Familial Conflict in the Short Stories "The Yellow Wallpaper" and "Responsibility"

830 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essays of freedom writers

Many different conflicts arise in one household but it is also common in the short stories, The Yellow Wallpaper written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and in Responsibility written by Russell Smith. In both short stories there are challenges that characters need to face due to the fact that family relationships are the cause. In the Yellow Wallpaper, the narrator is the protagonist she is a woman that is apparently suffering from nervous depression. In the short story responsibility, the son James is the protagonist, there are many differences between him and his mother they share a usual relationship where the child rebels against the parents’ wishes.

In The yellow wallpaper the narrator is also the protagonist and her husband share a relationship that is a little off; the fact is that they are husband and wife, but they do not act so. There are many examples that show this. And many conflicts arise because of the relationship they share. The story is based around the fact that the protagonist is suffering from nervous depression and her husband is the physician, there are many things that he does not know because of the lack of communication in this relationship this is a challenge for the protagonist .She believes that she is sick and her husband John fails to see that the protagonist states that, “he does not believe I am sick! And what can one do? If a physician of high standing, and one’s own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but the temporary nervous depression- a slight nervous tendency-what is one to do?” (Gilman, 55) this is the start to the fact that there is no communication she fails to say anything, but she does want, to get better but she states “personally I be...

... middle of paper ...

... that families can never be perfect and that there is always conflict in the households. In Responsibility James eventually “knew he wasn’t nice, he wasn’t a nice person, because all he wanted to do was to get out, get the hell out of there” he wanted what was best for him. There is nothing wrong but with the challenges at home he was ready for more for himself. In the Yellow wallpaper, eventually the narrator went insane being locked up in a room because her husband told her to, she states in the story, “I am getting angry enough to do something desperate. To jump out of the window would be admirable exercise, but the bars are too strong even to try.” (Gilman, 69) This proves without communication in a relationship there can be hard times ahead

In both stories the family relationships are a main cause to many of the small issues that turn out bigger than needed.

Show More
Related

  • Comparing the Plots of The Yellow Wallpaper and The Story of an Hour

    874 Words  | 2 Pages

    So as we look at the lives of women back in the 19th century, they have the stereotypical trend of being a house wife, staying at home, taking care of kids, the house, and aiding the husband in his work. Being in charge of the household makes women have many responsibilities to take care of, but still women are often looked down upon and men who often think a women’s say is unimportant. The two short stories are about two women who have husbands that are successful and the women who feel suffocated by their lack of ability to live their own lives or make their own decisions. The two stories present similar plots about two wives who have grown to feel imprisoned in their own marriages. In the yellow wallpaper, she is virtually imprisoned in her bedroom, and does not even have a say in the location or decor of the room.

    Read More

  • How Does The Yellow Wallpaper Reveal About A Woman's Gradual Descent Into Insanity

    1013 Words  | 3 Pages

    While on vacation for the summer, the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" is, at the most, depressed at the beginning of their visit to a colonial mansion. Her husband John, however, thinks there is nothing wrong with her except temporary nervous depression (pg 391) and has her confined to a bedroom upstairs. I believe John loves her very much and is trying to help her get well, but he won’t believe there is an illness unless he can read about it or see something physical with his own eyes. "He has no patience with faith, an intense horror of superstition, and he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen and put down in figures." (pg 391) During the time of this writing it was the norm that men dominated women. Women were to be seen but not heard. They were not to argue with men, so she was forced to do as he said. Her husband has forbidden her to "work" until she is well again. (pg 392) She is held prisoner in her bedroom and has nothing to do to keep her mind active except stare at the wallpaper, although she did sneak in writing in her journal when possible.

    Read More

  • Comparison Of The Yellow Wallpaper And A Rose For Emily By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

    760 Words  | 2 Pages

    The narrator of The Yellow Wallpaper is always judged by her husband's sister. She is judged for different reasons than Emily, she is treated badly for this “illness” she supposedly has. The sister makes sure to watch the narrator to make sure she doesn’t write or do anything that will make her illness worse.

