Category: The Yellow Wallpaper

Ambreen, Nida. “Stigmatisation of Mental Illness: Analysis of Women’s Condition through “the Yellow Wallpaper” and Newspaper Articles on Women.” MEJO, vol. 6, 2022, pp. 224–234, Web.

The article explores the impact of mental illness from the perspective of postpartum/ nervous depression in the woman. Ambreen (225), uses the short story The Yellow Wallpaper to evaluate how the psychology of an individual is affected by illness/disease. The physical condition of an individual is coordinated with mental health, meaning that when one is sick, the psychology may be negatively affected (Ambreen, 230). The mental health of women is highly neglected in society resulting in depression and loss of lives. The research shows that mental stigma is high when an individual is ignored or in denial due to their psychological disorders.

From the study, the author argues that travel works as a remedy to cure mental illness as it gives the affected person a sense of relief. The article uses the concept of COVID-19 travel restrictions to show how people with mental health illnesses were negatively affected as they could not get relief to cure their disease (Ambreen, 227). An individual’s physical, psychological, and physiological illnesses can be cured through adventure. The findings show that the stigmatization of mental illness during the COVID-19 pandemic increased the number of individuals with psychological disorders (Ambreen, 234). As compared to other periods, the number of mental health cases increased during the period of COVID-19, showing that people get depressed when they are isolated from others.

Özsert, Seher. “Painting the feminist story through imagery in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s the yellow wallpaper.” The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, 2022, pp. 99–107, Web.

The paper adopts the imagery presented in The Yellow Wallpaper like a feminist painting to show the psychology of the female protagonist. The author uses different images in the story, such as Jane’s room, the Wallpaper, and the changing colors of the Wallpaper, to describe how an individual is psychologically affected by the environment (Özsert, 99). According to Özsert (102), the tearing off of the Wallpaper in the barred room for the newborn female symbolizes the struggle of women in terms of mental health. The methodology of the study involves the intensive analysis of the short story of a feminist painting. The study is used to show society’s position and the struggles they go through, hence enduring mental health and depression.

The findings from the study show that every symbol supports the idea that women are fighting in society to come out from depression, mental health, and isolation. One can tell how the narrator’s imprisoned life could not even be understood by her husband (Özsert, 106). The fact that the narrator is locked in a room denies her access to adventure and some peace of mind (Ozsert). In most cases, society denies women access to power hence subjecting them to depression and misery. However, those who stand firm come out of depression and isolation victorious.

Tabla, Myette L., et al. “A Psychoanalytic Study of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s the Yellow Wallpaper.” International Journal of Modern Developments in Engineering and Science, vol. 1, no. 12, 2022, pp. 1–7, Web.

In the study investigating o how psychology affects humanity, Tabla et al. (1), relied on The Yellow Wallpaper to understand its context. The theoretical review of the study comprised Sigmund Freud’ Psychoanalytic and Carl Jung’s Archetypal theories. From the study, it is evident that psychological behaviors affect their mental health (Tabla et al., 2). Both approaches used in the study present relevant data that helps in understanding the mental illness of the human being.

The study’s findings for the study suggest that the plot in The Yellow Wallpaper demonstrated the impact of the psychological issues of the main character. This comprises postpartum depression, mental health, unfree, dangerous hallucination, and recovery (Tabla et al., 3). The destructions and difficulties that the character goes through expose her to insanity, suppression, and stress. From Tabla et al. (5), research, it is clear that mental health is natural, and everybody should take responsibility for overcoming it in society.

Works Cited

Ambreen, Nida. “Stigmatisation of Mental Illness: Analysis of Women’s Condition through “the Yellow Wallpaper” and Newspaper Articles on Women.” MEJO, vol. 6, 2022, pp. 224–234, Web.

Özsert, Seher. “Painting the Feminist Story through Imagery in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s the Yellow Wallpaper.” The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, 2022, pp. 99–107, Web.

Tabla, Myette L., et al. “A Psychoanalytic Study of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s the Yellow Wallpaper.” International Journal of Modern Developments in Engineering and Science, vol. 1, no. 12, 2022, pp. 1–7, Web.

Abstract Page

This paper aims at examining the novel The Yellow Wallpaper created by Charlotte Perkins Gilman at the end of the 19^th century. There are three possible reasons for why the main character goes mad: postpartum depression, toxic mold, and poorly developed relations with a husband. It is hard to explain if there is one reason only for such outcomes and the development of the events.

