Hysteria In Emily Grierson's The Yellow Wallpaper

In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Emily Grierson, the narrator, is diagnosed with hysteria, a new affliction created in the 19th century, with symptoms previously belonging to one of the “nervous diseases.” Women were viewed as having delicate minds and bodies at the time, inferior to those of men, and so were susceptible to diseases that could affect their emotional state. Therefore, any sign of depression, excitement, dissatisfaction, etc., indicated one of the “nervous diseases,” including hysteria or hysterical tendencies. A common prescription would include various tonics and in this case, strict rest. It was believed that rest was needed to calm the nervousness the weak female body was experiencing. Emily was essentially quarantined indoors in the top floor of a large abandoned home and not allowed to do any housework, get much of any exercise, or keep her mind active via her writing hobby. John told Emily early on, about her affliction, “nervous weakness like mine is sure to lead to all manner of excited fancies [non-ladylike behavior], and that I ought to use my will and good sense to check the tendency” (Gilman 6). So, she was supposed to sit inside and rest, not experiencing too much excitement, for fear that she might experience more “hysterical fits”.

She desires to write, to engage socially, perhaps in place of her womanly house duties. It seems she is a creative woman, perhaps with an energetic personality. Instead of this being appreciated, the times called for a narrow definition of acceptable womanly behavior. Her husband and brother both act against her, maintaining the thought of the time, that Emily’s femininity is the cause of her “temporary nervous depression - a hysterical tendency” (1). It’s not certain from the reading if Emily was ill at the beginning of the story, or if John’s “treatment” was the cause of her spiral into