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The Yellow Wallpaper And The Story Of An Hour

756 Words4 Pages

Kendra Hill
Professor Deanna Bradberry
ENG 246-95
6 April 2023

19th Century Women’s Literature and Today’s Society The remarkable short stories “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “The Story of An Hour” are two important works of literature that portray how women were treated in the 19th century. Both these stories show how women of this time were prevented from having any type of personal or artistic growth. Fortunately, this highly restricted lifestyle that women had in the 19th century has greatly decreased. However, every day, in every country in the world, women are still being challenged by discrimination and inequality. In a wide variety of countries in the world, women face some sort of job restriction and do not receive equal pay for equal …show more content…

During Gilman’s time, the man’s role was to be the thinker and the woman’s role was to be a dutiful wife who does not question her husband. The narrator of the short story says, “It is so hard to talk with John about my case, because he is so wise, and because he loves me so.” The narrator assumes that her husband, John, knows everything. The narrator starts to question herself instead, her condition worsens as a result of her thinking John always knows best. Fixed gender roles like the ones in “The Yellow Wallpaper” are still in effect today. In today’s society, women are expected to dress in feminine ways and always act nurturing and polite. Men are expected to be strong and aggressive. Although fewer women are staying at home and more are going to college, the use of gender roles is still in effect to this day. Society declares that women pursue traditional nurturing professions, such as nurses or teachers. Furthermore, society also believes that traditionally men should pursue careers such as doctors or technicians. In today’s society, women are not being locked away in rooms for “treatment” like in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” yet a lot of the ways that women are shown to be inferior to men in this short story are still being applied …show more content…

During this time, this independence was only available to women through the death of a wealthy husband, leaving the woman with money and no need to remarry to survive. In the story, Mrs. Louise Mallard whispered to herself after hearing the news of her husband’s death, “Free! Body and soul free!” This story is very ironic because as soon as Mr. Mallard dies, Mrs. Mallard is just beginning to live. Mrs. Mallard was one of those women who played a role instead of doing what she pleased. Mrs. Mallard and Mr. Mallard’s relationship did not consist of genuine love, but instead of Mrs. Mallard’s obedience to her husband. Women in today’s society can still relate to being disregarded for their capabilities. Although women have indeed seen improvements, they are still seen as inferior in a lot of situations. In certain professions, women are still not receiving the same pay as men, even though they have the same responsibilities for their occupations. In “The Story of An Hour,” the women during this time were expected to stay home and do their domestic chores. There is still relevance to this today as women are usually caring for the children and doing household chores. Just like in “The Story of An Hour,” sexism is also present in today’s American

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