ipl-logo

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper

711 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Charlotte perkins gilman and her relationship with the yellow wallpaper

----------------The yellow wallpaper is a short story which shows the regressive and condescending treatment of “hysterical” women. The author writes about the common “rest cure” which women had to endure to “cure” their mental problems. The book came out in 1892 and created an outrage across the country by the more dominant sex in the era – the male sex. One physician in Boston obviously felt offended as he responded with; “Such a story ought not to be written… it is enough to drive anyone mad to read.”. Because of comments like this, Charlotte Perkins Gilman did not find success until the middle of the 20th century. Gilman was however looking for a kind of revenge or a feeling of satisfaction knowing that the “rest-cure” doctor, S. Weir …show more content…

Her life long dream was to become a writer and after a month on the cure she was told; “ live as domestic a life as possible… and never touch pen, brush or pencil as long as you live.” After a month on this regiment she said that she was close to losing her mind. Therefor, many believe that The Yellow Wallpaper indeed is a autobiography describing her own life and fears. Two of the themes in the story is isolation and insanity. Not insanity in the sense that the cure is supposed to help, but rather insanity because of the cure and the mind numbing process of curing a woman’s “hysteria” as mental health issues would be called in that era. As well as isolation because of the same reason. (Editors, 2017) -----------------In the short story we encounter a variety of different symbols placed there by the author Charlotte Perkins Gillman. One of the many symbols in the story is the title, which is The Yellow Wallpaper. The color yellow is for many associated with strangeness, cowardice, inferiority, ugliness, and

Show More
Related

Imagery And Symbolism In The Yellow Wallpaper

441 Words | 2 Pages

In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the author uses various literary devices to express the themes in the story. Such as the nursery, this represents her sanity, and the doctor that had treated her mental illness, and wouldn’t let her write. Whereas the

Read More

Susan Glaspell's The Yellow Wall-Paper

585 Words | 3 Pages

In the beginning of The Yellow Wall-Paper the narrator see’s that her husband believes she is hysterical for a term; whereas, she believed there was something wrong (Gilman 486). The narrator sees rest as her last concern, she wants to be able to work and write so she ends up doing so in secret (Gilman 487). With each segment, she grows

Read More

The Yellow Wallpaper Postpartum Psychosis

1116 Words | 5 Pages

Like the narrator, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the story’s author, had suffered from post-partum depression and was prescribed the rest cure. The rest cure’s impact on Gilman was similar to the impact the treatment had on the narrator in which Gilman “came so near the borderline of utter mental ruin” (Gilman). However, unlike the narrator, Gilman was helped by a wise friend and went back to work “ultimately recovering some measure of power” (Gilman). With proper treatment and support, Gilman was able to pick herself back up from mental ruin and write “The Yellow Wallpaper” to share the adverse effects the rest cure had on women. Gilman states, the story “was not intended to drive people crazy, but to save people from being driven crazy, and it worked.”

Read More

The Yellow Wallpaper And How It Addresses Societal Topics

2023 Words | 9 Pages

“The Yellow Wallpaper” and How it Addresses Societal Topics “The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is about a woman who gets diagnosed with a “temporary nervous depression” (Gilman 648). The story details her mental health and how it is deteriorating. She gets diagnosed by her husband, who is also her physician, and even though he does not actually believe her to be sick he decides that the best thing to do for her is to move them to an isolated mansion in the country. Additionally, the narrator, who is the unnamed woman, is not allowed to write because according to John it will make her depression worse. However, she doesn’t listen and keeps a diary without his knowledge, in which she describes her treatment as well as

Read More

Gender Roles In The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

1174 Words | 5 Pages

Can you imagine being trapped in a room with walls that seem to close in on you, all while being suffocated by a yellow wallpaper that haunts your every thought? Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" brings this eerie reality to life, drawing on her own experiences and beliefs to create a gripping tale that challenges societal norms and delves into the history of mental health and gender roles. Through its vivid portrayal of a woman's descent into madness, it delves into themes of feminism, mental health, and gender roles. One influential approach to understanding this literary masterpiece is through biographical criticism. Perkins Gilman's own life and beliefs shaped "The Yellow Wallpaper," examining her personal struggles with

Read More

Mental Health In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper

2118 Words | 9 Pages

Mental health has been a prominent theme used in many works of literature. Through their writing, authors are able to bring to light the stigma surrounding mental health. Through vivid imagery, colorful language, and thoughtful narratives, literary works are able to provide a glimpse into the complexities of the human mind. In Charlotte Perkins Gillman’s story The Yellow Wallpaper, Gillman tells the story of a woman who is on bedrest due to what she is told is a temporary nervous condition. By telling the story through the lens of the narrator, Gillman is able to convey the story on a much more personal level, allowing her audience to experience what it is like in the mind of a woman suffering from what appears to be postpartum depression, among many other harrowing psychological

