The Powerful or Powerless Genders The idea of women equality has always been challenged through the nation, especially in the nineteen hundreds. “The Yellow Wall-Paper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is no different in the way that the females are treated in society within this time period. The narrator is treated as less then equal. Through out the story the narrator is belittled and reduced as a woman. With such belittlement within the story of women, the discussion of gender mistreatment is brought forth within the novel. Before continuing details on gender in “The Yellow Wall-Paper” we must first have background knowledge and summarized details on the events within the story. “The Yellow Wall-Paper” is a story narrated by an unnamed woman …show more content…
Once her husband, John, realizes the deepness of depression that his wife is in due to her birth of their child he decides to take action. He decides to isolate his wife from the world for her own betterment. Once arriving in her newfound place of isolation where there is no stimulation, except for her journal, the narrator is placed within a room that is lined with yellow wallpaper. This yellow room is meant to free her from any stresses, but her dislike for the wallpaper concerns her. The pattern of yellow begins to become more of an obsession, being this is her only stimulation due to her confinement. She begins to visualize a woman behind her yellow wallpaper, this woman she sees seems to be trapped pacing behind the paper as if she is trying to free herself. It is not long before the narrator begins with withdrawal pieces of this wallpaper from the wall in attempt to free this trapped woman. As the novel ends the woman who once was in such disgusted with this yellow room now traps herself, locking herself away from …show more content…
The wallpaper specifically throughout the short story is the major contextualize symbolism from the story that aligns with gender. Stated in the Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature the women within the wallpaper can be thought of as mind projections of the narrator 's situation. As the woman is trapped within the wall, she is trapped in her attic room (“gender in” Esposito). Moreover on the topic the entry states as well that, “they [trapped wall women] can also be read as a metaphor for the position of women in the United States in the 19th century. The women trapped behind that wallpaper represent the lack of power and freedom women had at this time” (“gender in” Esposito). Gilman’s personal life and experiences have had influences over her writing of this novel. Written in the Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature, “The Yellow Wallpaper is an autobiographical short story based on Charlotte Perkins Gilman 's own experience with illness in the 'rest cure’” (“illness in” Esposito). With information inside of what it is like to have all stimulation forcefully taken from you by a male spouse, she was able to create a short story that follows bases of a true situation and the entire breakdown along the
“The Yellow Wallpaper”, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is an account of a repressed woman in the late eighteen hundreds. This story allows the reader to confront the issues that plagued nineteenth century society in which women suffered because of their mental weaknesses. It is this mental weakness which ultimately leads to her downfall.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman uses “The Yellow Wallpaper” to express her thoughts on feminism and individuality. Gilman takes the reader through the mind of a woman who we’re not completely sure of how she became crazy. When does the woman become crazy and why? No one will ever surely know exactly what happened. The way that the woman narrates the story tells a lot of information about who the woman truly is and how she feels inferior to her husband John and the other men throughout the story. This inferiority may have caused the woman’s sickness.
Women have always struggled to gain attention from men as well as equality with them. 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 on a daily basis. Male dictatorship over women is rampant 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 conclusion. A stand had to be made in order for women to achieve equality with men. Standing up to a man, however, was not permissible in nineteenth century America. This story epitomizes women slowly gaining trust and appreciation, even understanding.
The "Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Gilman is a great story about the repression of women in the late 1800's but is still representative of issues faced by women today. She writes from her own personal experiences and conveys a message that sometimes in a male dominated society women suffer from the relentless power that some men implement over women.
