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Comparing Charlotte Perkins Gilman And The Yellow Wallpaper

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Finding Freedom Through Insanity:
Charlotte Perkins Gilman and The Yellow Wallpaper
The early nineteenth-century marked a time for women known as Imperial Motherhood; an era that glorified the reproductive roles of women and scaled a woman’s worth based on her ability and willingness to form unbreakable maternal bonds with her children. Relinquishing herself when she married, a woman of this era was expected to sacrifice her wants, needs, and desires not only to fulfill her obligations to her husband, but to provide selfless and attentive care for her children. Emotional reactions were highly discouraged and outbursts of anger or discontent were viewed as signs of weakness and hysteria (Theroit). During the mid-late-nineteenth century, women began to view marriage and motherhood as more of an …show more content…

Her childhood has been described as “painful and lonely” (484), having never established an intimate bond with either of her parents. After emerging from what appears to have been a deep emotional and physical relationship with a woman who ultimately chose to marry, she continued to support herself as an art instructor, author, and designer of greeting cards while writing poetry depicting societal injustices against women. Foreseeing the impending conflict between her personal ambitions and the societal obligations of being a wife, mother, and housekeeper, Charlotte reluctantly entered into marriage with Charles Stetson in May of 1884 after a lengthy courtship. In March of 1885, she gave birth to their only daughter, Katherine, a mere eleven months into the marriage. Following Katherine’s birth, Charlotte chronicled that she experienced intense and unwavering melancholy and nervousness that contributed to an influx of marital tension (Davis)

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