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The Unreliable Narrator In The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

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She may be diagnosed with slight hysteria, and nervous depression, but that is what makes her the best narrator for Charlotte Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”. The unreliable first person point of view in this story is told through journal entries of a slightly hysterical woman undergoing treatment. She is both the protagonist, and the narrator. Thus allowing the woman to share her view of events, as well as sharing her thoughts throughout the story. Charlotte Gilman chose unreliable first person point of view for the story “The Yellow Wallpaper” because it is the best way to truly explain what the protagonist saw and felt. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a collection of journal entries written by a hysteric woman whose treatment includes being locked in a room by her husband. First person narrative is the best way to watch her break from reality unfold before your eyes. The journal entries allow the reader to have an inside look at her insanity. First person point of view brings the reader directly into the protagonist’s thoughts and actions. Without knowing her exact thoughts, the reader would not understand what pushed the protagonist to do certain actions. For instance, …show more content…

“There’s nothing standing between this character’s consciousness and the reader” (Gotham Writers 79). As a result of the protagonist’s thoughts being completely open to the reader; the reader is able to see how unstable the protagonist becomes. The protagonist starts out as a new mother and a loving wife to a physician but slowly turns into an deranged prisoner when her treatment backfires. The protagonist keeps a secret journal which exposes the reader to the protagonist’s darkest thoughts, and actions. The protagonist’s actions are only able to be understood by looking into the mind of the character because of her decline in

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