Read More

How To Write An Analytical Essay On The Yellow Wallpaper

1253 Words | 6 Pages

“Unraveling Reality: A Psychological Exploration of ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’” In the eerie confinement short story of “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the patient assigned for examination is a woman from the late 19th century who grapples with her disconcerting mental state. What was initially believed to be an ordinary case of postpartum distress was proven to be much more after learning that she was isolated in an unfamiliar location by her husband in a misguided and misinformed attempt to “cure” her of her illness. This clinical psychologist report, written after thorough research, aims to explore further and explain the leading causes of her slow descent into madness and the symbiotic relationship between social constraints

Read More

The Yellow Wallpaper Essay

1050 Words | 5 Pages

“The Yellow Wallpaper” is a semi-autobiographical short story by author Charlotte Perkins Gilman that was initially published in 1892. The story follows the narrator, a mother, living in the 19th century who had been prescribed the oppressive rest cure by her physician who also happens to be her husband. The rest of the cure requires her to isolate herself from society within the walls of a room and eventually begins writing a diary in secrecy. Her slow spiral into insanity leads her to become unphased by the bars on windows but obsessed with a yellow wallpaper which she goes to great lengths to describe in utter detail. She begins seeing strange patterns on the wallpaper that slowly get more and more strange and intrigue her more and more, enticing her to rip the wallpaper off which she was beginning to despise more and more as a

Read More

Summary Of Themes In The Yellow Wallpaper

165 Words | 1 Pages

Themes prevalent in “The Yellow Wallpaper” include; self expression, independence, freedom, and marriage. This story shows the psychological horrors one endures as a woman struggling with postpartum depression in the 1800’s. Self expression was one of the most important themes of this story. The restrictions put on Charlotte affected her mental state heavily. Being forced to remain in a false state of happiness and ignore her actual feelings drives her further into insanity.

Read More

Charlotte Perkin's The Yellow Wallpaper

518 Words | 3 Pages

Who would imagine that the author behind the great story “Yellow Wallpaper” will end up mentally ill? She was a loving and beautiful wife to a hardworking doctor. In the beginning of the film, the narrator begins with describing the grandeur house that they were in with her husband and family for the summer vacation. She begins wandering how they got the house, and why it seemed it had forgotten so long. She was also wandering why her husband picked their room with a yellow wallpaper As their lives moving forward all through their summer vacation, in which her husband was the controller, the mental conflict began.

Read More

The Yellow Wallpaper Essay

1588 Words | 7 Pages

The personal aspect of The Yellow Wallpaper is not only the reason so much accountability was held to doctors and psychologists during the 19th century, but also an incredibly inspiring piece that led many women to stop driving themselves crazy. The protagonist suffers from hysteria due to isolation, and a large part of this is the influence the room she is kept in has on

Read More

The Yellow Wallpaper Mental Illness

979 Words | 4 Pages

Mental Illness There are several important topics in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper. ”Throughout the story the narrator is experiencing severe mental illnesses. The audience can see the build up of the narrator's mental health and the way it declines throughout the short story. Gilman explains signs of madness, depression, despair, and negative self worth. The narrator has nothing to keep herself busy since she is required bed rest by her husband (Gilman 571).

Read More

Theme Of Mental Illness In The Yellow Wallpaper

562 Words | 3 Pages

The story “The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in 1892 shows mental illness through the narrator first hand. The theme in this story is going insane verses loneliness as well as being trapped. These themes are shown through the main character (the narrator of the story) as she works through her own mind, life, and surroundings. First, the theme of the woman’s state of mind is the main focus in this story.

Read More

Examples Of Postpartum Depression In The Yellow Wallpaper

1106 Words | 5 Pages

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the narrator, Jane, has postpartum depression. In order to cure this depression, John, Jane’s husband and a doctor, administer the rest treatment on her. Gilman wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper” through her personal experience. Along with writing “The Yellow Wallpaper” she wrote an explanation for why she wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper.”

Read More

Personification In The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

779 Words | 4 Pages

The short story, The Yellow Wallpaper, written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is a brilliant piece of fictional literature. The tale involves a mentally ill woman who is kept in a hideous, yellow room under the orders of her husband, John, who is a physician. The ill woman is conflicted due to the fact that the horrifying yellow wallpaper in the room is trapping a woman who she must help escape, but the sick woman is aware that she must get better in order to leave the terrifying, yellow room. The setting and personification applied in the short story, The Yellow Wallpaper, allows readers to develop an understanding of the sickness of the main character faces.

Read More

More about Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper

Open Document