In this paper, several thoughts of why it is necessary to discuss all aspects of postpartum depression simultaneously are introduced. Postpartum depression may have various forms, and people who do not want to identify the problem which they have to fight against are doomed to suffer and solve the same problems again and again till their deaths come. Gilman shows one of the most dangerous and saddest stories of postpartum depression, and this paper explains why Gilman is correct in her discussion.

Introduction

The novel The Yellow Wallpaper written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in 1892 is a story of a woman with an unknown for that period of illness. It attracts attention due to its mystery, the inability to introduce clear reasons, and the necessity to understand the development of the events using personal imagination and knowledge.

Today, the reader can understand that this problem is postpartum depression, and its uniqueness lies in the impossibility to identify all symptoms and predict its development and outcomes. Postpartum depression is a mental health condition characterized by serious consequences of parturition and the necessity to take care of an offspring regardless of all the negative and painful experiences (O’Hara & McCabe, 2013). The analysis of the story proved that female madness based on postpartum depression might get worse in case it is accompanied by a poorly chosen therapy, a lack of support, and toxic mold.

The Yellow Wallpaper is the story presented through the notes of a woman who experienced certain mental problems that did not have clear explanations. There are no clear causes of her depression, and the reader can guess that some mental problems began after the woman gave birth to her baby. Being forced to live in a dangerous environment, the woman could not cope with her emotions. “The color is repellant, almost revolting; a smoldering unclean yellow, strangely faded by the slow-turning sunlight” (Gilman, n.d., p. 649). In the story, the woman described her kind and caring relations with a husband. Still, it is hard for the reader to find evidence for such relations because of the total absence of the man in his wife’s life.

In the story, there are no diagnostic steps to be taken to help the woman and improve her condition. In reality, postpartum depression is the disease that has to be treated with the help of specific medications and therapies that are appropriate for a patient. Gilman neglects all crucial steps from the medical point of view and proves that male-female relationships in the 18-19^th centuries were complicated and characterized by unfair treatment and male dominance that led to personal madness. The Yellow Wallpaper is the story of how male negligence to identify woman’s problems and concerns can influence human lives.

Instead of searching for some rational ideas and treatments, the husband, who calls himself a doctor with a good reputation, spends days and nights out of their house promoting the development of new strange emotions and feelings. Nowadays, postpartum depression can be diagnosed and treated properly. The role of a husband is crucial in such therapy because of his possibility to develop positive emotions and identify the benefits of having a family. Therefore, the character’s madness can be explained by a poorly chosen therapy, low support of a husband, fast-developing postpartum depression, toxic mold, and mental problems that can be expressed through demonic possession.

The solutions and outcomes offered in the novel turn out to be a tragedy that may touch upon every family when subordination between a woman and a man is broken, no help comes from the outside, and no self-expression is allowed. Postpartum depression is a serious disease with serious outcomes. Heroine’s madness is the result of her husband’s neglect, her loneliness that made the woman believe in ghosts, and her inability to be involved in some activities that could distract her (Gilman, n.d.). The events described in the book show that women depend on their men in many different ways. Still, today, women can be provided with different choices. At the moment when the novel was first published, not every woman had access to that solution.

In general, The Yellow Wallpaper is a tragic and horrifying story about how wrong family relations can be developed. Instead of supporting his wife, the husband decides to minimize their connection and relationship. Instead of providing appropriate and comfortable conditions, the husband chooses one of the most terrible places for his therapy. Wrong solutions lead to negative results and the inability to change anything in postpartum relations and save a woman’s life.

References

Gilman, C. P. (n.d.). The yellow wallpaper.

O’Hara, M.W., & McCabe, J.E. (2013). Postpartum depression: Current status and future directions. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 9, 379-407.

Introduction

Gilman’s story, ‘The Yellow Wallpaper,’ revolves around a protagonist who has been locked up by her husband in their leased house during summer vacation. The husband justifies his actions by pointing out that her wife needed a rest cure, especially now after the birth of their child. As the story unfolds, she (wife) reaches the threshold of a mental break down and insanity (Stetson, 1892).

She begins to experience hallucinations and becomes obsessed with yellow wallpaper that hanged on the wall. She associates everything in her environment with the yellow paper. Just before the vacation is over, she begins seeing nonexistent women creeping in her room. She looks at the paper and sees another woman entrapped in the picture. In an attempt to free her, she rips apart the wallpaper and locks herself in the bedroom. That was the only place she felt safe (Stetson, 1892).

When her husband returns, she refuses to open the door for him. Her husband gets the key and opens the bedroom, finding his wife in a severe mental condition, and faints. The protagonist continues to draw circles on her husband’s body. The story explores various themes and addresses numerous social issues. This paper will evaluate the theme of feminism in the story. Besides, the paper will highlight criticisms of the story and its impact on the audience.

