instructed her, as the narrator’s husband did, to stay in bed and avoid writing or any other creativity. When Gilman escaped her madness, she left her husband to establish her own independence, and became a dedicated advocate for women’s rights. Essentially, Gilman and her main character undergo a common malaise.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” is a portrayal of one woman’s journey into insanity, while illustrating the domineering role men took over women of the nineteenth century. Everyone should read “The Yellow Wallpaper,” as it is a powerful tale of man verses himself. Through Gilman’s own history and her beautiful depiction of madness, “The Yellow Wallpaper” clearly addresses the sexual politics of the male-female, husband-wife relationship.
would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper
Gilman is a cry for freedom. This story is about a woman who fights for her
Gilman herself suffered from post-partum hysteria and was treated by a famous doctor of the era, one who prescribed his famous "rest cure", the same cure the female narrator cannot tolerate and defies in The Yellow Wallpaper. In this story the narrator remains nameless and there is good reason for it. She feels as if she has no identity or control over obtaining fulfillment and unity and satisfaction in life. Her husband is a doctor who also prescribes complete rest for her and is opposed to her doing the one thing that seems to give her a unique voice, writing. Thus, the narrator defies her...
Gilman expressed the roles of women through a concept of patriarchy. The narrator’s job was that of attending to her husband and fulfilling his expectations and requests. The concept of family belonging to the man is a large aspect of the storyline and its symbolism. “John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage.” The woman is sharing her arrogance pertaining to her husband’s view of her. He treats her as if she has entirely lost her awareness and considers her a belonging. John shows no understanding or backing towards his wife. Instead, John retorts by telling her it "was a draught, and shut the window". He disregarded her belief of her condition and vowed that it really was not anything worth discussing.
Charlotte Gilman s manipulation of language and syntax in her prose is crucial to the overall effect of the story. What the reader is presented is a story that uses language and syntax to portray a woman s changing mental state. The reader experiences the narrator s deteriorating mental state as she succumbs to her condition and eventually loses her sanity.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” is set in the 18th century, and this specific time era helps substantiate Gilman’s view. During the 18th century women did not have a lot of rights and were often considered a lesser being to man. Women often had their opinions
Gilman made a huge attempt to, in a way, rewrite history while emphasizing and including the white, civilized woman in the discourse. Bederman uses Gilman’s work to show how she used her race (white) to demonstrate the superiority of the white woman and therefore the need for equality between men and women but completely excluding other races. In effect, labeling her as racist. She writes, “Gilman was merely proposing to replace one type if exclusion with another. White women’s inclusion in civilization, under her scheme, was predicated on the exclusion of nonwhite men and women” (168).
The “Yellow Wall Paper “ by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is a chilling study and experiment of mental disorder in nineteenth century. This is a story of a miserable wife, a young woman in anguish, stress surrounding her in the walls of her bedroom and under the control of her husband doctor, who had given her the treatment of isolation and rest. This short story vividly reflects both a woman in torment and oppression as well as a woman struggling for self expression.
Many critics question whether this story is meant as a personal documentation about Gilman or a reflection of women’s position in society in 1892. However, due to her creation of this unreliable narrator, it creates the allusion that this story has many meanings. The narrator generates the way we see John and the ironic theme of entrapment, through many different angles. The subject of the story changes from reality, to her obsession with the wallpaper and consumes the narrator’s tone and thoughts. The way Gilman used narration to manipulate the reader’s interpretation John and to convey the theme of entrapment makes this an effective piece of literature.
Kessler, Carol Parley. "Charlotte Perkins Gilman 1860 -1935." Modem American Women Writers. Ed. Elaine Showalter, et al. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1991. 155 -169.
Firstly, the majority of the characters in this piece are males, while the minority, female characters playing weak and submissive roles. For example, Ford wrote, “John is identified in relation to the patriarchy first and in relation to his wife only afterwards: he is ‘a physician of high standing and one’s own husband’. In “The Yellow Wallpaper” the physician is the quintessential man, and his talk, therefore, is the epitome of male discourse” ( ). Gilman obviously shows us how society viewed the man, but also how she viewed the man. Not only was John the patriarchal figure, but he also was the ‘voice of reason’ that stunted the imagination and expressivity of his wife. This ‘voice of reason’ would make him the foil for Gilman’s narrator because she is the voice of insanity. Therefore holding true that the men hold the power, just like the gender roles have always allowed for it to
The two common threads that connect Charlotte Perkins Gilman and the narrator in her story are depression/postpartum depression, and entrapment within their roles as of women. Specifically, Gilman and the narrator are trying to escape the function society has placed on them. First, after fulfilling their expected duties as wife and mother, both Gilman and the narrator become depressed after the birth of their child. It is this depression that leads them to the infamous rest cure...
..., Gilman acknowledges the fact that much work is needed to overcome the years of injustice. Through the concluding scenes where the narrator goes into her mental illness rebellion, Gilman encourages women to do what they can to stand up for themselves.
The narrator claims that John loves her, “He loves me very dearly, and hates to have me sick” (651). The narrator believes that John loves her and wants to get her better. If the narrator is correct, then John would provide the best treatment for his wife; especially, because he is a “…physician of high standing…” (648). John provides rest as a recommended treatment, “I lie down ever so much now. John says it is good for me, and to sleep all I can” (653). In this quote, the narrator is saying that he is offering advice that he thinks is best for her. “The Yellow Wallpaper” has a historical setting that occurs during a time in medicine where any physician can treat a patient’s physical body or their physiological well-being. In today’s health profession, there are now doctors who treat the physical body and doctors who work solely on the physiological part of the body. Since there isn’t any specialist on the mental part of health, a common treatment for depression is “rest cure”. When one is treated with the “rest cure”, a part of the treatment is to get a lot of rest, so John is simply giving her what treatment is available in her time period. In addition to John’s affection and professional opinion of the narrator’s mental health, the narrator declares, “John says if I don 't pick up faster
Throughout “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Charlotte Perkins Gilman tells her readers the story of a woman desperate to be free. Gilman’s use of symbolism is nothing short of brilliant in telling the story of a new mother suffering from postpartum depression and fighting her way through societies ideas of what a woman should be. When her husband, John, also known as her physician, tells her nothing is wrong with her mind, at first she believes him because she knows that society tells her she should. However, with her husband’s misdiagnosis, or attempt to keep his wife sane for the sake of their reputation, comes a short journey into madness for his wife, Jane. Jane’s downward spiral, as one may call it, turns out to be not so downward when the reader