The Oppression of Wives in Chopin's The Story of an Hour and Gillman's The Yellow Wallpaper

Mrs. Mallard and the narrator both express they want to be free, but unfortunately they achieve freedom through insanity and death. Freedom is accomplished in an unusual way in The Yellow Wallpaper and The Story of an hour; the freedom these women attained is not readily obtainable to most women in the 19th century. In The Story of an Hour, Mrs. Mallard received terrible news that her husband has died in a railroad disaster. Mrs. Mallard grieves drastically upon hearing the news of her husbands assumed death. During the grieving process Mrs. Mallard reflects upon the impact of her husband’s death would have on her, she comes to realization that she would now have more freedom, which she did not have in her life with her husband.

She does not even have a say in the location or décor of the room she is forced to spend almost even moment in. Furthermore, visitors are absolutely not allowed. She says, 'It is so discouraging not to have any advice and companionship about my work-but he says he would as soon put fireworks in my pillow-case as to let me have those stimulating people about now';(Gilman 635). Mrs. Mallard in 'The Story of an Hour'; had to deal with the same sort of affliction. Her husband had control over her 'body and soul';.

In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, women were often portrayed as submissive to men. Women were seen as oppressed by society as well as by the males in their lives. Both of Gilman’s bodies of works, “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “Turned”, illustrate the fight for selfhood by women in a demoralized and oppressive environment. The narrator’s escape from her unbalanced marriage and captivity is her complete loss of sanity. Mrs. Marroner overcomes her husband’s infidelity and emotional control by taking in the vulnerable Gerta and leaving her husband.

Logan falls short of fulfilling that dream as he isolates her from the community, leaving her with no voice whatsoever. Realizing her marriage lacks love and compassion which she longs for, Janie comes to understand that her relationship with Logan will not last long .Not only does Janie’s marriage to Logan stifle any hopes of exp... ... middle of paper ... ...disrespect from Tea Cake. She threatens him, saying if he leaves her again without her permission she will “kill yuh” (124). Within Janie’s past marriages her husbands treat her comparable to a slave and isolate her from the community. Even though her voice is still developing, she will not allow her husband to show her contempt.

Society does not want Ethan to be happy for he committed adultery and treated his wife like she didn’t matter. The gravestones in his yard are a reminder t... ... middle of paper ... ...ss for yourself because in the end, one will regret it. Ethan’s morals prevent him from leaving Starkfield to pursue and achieve his dreams. He cannot baffle the traditions of his town. After Zeena tries to "foist on him the cost of a servant", forcing Ethan to let go of Mattie, he chooses to “leave with Mattie”.

Oppression is chief in the achievement of liberation in both short stories. Both of the narrators are oppressed by their husbands, and though they want to be happy, it is impossible due to the way they are treated by their spouses. In ?The Yellow Wallpaper,? John, the nameless narrator?s husband, confines his wife to a room with barred windows and hideous yellow wallpaper because she is ill. He does not allow her to exert herself physically or mentally, prevents her from seeing her friends and family and keeps her under intense scrutiny.

Gilman's female narrator, who either chooses not to fight for her rights or was unable to do so, loses her sanity at the hands of her well-meaning husband. Her depression is unexplainable to her and her husband, who is a doctor. In fact, neither her husband nor her brother, who is also a doctor, believes that she is even sick. The narrator feels certain that the "rest cure" prescribed by her husband is not working. She says that the men in her life are wrong to limit her activity.

The narrator knows that she is not too well and that John - her husband does not realize the intensity of her sickness, he ignores her continuous efforts to make him aware of the real situation and her suffering. To make the situation worse he imposes his opinions on her even when it comes to her health. This story shows us the life and the thoughts of the narrator which lead her to be free, but go out of her mind in the sense of the real world. This story is written as if the narrator is writing it. The narrator is sick and her husband has made her a study project, She is continuously watched and thus she has no privacy.

John wanted to help his wife with her depression and cure but at the same time he wanted to authorize her by controlling everything of her. He demanded her not to work and ignored her emotions and thoughts. “…and am absolutely forbidden to “work” until I am well again.” (Gilman 1) “There comes John, and I must put this away, -- he hates to have me write a word.” (Gilman 2) “…tell him how I wish he would let me go and make a visit to Cousin Henry and Julia. But he said I was... ... middle of paper ... ... woman trapped behind the wall symbolizes the narrator, herself. When the narrator pulls down the wallpaper, it also means freedom for herself as well.

This shows us Jason is uncaring towards Medea and his sons. Lastly, Jason did not help Medea with problems that they’re having, this seems like he is excluding them from his life and everything else. In this play, it shows how men don 't seem to protect their own family and causes sorrow for the women causing them to be mistreated by the men. In the Golden Fleece by Hamilton Edith ,