Gender Roles in The Yellow Wallpaper

Since its publication in 1892, many interpretations have come up regarding the story. Particularly, feminists believe that the story depicts the struggles and tribulations that women endured in a male-dominated society. Various illustrations in the novel assert the perception held by feminists.

At the outset, society undermined the role of women in households and during important decision-making processes (Stetson, 1892). As such, they played peripheral roles in society. In other words, the story portrays women’s opinions in society as irrational and irrelevant. The protagonist is locked in a house for the sole reason of getting a rest cure. She has no alternative since she is unable to convince her husband that the rest break was unnecessary.

As Stetson (1892) elucidates,

‘…and I did not make out a very good case for myself, for I was crying before I finished.’ (p. 651).

According to the protagonist, her condition does not necessitate such medical and therapeutic intervention. She wishes she were a free woman who could write, care for her child and participate in the running of the society (Ford, 1985). Instead, she remains in isolation (Stetson, 1892). This illustration does not only provide important insights on gender disparities in medieval societies but also demonstrates hegemonic masculinity that had engulfed the entire medical profession.

Second, it is important to pinpoint that the yellow wallpaper represents barriers to gender equality. Notwithstanding the mental health of the protagonist, she rips the paper as a symbol of breaking the bondage of patriarchy. She frees a woman who, like her, had been entrapped in the male-dominated society. John collapses after opening the bedroom because of shock.

Literary, the story asserts that John collapses because of the level of insanity of his wife (Stetson, 1892). Symbolically, the collapse implies the shock and surprise that the male gender would experience after women freed themselves. The story portrays the protagonist drawing circles on the corpse of her husband. According to Ford (1985), it implies that women had risen above men in the fight for freedom and equality.

Further, the theme of feminism comes out clearly in the story. John is a medical professional. In the society depicted by the story, such high-flying careers were a reserve of men. Despite being a doctor, it is ironic that John does not recognize the impact of incarcerating her wife. According to many feminists, men were not performing their duties impeccably in spite of their gendered beliefs about women.

Failure by John to realize that her wife would say descent to insanity if she remained locked in the room represents a realization by women on their essential roles in the mainstream society (Stetson, 1892). It empowers women to believe in themselves and rise above submissiveness and innocence. This way, they are able to appraise the social system and challenge the negative effects of patriarchy and male domination.

Notwithstanding many interpretations of the story, many analysts hold the view that The Yellow Wall-Paper reflected Gilman’s experience in a medical institution (Ford, 1985). Gilman suffered from severe depression and was admitted to a hospital in 1890. It is in the medical facility that she experienced the same experiences as the protagonist portrayed in the story. As such, the story’s main aim was to challenge the prevalent methods of treating mentally ill patients as opposed to advancing the feminist agenda.

Conclusion

In essence, the story revolves around a couple spending summer vacation. The husband locks her wife in a room because of his beliefs that she needed a rest break. Throughout the story, the theme of feminism is apparent. From socially imposed roles to making decisions, women in the story suffer from the whims of patriarchy. However, many critics explain that the story is a true reflection of the experiences of the author.

References

Ford, K. (1985). The Yellow Wallpaper and Women’s Discourse. Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature, 4(2), 309–314.

Stetson, C. (1892). The Yellow Wallpaper: A Story. The New England Magazine, 11(5), 647-657.

In the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Gilman presents a story of a woman who slowly succumbs to her mental disorder while being dismissed and infantilized by her husband and relatives. The protagonist is a bright woman who has recently had a child and is now struggling with her lack of energy. At the same time, she wishes to write but is forbidden by her husband, a respectable physician. Not being able to express herself through writing openly pushes the woman’s mental health to its limits, highlighting the importance of authority over one’s actions for well-being.

The core of the problem related to the protagonist’s health is undefined in the short story. As the reader does not know the particular problem the woman has, one cannot determine the type of help she should get. Nevertheless, from the first page, it becomes clear that the protagonist’s husband has diagnosed her with “temporary nervous depression – a slight hysterical tendency” (Gilman 1). Thus, he has prescribed her to rest and avoid any mental activity. The protagonist states, “so I take phosphates or phosphites – whichever it is, and tonics, and journeys, and air, and exercise, and am absolutely forbidden to ‘work’ until I am well again” (Gilman 1). The pressure from other people affects her daily living as she conforms to the behavior people expect from her.

