How Does Vonnegut Use Imagery In The Yellow Wallpaper

Jenierre Domingo

Ms. Pilipshen

Honors English III

10 March 2023

The Power of Imagery in Assessing Dystopian Traits upon Literary Works Although authors and narrators create the plot for novels and stories, the element of imagery is crucial to fully immerse readers in the story. When constructing a novel, writers often create an entirely new world and environment in which the best way for readers to visualize the literary elements and fully engage with the story is through the use of imagery. Stetson, Vonnegut, and Cline are among the authors who recognize and emphasize on the importance of imagery to provide readers with multiple perspectives and allow them to evaluate dystopian characteristics in various situations. In “The Yellow Wallpaper,”

To portray these possibilities, Kurt Vonnegut emphasized on the importance of imagery to help the reader conceive the idea of a society where everybody was put on limitations and restrictions. In 1961, Vonnegut published “Harrison Bergeron” in which he interprets his own idea of conformity put in society by utilizing imagery to help the reader apprehend this dystopian characteristic. In Vonnegut’s world of a restricted society, all citizens are handicapped both physically and mentally. The main character, Harrison Bergeron, causes an uproar in public when he shows his display of frustration concerning the restrictions. In the short story, it is described that on stage, “Harrison’s scrap-iron handicaps crashed to the floor. Harrison thrust his thumbs under the bar of the padlock that secured his head harness. The bar snapped like celery. Harrison smashed his headphones and spectacles against the wall” (Vonnegut 5). In this particular moment of the story, Vonnegut portrays how the audience, as well as Harrison’s parents, are stunned by the events unfolding on stage. Through the use of descriptive language, the author displays all the handicaps Harrison faces due to conformity as well as his frustration and resentment towards this restrictive society, offering the reader a glimpse into his perspective on the

In the science fiction novel Ready Player One vivid imagery is used to convey one’s fear of the outside world, illustrating a society in which people are forced to escape into a virtual reality in order to avoid the harsh realities of the real world. It is set in a bleak future where the real world has become so desolate and dangerous due to climate change thus people resort to spending time in a virtual reality called the OASIS. The descriptions of the outside world serve to emphasize the harshness of this environment, with the streets described as “gray and lifeless” and the human civilization “collapsing” (Cline 18). The main character, Wade Watts, shortly after shows his appreciation for the OASIS as he states, “Luckily, I had access to the OASIS, which was like having an escape hatch into a better reality. The OASIS kept me sane. It was my playground and my preschool, a magical place where anything was possible” (Cline 18). Through these descriptions, the reader is able to grasp the problem facing the characters and the immense scale of the challenges they will face later on in the story. Through his portrayal of bot the real and virtual worlds in the novel, Cline effectively conveys the idea of the dystopian characteristic fear of the outside world by utilizing imagery and