The Traditional Gender Roles in The Yellow Wall by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The Yellow Wallpaper
“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a short story that demonstrates a woman being controlled and isolated by her husband who plays both her husband and doctor as she suffers from a mental illness. The core of “The Yellow Wallpaper” is when the protagonist, a woman controlled by her husband and doctor, John, leads to an obsession of a woman being trapped in yellow wallpaper finally takes control over her and John . John is incapable to separate his doctor role and husband role because of the traditional gender roles during the nineteenth century that leads his wife, Jane, to have the need to escape from her traditional gender role.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” demonstrates the issue of John’s control; over his wife as both husband and doctor by the inability to separate the doctor role from a husband role. In the beginning of the story the narrator says she “believes with congenial work, with excitement and change would do me good” (419). Gillman illustrates John as a person who does not realize his wife‘s health was based on the need to occupy her with something that is work relative and not forbid her to work .John shows that he does not care about her feelings as the role of husband role should be but rather takes his wife as his patient who is not physically we’’ to do work around the house. The narrator tells John that she wants the room repapered which at first he says yes, but later he says no because it would be worse for her as a “nervous patient” (421).John first demonstrates his husband role as a husband who is willing to please his wife but then plays back the role of her doctor by not letting her repaper the wall because it worsens her health. This shows that the i...

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...e his wife tearing the yellow paper like manic and creeping over him to tear the yellow wallpaper symbolizes the power now Jane has over her husband shifting the traditional gender roles even though it temporary .The tearing of the yellow wallpaper symbolizes Jane’s traditional gender role of being an obedient wife was a imprison to her l health .Jane felt trapped without a voice and not being able to do anything but to obey reflects her imprisonment to the woman trapped in the yellow wallpaper and the need to be free. In which in her own way she escapes her traditional gender role by letting the woman out and taking control of her husband when she locks the door and he faints.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte. "The Yellow Wallpaper." Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar Roberts and Robert Zweig. New York: Longman, 2011. 419-428.Print.