The main character’s artistic nature can be seen throughout the story. First, her description of the house is adorned with many details. For example, she writes that there is a “delicious garden” that is “full of box-bordered paths, and lined with long grape-covered arbors” (Gilman 2). The woman’s rich language and her passion for writing are visible. The narrator notes that she “used to lie awake as a child and get more entertainment and terror out of blank walls and plain furniture than most children could find in a toy-store” (Gilman 5). This recollection implies that the protagonist has always been imaginative and yearned for self-expression through art and storytelling.

The central struggle of the narrator lies in this restriction – she desperately wants to write and express herself through creative thinking. She says, “I would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper and a great relief to my mind” (Gilman 1). In this quote, one can see that she sees a way to get better mentally or improve her mood but is not allowed to do so. To overcome this issue within her limits, the narrator begins to write in secret, hiding her artistic tendencies and developing two different lifestyles – one where she is among other people and another where she is alone.

The reader often sees the woman hiding her journal or changing her attitude drastically when somebody comes into the house. She writes, “there comes John, and I must put this away, – he hates to have me write a word” when referring to her journal (Gilman 3). One can also observe how she consciously behaves differently, as the woman “[takes] pains to control [herself] before him, at least” (Gilman 2). The need to constantly hide her true wishes and interests makes her tired and worsens her condition. As she recalls, “it does exhaust me a good deal-having to be so sly about it, or else meet with heavy opposition” (Gilman 1). It is apparent to the narrator that the restricted self-expression tires her, but she is powerless against her husband’s will. This double life is detrimental to the protagonist’s outcome at the end of the story.

As the woman’s hatred of the wallpaper progresses, so do her interpretations of the patterns and their influence on her self-perception. The narrator first despises the color and the drawings on the walls, but then she starts identifying with the woman she sees in the wall. This particular image is the representation of the protagonist’s life – a woman that only comes out and can be free when nobody sees her. When talking about the pattern, the narrator states that “at night in any kind of light… it becomes bars! The outside pattern I mean, and the woman behind it is as plain as can be” (Gilman 9). The woman in the wall is trapped, similar to how the narrator’s house serves as her prison, where she must get better without any real help or support.

Thus, as the protagonist decides to free the woman in the wallpaper at the end of the story, she also wants to separate herself from the limitations placed on her by others. One can see the desperation with which the narrator wishes for the woman – and herself – to be free. She writes, “as soon as it was moonlight and that poor thing began to crawl and shake the pattern, I got up and ran to help her” (Gilman 13). Her attempts to tear down the wallpaper mirror her wishes to strip the expectations of her being a “help … a real rest and comfort” to her husband (Gilman 3). As the woman in the wall must be freed, so the narrator should be able to make her own decisions and express herself in the way she wants.

A major narrative in the story is established in the first pages, and it continues to develop throughout, leading to a significant decline in the protagonist’s sanity. Sahoo writes that this struggle was common for women during the time the author wrote the short story (201). Gilman herself experienced the same problem of being advised to avoid mental work in favor of resting and getting fresh air (Saha 25). At the same time, the inability to share their creative insight puts additional pressure on women’s psychological well-being and stifles their spirit. However, women find a way to express themselves through writing despite opposition or other means. Saha connects this common issue to the narrator in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” arguing that “through her hysterics she achieves a psychological space” that is unreachable by her husband (27). Here, the woman finds a place where she can express her thoughts, although the acts related to this place in real life make her seem unwell.

To conclude, the theme of self-expression and how women were denied the right to it is present in the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The narrative represents the author’s own beliefs about women’s ability to pursue artistic passions and the outcomes such limitations may have on their well-being. The protagonist of the story wishes to write and knows it would help her mood, but her husband and other loved ones dismiss her interests and deem them hurtful. As a result, the woman is left without any devices to express herself, which causes her to distance herself from others and create a separate personality for them. The additional stress from trying to conform to the assigned role and the dismissal of herself leads to the woman losing her sanity but entering a new space in which she can feel free.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The Yellow Wallpaper. The New England Magazine, 1892. eBook, Web.

Saha, Oly. “Mad Monster(ress): Hysteria in Women in ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ and Hedda Gabler.” Literary Herald, vol. 4, no. 5, 2019, pp. 24-31.

Sahoo, Anwesha. “Interpreting ‘Madwomen’: A Study of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ and Pratibha Ray’s ‘The Eyes.’” Journal of Comparative Literature and Aesthetics, vol. 44, no. 1, 2021, pp. 196-203.

