The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

In the 19th century, society leaned more into a patriarchy, where women were commonly treated as second-class in every aspect compared to men, including when it pertains to an individual’s physical or mental health. The main character of the Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is introduced as a genial young woman who seemingly has no underlying problems of her own. As the story progresses, it eventually evolves to portray the main character as this person with a substantial disconnect from her own sanity. She is self-diagnosed with this certain illness, and her physician husband prescribes her with 3 months of uninterrupted rest. He fails to acknowledge that this remedy brings no relief to the main character and her symptoms, and

From the beginning, John insisted the main character practice an absolute absence of any form of labor, and it began to wear on her. At first, she proclaimed her defiance and discontent with this method, stating she believes “congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good,”, but because of the patriarchal environment she resides in, she had no choice but to obey it in hopes of recovering from her illness. In her time period, even those acknowledged as astute in the medical field were oblivious to how their “rest cure” affected those prescribed with it. Developing farther into the story, she explicitly expressed how her appetite is faltering and her sleep schedule is all out of proportion. Furthermore, this all takes place during her time in the nursery room coated in the yellow wallpaper. The reader is able to observe her initial fascination with the yellow wallpaper and how it twists into an unhealthy obsession, symbolizing her cross over to insanity. She verbally expresses her concerns regarding her physical health to John, stating, "I don't weigh a bit more," said I, "nor as much; and my appetite may be better in the evening when you are here, but it is worse in the morning when you are away!" (Stenton

This dilemma continues to the point where they’re flipped on their head and all of a sudden she supposedly feels much better, stating “I’m feeling so much better! I don't sleep much at night, for it is so interesting to watch developments; but I sleep a good deal in the daytime.” (Stenton 654). Her overall health has deteriorated from a lack of physical activity, and as a result the main character loses the last shrouds of her sanity to the yellow