    Read More

  • The Narrator of The Yellow Wallpaper

    832 Words  | 2 Pages

    In “The Yellow Wallpaper” the narrator becomes more depressed throughout the story because of the recommendation of isolation that was made to her. In this short story the narrator is detained in a lonesome, drab room in an attempt to free herself of a nervous disorder. The narrator’s husband, a physician, adheres to this belief and forces his wife into a treatment of solitude. Rather than heal the narrator of her psychological disorder, the treatment only contributes to its effects, driving her into a severe depression. Under the orders of her husband, the narrator is moved to a house far from society in the country, where in she is locked into an upstairs room.

    Read More

  • Comparing and Contrasting The Lottery and The Yellow Wallpaper

    1119 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a story about an anonymous female narrator and her husband John who is a physician who has rented a colonial manner in the summer. Living in that house, the narrator felt odd living there. Her husband, john who is a physician and also a doctor to his wife felt that the narrator is under nervous depression. He further mentions that when a person is under depression, every feeling is an odd feeling. Therefore, the narrator was not given permission by John to work but just to take medication and get well fast. This made the narrator to become so fixated with the yellow wallpaper in the former nursery in which she located. She was depressed for a long time and became even more depressed. This ha...

    Read More

  • Relationships And Family Dysfunctions

    1382 Words  | 3 Pages

    Showcasing a strong tie between plot and character background strengthened the foundation of each character and made them more relatable to the reader. The portrayal of the families and their dysfunction shows that not every family is a picture-perfect example of what a typical family is but its unrealistic to believe that every family doesn’t have their own troubles and rocky patches but it’s the family’s dysfunction that in all builds the characters to who they are and what moved the plot forward in many ways and can be related to ones own

    Read More

  • Treatment of Mental Disorders Exposed in The Yellow Wallpaper

    1986 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The Yellow Wallpaper” is the story of a woman descending into psychosis in a creepy tale which depicts the harm of an old therapy called “rest cure.” This therapy was used to treat women who had “slight hysterical tendencies” and depression, and basically it consisted of the inhibition of the mental processes. The label “slight hysterical tendency” indicates that it is not seen as a very important issue, and it is taken rather lightly. It is also ironic because her illness is obviously not “slight” by any means, especially towards the end when the images painted of her are reminiscent of a psychotic, maniacal person, while she aggressively tears off wallpaper and confuses the real world with her alternative world she has fabricated that includes a woman trapped in the wallpaper. The narrator of this story grows obsessed with the wallpaper in her room because her husband minimizes her exposure to the outside world and maximizes her rest.

    Read More

  • Isolation In The Yellow Wallpaper

    1614 Words  | 4 Pages

    The story, ‘The Yellow Wallpaper,’ is one of intrigue and wonder. The story was written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and it happens to be the story under analytical scrutiny, hence the title as well as the first sentence. The characters in the story consist of the narrator, Jennie, the wet nurse, the narrator's husband John, and the women in the wallpaper. In the story, the narrator and her husband, as well as her newly born daughter and the nanny for the daughter, take a summer trip to a house away from the city. The husband and brother of the narrator are physicians, and neither believe that she is sick, they say “there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression—a slight hysterical tendency...”

    Read More

  • Psychiatric Treatment: Mental Disorders, Schizophrenia, and The Yellow Paper

    2076 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Yellow Wallpaper is a popular book when discussing psychology in the late nineteenth century. The author, Charlotte Gilman, wrote her experience of mental illness through her narrator. Gilman suffered with depression after giving birth and she never fully recovered from it. (Gilman 95). The narrator is depicted as a woman who has been diagnosed with what was called a nervous disorder. Her husband, a psychologist, gave her several different tonics and other substances that are supposed to make her better. She was also put on bed rest meaning that she was not able to work or do anything that would tire her out. She is told to go and rest several times during the story and it is evident that her ‘psychosis’ gets worse when she is forced to stay in her room and rest for the majority of her days and all night. She begins to see women in the pattern of her wallpaper and she becomes obsessed with it. The narrator becomes very protective of her wallpaper and gets almost jealous when she sees her sister-in-law looking at it and touching it. She even says “no person touches this pa...