In Gilman’s short story “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the unnamed female protagonist is instructed to rest in isolation and stillness in the large upper room of a remote country house that has bars on the windows and an ugly faded wallpaper with some kind of design in the print that is never fully identified. The woman confides that she had selected another room that she thought would be better, but she was overruled by her husband. “I wanted one [room] downstairs that opened on the piazza and had roses all over the window, and such pretty old-fashioned chintz hangings! but John would not hear of it.

He said there was only one window and not room for two beds, and no near room for him if he took another.” The room she stays in is as confining as her marriage as she describes, “He [John] is very careful and loving, and hardly lets me stir without special direction. I have a schedule prescription for each hour in the day; he takes all care from me.” However, because she has been cut off from nature and green growing things, she begins to identify with the lumpy shapes she sees in the wallpaper until she is completely crazy and unable to function in the human world. This story warns that we cannot live our lives separate from nature and must respect our connection to it.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The Yellow Wallpaper. Boston: Small & Maynard, 1899.

Introduction

Main Points of The Yellow Wallpaper

The basic aim of The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is to reflect the oppression of women in the 19th century. Generally, while discussing the major themes of the story, it is necessary to analyze some symbolical issues, the author provides us with. Moreover, The Yellow Wallpaper allows us to consider one of the most important problems women faced in the 19th century in detail.

Thesis Statement

When reading the story, it becomes evident that Gilman was deeply concerned about the role of women as well as the psychological pressure they experienced. For this reason, one can make a conclusion that Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper is to be analyzed based on symbolical interpretations the author wanted her readers to become familiar with.

The House in The Yellow Wallpaper and Its Symbolical Interpretation

In my opinion, nobody will deny the fact that the protagonist’s oppression in The Yellow Wallpaper is depicted symbolically. For instance, one can notice that Gilman uses such complex symbols as the parts of the house, in order to reflect the psychological state of the main character. Thus, on the one hand, the house the main character lives in can be associated with a desire to become free; however, on the other hand, it is evident that the protagonist cannot avoid a cruel reality.

If one analyzes the short story deeper, he or she can probably conclude that the house reflects the process of transformation a woman experiences. In other words, the house can be regarded as the so-called symbol of self-expression. However, the protagonist’s phrase, which cannot be neglected, is “There is something strange about the house” (Gilman p. 1).

Taking into account the woman’s worldview, it becomes evident that the principal character cannot feel safe, as she is afraid of changes. The adjective strange is related not to the house, but the protagonist’s expectations and hopes. The author shows that a woman’s metamorphosis is unavoidable; however, being under constant oppressions too long, the main character cannot accept changes she experiences so fast.

The Window as a Symbol in The Yellow Wallpaper

The window the author depicts in her story is also of particular importance, as this symbol can also be regarded ambiguously. On the one hand, the window seems to express a woman’s potential; however, taking into consideration the fact that a woman is afraid of looking through it, one can probably conclude that the window is the protagonist’s reflection. The main character does not want to accept her true personality, as she understands what a miserable creature she can see.

For her, an opportunity to look through the window is accepted as real torture, because there she can see other women, who are the same, who must creep, to stay a part of the society. Hochman believes that “Gilman’s nameless protagonist enters an action-filled world that she creates by inference from a printed design. As a result, her depression and despair are temporarily dispelled” (par. 5).

The Yellow Wallpaper as a Symbol of Hope

Finally, the yellow wallpaper should be regarded as a symbol of hope. Looking at the color, the protagonist feels safe. At the same time, the main character understands that the image in the wallpaper is considered to be a reflection of unhappy women who must creep to be a part of society.

Conclusion

According to Gretchen Lynn Greene, “The Yellow Wallpaper is just one of many stories that Gilman wrote that dealt with women trying to attain their freedom from something or someone” (par. 5). For this reason, one can conclude that the author depicted the burning problem of the 19th century.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte. The Yellow Wallpaper, Small & Maynard, Boston: MA, 1899. Print.

Greene, Gretchen. “The Yellow Wallpaper,” n. d. Web.

Hochman, Barbara. The Reading Habit and The Yellow Wallpaper, 2002. Web.

The topic of a woman’s voice being silenced by society and becoming heard in writing appears to be among the similar themes of the critical essay “The Laugh of the Medusa” by Cixous and the novel “The Yellow Paper” by Gilman. The present paper includes a short description of the two works and their analysis. In particular, I argue that the narrator of “The Yellow Paper” tries and partially succeeds to gain a voice by keeping a secret diary, which becomes visible when the terminology and ideas of Cixous are applied to the novel. First, it can be proved that the diary performs the functions of helping the narrator to understand her self and reclaim it from her silencing jailers. Admittedly, she damages and, possibly, shatters the self in the process, but this aspect of the novel can be explained by the notion of “antinarcissism” that is introduced by Cixous (1455). Apart from that, even after the self is shattered, it is preserved in the form of a literary work, which implies that the woman’s writing proceeds to serve as an enabler of the woman’s voice.

