Feminine Oppression In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper

Women have been struggled to gain equality with men for century. In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's “The Yellow Wallpaper” has a dominant theme of feminine oppression. It is a symbolic work of literature because women in the era in which this story was published were treated in much the same way as the narrator was daily. Male dictatorship over women is out of hand within the illness and treatment of the unnamed narrator, the characters in the story, and the many symbols that serve to confine the main character. They all work fluidly together to create a more tangible and more feminist conclusion. A stand had to be made for women to achieve equality with men. Standing up to a man, however, was not permissible in nineteenth century America. Throughout

She creeps behind the paper searching for any means of escape. The more she watches the imprisoned woman, she realizes that she is not just viewing one woman but many. The woman turns to many women, because just like the unnamed narrator women all over the world were trying to escape from the domination that men had over them. “Nobody could climb through that pattern--it strangles so” (Gilman 80). Some of the women had been strangled from so desperately trying to emerge from the paper, which she now sees has a pattern of bars. She tries desperately to help the women out of their cage but finds it very difficult to do so. “if only that top pattern could be gotten off from the under one!” (Gilman 81). This gives the impression that removing the two layers from each other is as nearly unattainable as being able to detach herself from the tyranny of her husband. The wallpaper is a definite symbol of an obstacle in her (and other women's) path, hindering her from living her life the way that she views is

When this story was written, women were characterized as delicate, unsure, unconfident and submissive. They were seen as inferior to the men around them. This story, however, ends with the narrator standing tall over the man who has imprisoned her. After she has torn away the wallpaper and John tries to enter the bedroom, she calls him a “young man” and “John dear” trivializing him in the same way that he did to her (Gilman 83). She stands up to him not just through her words, but through her actions as well. After he faints she creeps over him, which is symbolic of woman's slow but gradual rise to the top. Eerily enough pieces of wallpaper still cling to the wall behind her. Though it was a long hard process to overcome the hardships and the weight that her husband inflicted on her, she has more still to conquer. Progress is still requisite in order to fully succeed in true human