    Read More

  • Analysis of John in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins

    840 Words  | 2 Pages

    The character of the husband, John, in “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is introduced as a respected physician and a caring husband who strives to improve the mental health of his wife, the narrator, who is diagnosed with temporary nervous condition. John tries throughout the story to apply professional treatment methods and medications in his approach to helping his wife gain strength. However, his patient, his wife, seems to disregard John’s professional opinions and act as if she is following his advices only during his awakening presence with her. The narrator seems to be in need of John’s positive opinion about the status of her mental condition in order to avoid the criticism even though she disagrees with his treatment methodology. John, without doubt, cares for his wife and her wellbeing, but he does not realize how his treatment method negatively impacts their relationship his wife’s progress towards gaining strength. Although John was portrayed as a caring and a loving physician and husband to the narrator through out most of the story, he was also suggested as being intrusive and directive to a provoking level in the mind of the narrator.

    Read More

  • A Feminist in Action in The Yellow Wallpaper

    1794 Words  | 4 Pages

    The narrator makes comments and observations that demonstrate her will to overcome the oppression of the male dominant society. The conflict between her views and those of the society can be seen in the way she interacts physically, mentally, and emotionally with the three most prominent aspects of her life: her husband, John, the yellow wallpaper in her room, and her illness, "temporary nervous depression. " In the end, her illness becomes a method of coping with the injustices forced upon her as a woman. As the reader delves into the narrative, a progression can be seen from the normality the narrator displays early in the passage, to the insanity she demonstrates near the conclusion.

    Read More

  • Internal Struggles in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

    772 Words  | 2 Pages

    “The Yellow Wallpaper” tells the story of a woman who is trapped in a room covered in yellow wallpaper. The story is one that is perplexing in that the narrator is arguably both the protagonist as well as the antagonist. In the story, the woman, who is the main character, struggles with herself indirectly which results in her descent into madness. The main conflicts transpires between the narrator and her husband John who uses his power as a highly recognize male physician to control his wife by placing limitations on her, forcing her to behave as a sick woman. Hence he forced himself as the superior in their marriage and relationship being the sole decision make. Therefore it can be said what occurred externally resulted in the central conflict of” “The Yellow Wallpaper being internal. The narrator uses the wallpaper as a symbol of authenticy. Hence she internalizes her frustrations rather then openly discussing them.

    Read More

  • Jane's Relationship In The Yellow Wallpaper

    1118 Words  | 3 Pages

    In The Yellow Wallpaper, the wallpaper is that which separates Jane from her latent desires for agency and equality in her relationship with her husband. Through a close reading of the final two pages of Charlotte Perkins Stetson’s short story, one can examine the relationship that Jane has with the woman in the wallpaper, who is representative of Jane’s inner self, and the relationship between Jane and her husband John. This examination is key to understanding the way that power dynamics manifest themselves in the narrative and how they impact Jane’s quest for agency.

    Read More

  • The Power Struggle in The Yellow Wallpaper

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    The story "The Yellow Wallpaper," by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is a story about control. In the late 1800's, women were looked upon as having no effect on society other than bearing children and keeping house. It was difficult for women to express themselves in a world dominated by males. The men held the jobs, the men held the knowledge, the men held the key to the lock known as society  - or so they thought. The narrator in "The Wallpaper" is under this kind of control from her husband, John. Although most readers believe this story is about a woman who goes insane, it is actually about a woman’s quest for control of her life.

    Read More

  • The Yellow Wallpaper from the Point of View of a Doctor's Wife

    992 Words  | 2 Pages

    "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is a story told from the first person point of view of a doctor's wife who has nervous condition. The first person standpoint gives the reader access only to the woman’s thoughts, and thus, is limited. The limited viewpoint of this story helps the reader to experience a feeling of isolation, just as the wife feels throughout the story. The point of view is also limited in that the story takes places in the present, and as a result the wife has no benefit of hindsight, and is never able to actually see that the men in her life are part of the reason she never gets well. This paper will discuss how Gilman’s choice of point of view helps communicate the central theme of the story- that women of the time were viewed as being subordinate to men. Also, the paper will discuss how ignoring oneself and one’s desires is self-destructive, as seen throughout the story as the woman’s condition worsens while she is in isolation, in the room with the yellow wallpaper, and her at the same time as her thoughts are being oppressed by her husband and brother.

    Read More

More about Familial Conflict in the Short Stories "The Yellow Wallpaper" and "Responsibility"

Open Document