In “The Yellow Paper,” a woman who has a mental illness is driven to insanity by the therapy that her husband uses despite her complaints that it is ineffective. The therapy appears to be harmful since the woman has the urge to write and create while the “cure” prohibits intellectual or social activities. As the illness progresses, the narrator begins to discern a strange pattern in the yellow wallpaper of her room: a woman who is “creeping” behind bars. Eventually, she believes that she is that woman, tears the paper away, and starts hallucinating more creeping women. Given her secondary position in her family, it appears to me that her insanity gives her an insight into the truth that she is afraid to admit. As for the bars that hold her, one of them is the habit of silencing her, which can be described in detail with the help of Cixous’ essay.

In my understanding, the key point of Cixous’ work is to urge women to discover their voice through writing, which they can use to reclaim their selves and their bodies and make them known to the phallocentric world (1455). Writing is regarded as the means to become visible by “seizing the occasion to speak” (Cixous 1457). Gilman’s narrator is silenced by her husband and physician who does not believe that she is sick and does not listen to her opinion of her experiences (359). Moreover, he attempts to manipulate her into silence by blackmailing her with his happiness and the happiness of their child (Gilman 366). His opinion is more important for friends, relatives, and society, and the narrator is helpless to change this fact. Thus, the only way to express her thoughts is to keep a diary, which she seizes and keeps secret.

Apart from that, Cixous regards writing as a means to grow to understand oneself. Cixous describes it as the process of a woman returning “to the body which has been more than confiscated from her, which has been turned into the uncanny stranger on display” (1457). A similar topic appears in Gilman’s work: the reader might understand the nature of the woman behind bars before the narrator, but for the narrator, this woman is a stranger. Indeed, the narrator refuses to acknowledge her, which manifests in her suppressing her feelings at the beginning of the novel and proceeding to remind herself to control her “silly fancies” throughout the story (Gilman 365). However, the final phrase that the narrator addresses to her husband refers to getting out “despite you and Jane,” and while the narrator is never named, there is no Jane mentioned in the book either (Gilman 371). It can be assumed that it is her name or the name of the personality she abandons when she identifies herself as the woman who comes out of the bars of the wallpaper. By the end of the work, the narrator assumes a different personality, and the previous one becomes the stranger and also the enemy.

The question of how a woman can become an enemy to herself can also be explained in the light of Cixous’ work, and it is connected to the topic of shame and inferiority. In particular, Cixous describes the idea of men creating “antinarcissism” for women and asserts that a woman typically shames herself for experiencing various urges (creative or sexual) (1455). Thus, the woman becomes her jailer through self-shaming. In Gilman’s novel, the topic of shaming oneself is established. From the beginning of the novel, the narrator confesses that she tries to “control” herself, and she is certain that her anger towards her husband is “unreasonable,” even though he silences and imprisons her (Gilman 360). Also, she appears to feel less adept than the “perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper” Jennie in the matters of being a housewife, which, apparently is the role she is supposed to play (Gilman 363). As a result, the narrator can be described not just as a stranger to herself but as her jailer, and, unfortunately, she does not manage to free herself without destroying this jailer.

It is also noteworthy that insanity is mentioned in Cixous’s work as a form of controlling women’s creativity. From this perspective, women’s ideas are dismissed as insane or silly (Cixous 1456). The narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper” is directly confronted with this form of silencing where her logical and educated husband dismisses her ideas about her state as insane or silly. However, there is a twist to the idea of insanity in the novel. For the narrator, the insanity grants her a form of freedom from the shame forced upon her feelings and ideas by many people, including herself. I would argue that she manages to discover the truth about her position in the family and society and her related perceptions and feelings, which are a part of her self. She does lose another part of her self in the process, but that self is also preserved in the work that she leaves: her diary. Therefore, her writing might not have managed to preserve the sanity of the narrator in the environment that could hardly make that possible, but it opened her eyes to a part of her self that she tried to ignore, thus helping her to discover this self and make it visible.

The topic of silence is extensive; it would be interesting to explore the notion of the impossibility of silencing natural urges to create that is described by Cixous, and it would be engaging to consider the devices that Gilman uses to demonstrate and criticize the methods of silencing and self-silencing (in particular, her irony). However, this brief analysis also suggests that Gilman’s narrator employs writing that allows her to combat silencing by taking the chance to speak, reclaiming a part of her self, and preserving all its parts with the help of the diary. Thus, “The Laugh of the Medusa” can shed some light on the dynamics of the narrator’s attempts at reclaiming her self, which is enabled through writing.