It is easy to see that there is an inherent relationship between the way John treats his wife and the effect the yellow wallpaper has on the narrator. While John certainly means no harm, his stubbornness to let the narrator have decision in her life leads her to become more depressed. As she becomes more depressed, the patterns she sees on the yellow wallpaper become more lively until she sees images of a trapped woman behind the wallpaper. The yellow wallpaper in this sense acts as a catalyst to the narrator’s mental demise. While both John and the yellow wallpaper made significant impacts on the narrator’s mental state, they were both interdependent for her eventual mental breakdown. Without her husband, the narrator’s experiences with the yellow wallpaper would not have a significant enough context of depression associated with them. Without the yellow wallpaper, there would have been no woman behind the wallpaper to ultimately cause the narrator to break down, even with the context of depression. But with viewing the wallpaper with the context of severe depression, the circumstances brought on the narrator enable her to mentally
She secretly stays awake at night and goes to sleep during the day. Giving the image to John she is resting like he has ordered. This is also a great place of irony the author wrote. The more the narrator obsesses about the wallpaper, the deeper and deeper she falls into insanity. But her husband is happy she is getting plenty of rest during the day. He has no idea how insane his wife is becoming. The narrator has begun to see shadows of women in the pattern of the wallpaper. Women sneaking around trying to escape the wallpaper. The pattern resembles bars of a cage to the narrator. She begins to tear down the wallpaper. As she tears at the paper she see many heads. Heads of women being strangled as they try to escape the pattern. The wallpaper becomes a symbol of women trapped in domestic life, of family and tradition. In the end, the narrator reveals how much sacrifice women and herself have done breaking the chains man have placed on them. In her final speech to her husband, the readers get the sense of how much she has sacrificed. She says, "I've got out at last, in spite of you and Jane! And I've pulled off most of the paper, so you can't put me back!" She is free! Free from the constraints of marriage, of society and her own
Writing is especially off limits, and John warns her several times that she must use her self-control to rein in her imagination, which he fears will run away with her. Of course, the narrator’s eventual insanity is a product of the repression of her imaginative power, not the expression of it. She is constantly longing for an emotional and intellectual outlet, even going so far as to keep a secret journal, which she describes more than once as a “relief” to her mind. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is an illustration of the way a mind that is already plagued with anxiety can deteriorate and begin to prey on itself when it is forced into inactivity and kept from healthy work. The connection between a woman’s subordination in the home and her connection in a doctor/patient relationship is clear, John is, after all, the narrator’s husband and doctor. The author implies that both forms of authority can be easily abused, even when the husband or doctor means to
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” voices the struggle of an unnamed woman who loses her identity and mind. The narrator is oppressed by her husband who suppresses her voice, independence, and actions in an attempt to cure her worsening hysteria. The conflict between the two arises as the narrator attempts to break free of her submissive role and find her voice.
During the Nineteenth Century, the rise of the male supremacy and suppression of women was the topic of many literary debates and creative writings. During this time in history, many arguments emerged on the gender roles of society. Feminist theorists were on a literary high; women writers such as Mary Wollstonecraft, Sandra Gilbert, Susan Gubar, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman were writing on the oppression of women and the liberation that they were adamant on receiving. This spark for freedom in a patriarchal society drove Charlotte Perkins Gilman to write her infamous short story “The Yellow Wall-Paper.” In writing this story, Gilman depicts an oppressed woman taken from society, paralleled with her own biographical experience of mental repression.
In a female oppressive story about a woman driven from postpartum depression to insanity, Charlotte Gilman uses great elements of literature in her short story, The Yellow Wallpaper. Her use of feminism and realism demonstrates how woman's thoughts and opinions were considered in the early 1900?s.
Gilbert, Sandra M. and Susan Gubar. “A Feminist Reading of ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’.” The Story and Its Writer. Ann Charters. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. Print.
The “Yellow Wall-Paper” is a reflection of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s personal situations, regarding the protection of the rights of woman. She provides a critique on traditional feminine roles, and women’s desperation to get out of them. In the short story, the author depicts the idea that women conforming to the norms of society can be driven to destruction. Her criticism of gender conflicts is portrayed through the journal entries of the narrator. In order to illustrate her feminist concerns about gender equality, Gilman employs the characters of John, Jennie, and the narrator.
With a sarcastic, monstrous, and angry tone combined with high emotion and sentimentalism, Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote the short story The Yellow Wallpaper in order to help the oppressed females recover their voice, their rights, and their freedom. She skillfully leaded the reader’s interest from a little horrible opening; then, a curious feeling about Jane’s life immediately became anger because of the unexpected climax of the narrator’s own recognition in the yellow wallpaper. The author tried to show that female would stand up and do whatever they can, even if they lose something to escape the control of male dominance as the narrator did in the story. This story is successful at portraying its authorial purpose because of its setting, types of conflict, character development, and the language effects.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins-Gilman explores the oppression of women in the nineteenth century and the constant limitation of their freedom, which many times led to their confinement. The short story illustrates male superiority and the restriction of a woman’s choice regarding her own life. The author’s diction created a horrific and creepy tone to illustrate the supernatural elements that serve as metaphors to disguise the true meaning of the story. Through the use of imagery, the reader can see that the narrator is living within a social class, so even though the author is trying to create a universal voice for all women that have been similar situations, it is not possible. This is not possible because there are many
It is easy for one to feel trapped in a seemingly familiar setting. The story, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, entails the struggle of a woman who feels confined in her own home and who becomes unable to organize her thoughts. She is assured by her husband that she is normal, yet she cannot come to terms with the feelings she harbors. She is forced to accept the societal standards that place women in lower status, because she is incapable of challenging the recognized power structures. She has no outlet to express concern or desire which ultimately makes her seem substandard. The story takes the reader through her journey during the seventeenth century where the societal norms were extremely different, especially in regards to gender equality and women’s rights. The difference in beliefs is evident throughout many aspects of the story and the narrator struggles to overcome these inherent barriers. The obstacles are both mental and emotional and strike the main characters internal struggles. There is a clear subjugation of women that occurs in the marriage, the environment, and in a woman’s ability to express themselves.