"The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Lawrence Durrell's "Zero and Asylum in the Snow"
Society is a close-knit unit of individuals who unknowingly conform to an ideal set by them. The ideal that I speak of is not set in stone, but is ever changing, as is society. This changing ideal appears to be threatened by individual thinkers who rebel against social norms and who refuse to support conformity. This rebellion is exemplified in "The Yellow Wallpaper," written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and in Lawrence Durrell's story, "Zero and Asylum in the Snow." These stories both involve characters that are labelled as sick in relation to the people who 'mesh' well with society. Society, however, has peculiar methods of healing these characters and succeeds only to force them further away from reality and deeper into a conscious dream world. 'Conscious' in the previous line, refers to how one may dream while awake, yet no outsider may become involved in the dream.
A dream world is not necessarily a bad place to dwell, and is only perceived as being bad because not everyone can freely enter its walls. Moreover, the walls are unique to each dreamer, therefore, are transparent. This uniqueness is shown in the short stories I am focusing on. For Durrell, the walls were as white as snow, and for Gilman they are covered in crude yellow wallpaper. When reading these stories, it is easy for one to become confused. It is difficult for the reader to understand exactly what is trying to be said, because these stories are so personal. Durrell and Gilman attempt to give some form of insight into their characters minds, but we as readers are restricted by our thoughts. How can we conceive another's dream world? It is possible only through an open mind; one must not think that the author is talking about nonsense, for this way of thinking proves the success society has in grooming our thoughts to fit within its standards.
In "Zero and Asylum in the Snow," we are introduced to a character that seems to be rambling to some unknown person about nonsensical illusions of snow, farmyards, Christianity, and five other existing characters. As one progresses through the story, one realizes that the snow Durrell writes of is everywhere. It surrounds the character, which is later revealed to be Durrell himself, and "chimes about [them] and [he] can do nothing, nothing.
would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." In An Introduction to Literature, Sylvan Barnet, William Burto, and William E. Cain, 420. New York: Person Longman, 2006.
Narration is one literary element of a story that controls the meaning and themes perceived by the reader. The author uses this as a way of putting themselves in their writing; they portray a personal reflection through the narrator. We see this in pieces of literature, such as Charlotte Gilman’s, “The Yellow Wallpaper”, an intense short story that critics believe to be an autobiography. Charlotte Gilman wrote this piece in 1892, around the time of her own personal mental depression, after the birth of her child. This story invites the readers into the mind of a well-educated writer who is mentally ill, and takes you through the recordings of her journal, as her mental health deteriorates so does the credibility of her writing. The author uses the element of the narrators’ mental health to create a story with different meanings and themes to her audience. Gilman uses the role of an unreliable narrator to persuade the audience’s perception of protagonists’ husband John and create a theme of entrapment.
Wagner-Martin, Linda. "The Yellow Wallpaper." Reference Guide to Short Fiction. Ed. Noelle Watson. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. 981- 982.
The Yellow Wallpaper and The Awakening were two works written during the Age of Expression. The entire country was going through an era of Reconstruction; politically, socially, culturally and econmically . The Yellow Wallpaper and The Awakening are feminist works aimed at the psychological, social, and cultural injustices during the era. According to Mizruchi, “ Cosmopolitanism aroused dis-ease: depression and disaection were prevalent in a society whose pace and variety seemed relentless. Yet the same circumstances also instilled hope. For it was widely recognized that the burgeoning heterogeneity of a newly global America would be a source of enduring vitality.”(Mizruchi, 2008) The wives portrayed in these works defeated the attitudes of their husbands during this patriarchal culture.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper”. The Story and Its Writer. Ann Charters. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. 462-473. Print.
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." The story and its writer: An introduction to short fiction. Ed. Ann Charters. Compact 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. 340-351.
From the moment Stanley and Blanche met the contrast between the two characters was apparent, Stanley even points out ‘The Kowalskis and the DuBois have different notions’ (S2:pg.135*). Williams uses the dramatic device of colors to symbolize a distinction between Stanley and Blanche; Stanley wears vivid colors ‘roughly dressed in blue denim’(S1:pg.116*) representing his masculinity and authority he possesses in the Kowalski household, before Blanche arrived, in contrast to Blanche who ‘is daintily dressed in a white suit’ (S1:pg.117*) representing purity and femininity. Blanche wears white at the beginning of the play thinking she will be able to hide her impure behaviour but Stanley saw right her act and knew she would be a threat to his marriage with Stella. The reason being is that Blanche constantly criticizes Stanley making derogatory comments about him calling him a ‘common’ and ‘bestial’(S4:pg.163*) along with conde...
The audience can sense that Williams has intended Stanley to question Blanche and for her to simply return his remarks with what seem like legitimate reasons "Why, those were a tribute from an admirer of mine." The conflict can only be increased because Stanley has not yet been able to dismantle Blanche and find the truth.
For decades now critics have viewed, Gilman’s novella, “The Yellow Wallpaper” mainly in a feminist way, focusing on the way women acted and how they were treated in the 1800s. Although there are good points to the feminist criticism, one could go more in depth by psychoanalyzing it because feminism fit more into the 1800s when women did not have the roles they have today, by looking at the psychoanalytic effect the restrictions had on her, and observing the effects the room had on her.
Wohlpart, Jim. American Literature Research and Analysis Web Site. “Charlotte Perkins Gilman, “The Yellow Wallpaper.”” 1997. Florida Gulf Coast University
In scene three Stanley is having his poker party (pg. 57). At this point he is very drunk. Blanche distracting Stanley by listening to the radio instigates him to grab it off the table and toss it out the window. Stella in a state of panic tells everyone to go home which angers Stanley so he chases after her and hits her. This type of behavior is not normal of any human being involved in any relationship. Stanley repeatedly gets what he wants by use of any means possible. In addition the person whoever threatens the existence of his poker game receives a beating, in this case his wife. This scene demonstrates Stanley’s viscous animal like traits with such violence. If what happened here was repeated in today’s society he would find himself in a jail cell with a pending divorce.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper." 1892. The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. 7th ed. Eds. Richard Bausch and R. V. Cassill. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2006. 598-608.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper". Baym et.al.: The Norton Anthology of American Literature vol.2, 4.ed., pp. 645-657.
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Nina Baym and Robert S. Levine. Eight ed. Vol. C. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2012. 790-804. Print.