Works Cited

Cixous, Helene. “The Laugh of the Medusa.” The Critical Tradition: Classic Texts and Contemporary Trends, edited by David Richter, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1998, pp. 1453-1466.

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction, edited by Richard Bausch and Ronald Verlin Cassill, Norton, 2000, pp. 359-371.

Charlotte Gillman

Charlotte Gilman is mostly known for her contributions to the early feminist movement. This is why her story “The Yellow Paper” was confusing to most of her readers. Most of her other works champion for the place of a woman as an active contributor to the economy. However, “The Yellow Paper” is arguably Gillman’s most significant contribution to classic literature. The short story was also the subject of debate when it was first written because it failed to fit in any particular genre at the time.

“The Yellow Wallpaper” was mostly considered a horror story when it was first published because of the manner it unnerved readers at the time. The story details the experiences of a mentally disturbed woman who believes that there are women trapped in the wallpaper of her house. The story is borrowed from Gilman’s own experience when she suffered from post partum depression and had to be put on resting cure.

Modern day literature classifies this story as a psychological horror story with strong elements of gothic literature. The horror elements in the story are similar to those used by Edgar Allan Poe. Just like in Poe’s “Tell-tale Heart”, this story is narrated by a seemingly insane narrator. Poe is considered a pioneer writer in the horror-literature genre. The story uses the gothic genre of the 1700s that usually featured scary old mansions and young heroines. This story uses both of these elements.

Gillman used this story as a tool for furthering her feminist campaign. The story depicts the place of women in the society and likens it to being trapped in wallpaper. The episode described by the narrator in this story is eerily similar to Gillman’s experience when she was put under resting cure. Gillman likens resting treatment to being reduced to utter inactivity and thereby being subject to mental disorders. Today, post partum depression is treated by releasing anxiety instead of pilling it up by subjecting a patient to inactivity.

Jack London and Stephen Crane

Man always believes he is in control until he comes face to face with the unforgiving and uncaring nature. Various writers have addressed such unfortunate turns of events in various avenues. In his story “To Build a Fire”, Jack London details a traveler’s battle with freezing temperatures.

On the other hand, Stephen Crane’s short story “The Open Boat” details the efforts of a group of sailors who are trapped in open sea in a small boat as they battle strong ocean currents. Although these stories were written in different contexts, they both detail the powerlessness of humans in their efforts to control nature.

In both stories, the main characters are overwhelmed by the uncaring nature of the elements. In “To Build a Fire”, the traveler ignores the old man’s advice not to travel in freezing temperatures. However, the traveler ignores the nature of the cold weather to his own peril. In Crane’s story, four men are trying to overcome the ocean’s tides using a boat that is the size of a bathtub after their ship sinks.

The men in the boat are disappointed because even after hours of hard work, when they come near safety the tide still blows them further back into the sea. This is similar to the traveler’s disappointment that in spite of the fact that he can make a fire, the cold weather still gets the best of him. This naturalistic literature was popular during the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

This was a time when human beings were at war with each other, diseases, and harsh climatic conditions. However, the strength of the human will never wavered until the end as demonstrated in the two stories. Whether human beings make it or not in such situations is a matter that is beyond their control.

The narration is done in first person and it involves a woman who is confined by her husband who acts as a physician in a bedroom which is upstairs in a house which has been rented for summer. The woman is prevented from performing her chores as she has been diagnosed as suffering from a slight nervous depression. The room’s wallpaper is yellow and this woman becomes obsessed by the color and the patterns of the wallpaper ‘the color is dull and confuses the eyes, provoke studies and when watched closely can lead to one committing suicide’ (Charlotte, pp 4).

She claims that the smell of this yellow paper is unpleasant and ultimately imagines that behind the patterns are women who are creeping and believes she is part of them and locks herself in the room refusing to quit when the period of rent is up ‘Outside you crawl on ground where all is green and not yellow unlike here where the floor is smooth, shoulders fit around and its easy to find the way’ (Charlotte, pp 16)

The husband aims to perform therapy to the wife by what is scientific and observable so as to recover from the depression but instead she progress to madness. He treats his wife as powerless patient and serves her as a physician.The woman could have a suffering of postpartum psychosis because she had given birth recently. By locking her in the room upstairs it shows the husband is oblivious and dictatorial and this worsens her condition ‘John would not listen’ (Charlotte, pp 4).

