Symbolism In The Yellow Wallpaper

Before the 19th century, women in literature were depicted as unthinking characters. They did not have much of a role and were treated inferior to male characters. However, one lady determined to change that, was Charlotte Perkins Gilman, who wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper.” This story expresses the challenges that women face that had never been noticed before. Gilman explains women’s troubles through strong symbolism with deep meanings. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a strong pivotal writing that features symbolism throughout the story.

To begin with, the story is told through sacred writings in the narrator’s diary. The narrator, Jane, is forbidden from writing and put on a rest period by her husband, John, who is a physician. The diary is a symbol of the woman’s inner mind that she was forced to give up during her “rest” period. The diary also symbolizes Jane’s rebellion to her husband. In the diary she writes, “John is a physician, and perhaps -- (I would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is a dead paper and a great relief to my mind--) perhaps that is one reason why I do not get well faster” (Gilman 526). Jane states her inner thoughts in the diary and provides details about her husband’s force on her.

One of the most obvious symbols in the story is the yellow

The room resembles a prison-like setting. She mentions that there is a gate atop the stairs and that the windows have iron bars, which creates a prison-like feel, but it also symbolizes the figurative prison the narrator is in. Like a prison, her husband has forced her to rest against her will. The narrator states in the story, “Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good” (Gilman 527). Even though the narrator wants to work, her husband will not let her. Her husband starts to symbolize a prison warden by forcing her to rest and not allowing her to do