The woman devotes her journal entries to giving a description of the wallpaper ‘yellow’ and its smell is ‘breakneck’. She gives a description of its pattern as patched and leaves smears of yellow color on clothes and skin of one touching it. This suggests that she was the one shredding this wallpaper. She becomes obsessed and describes the room as a nursery which had kids who disliked the wallpaper just like she did. As she spends more time in this room, the wallpaper seems to mutate particular in moonlight.

Having the only stimuli as the wallpaper, the designs and patterns appears more intriguing such that a woman figure appears in the pattern which makes her conclude that this figure is making effort to escape and creeps behind the bars. ‘This woman behind is shaking it’ (Charlotte, pp 9).

As summer approach the end, the woman borrows permission to leave this room but John refuses and warns her not to say a word for the same. She takes her entire period of the night watching the paper and her daytime while sleeping. She progress into insanity entirely and thinks she is the one who got through from the wallpaper and strips off the left designs trying to conceal her obsession with fear that her husband may decide to re-diagnose her & his sister will still be with them.

She locks the room on the last summer day so as to peel the rest of the wallpaper and refuses to open when John comes back home and orders him to pick the key outside the window. John opens and finds she is creeping around while making circles on the wall. She exclaims that she is free at last which makes John to faint ‘I am out at last… you cannot hinder me’. The woman continues to make circles in the room while stepping over him each lap she makes (Charlotte, pp 16).

Feminist critics have condemned the story suggesting that the woman should have been working other than resting, interact with society other than isolation, and become a responsible mother other than being isolated from her kid. This woman has no voice and the language used describes her as irrational and the marriage points out inequality. This is a gothic literature as it touches on issues of powerlessness and madness. The ghosts from the wallpaper meant at driving her insane qualify the story to be a horror fiction. Domestic sphere concept is achieved in the story where women are subordinate in marriage and her domestic work while men are shown to play an active role.

As the story concludes, the woman acquires freedom and realizes she couldn’t live locked behind bars. John faints and the woman creeps over him. This symbolizes that she attains superiority over him and achieved in controlling the husband.

Works cited

Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The Yellow Wallpaper.Orchises Press, 1990.

Introduction

This argumentative essay focuses on “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It examines how the description of the paper reflects the narrator’s changing character.

The Description of the Paper & the Narrator’s Changing Character

The yellow paper description reveals how women were determined to defy the powers that were imposed on them by men and hence create new roles for themselves. Women, therefore, challenged the patriarchal ideologies and moved beyond the restrictions to free from enslavement.

The yellow paper thus shows women’s relentless pursuit to gain freedom in society did not value the role of women. The description of the yellow paper shows the life of a girl who was eager and ready to read books to get ideas on how she can free from slavery in a male-dominated society. The description thus reflects how the narrator was desperate to read at times when women were not allowed to read any book (Golden and Gilman 3).

The yellow paper also shows how women suffered as a result of reading privately. The story thus portrays the transformative reading potential in that had the narrator failed to realize that the reading has the potential to transform her. The other women in the society could remain in slavery in their entire life. The reading transformed the narrator in that she started being sensitive that she started to realize that the room in which she was being locked in had one window only.

The narrator began to view the house from a different perspective, and she says that “there is something strange about the house.” She hated the room, and she could explain the kind of her desired one. A room with pizza and roses is what she tells she desires. The yellow paper thus reflects the narrator’s changing character in that her eyes were open, and she began dreaming of better things in her life. She began to challenge John’s ideas concerning the room.

The narrator gained courage over time to express her ideas in writing. Even though John would think the writing idea as absurd, the narrator was determined to express her feelings. The narrator wished that John could allow her to leave that place. The issue of talking to John was not that easy, but the narrator eventually expressed her feelings.

The yellow paper reflects the narrators changing character in that life eventually turned out to be more exciting than before. As a result, her determination to read and flee herself, the narrator was successful in her mission. She was able to overcome oppression. The narrator’s hope for a better tomorrow was restored, and she had something in which to expect. She was in a position to feed for herself well, and she lived a quiet life as opposed to before.

The yellow paper enabled the narrator to discover something which she never knew before. She discovered that women possess equal power as men, and so, to be recognized in society, women must stand up and fight for their rights (Gilman 7).

Conclusion

The description of the yellow paper reflects the narrator’s changing character. The yellow paper helped to transform the narrator in that she was able to establish her rightful role in society.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte. The Yellow Wallpaper, this edition. London: Routledge, 1997.

Golden, Catherine & Gilman, Charlotte. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s Yellow Wallpaper: a sourcebook and critical edition. London: Routledge, 2004.