“The yellow Wallpaper” is a cut throat short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and it tries to reconstruct the nature of American women lives and their roles in the nineteenth century society .During the era, women were treated as mere objects and men tried as much as possible to use their skills, power and ability to dominate and limit women.
The protagonist of the story Charlotte Perkins Gilman is the narrator and she describes her life as a woman, mother, and wife. Immediately after the birth of her son, she is presented to suffer from a mental disorder described as 'post-partum depression,' where after the diagnosis she is instructed by her husband and the doctor to abandon her reading and writing activities and avoid by all means any thought-provoking influence such as doing house chores and taking care of the baby (Marci 9). Regardless of her husband and doctors warning, she does surreptitiously write her thoughts in a journal, where her husband is established as the final decision maker, and as a woman she is required to undertake the role of a loving and charming wife and mother. Despite her mental condition, her husband categorically refuses to admit she is ill, and instead she takes her to a summer home, with yellow wallpapers, in order to have the required rest. In the summer home she feels she is going against what the society expects of her and exhibits a sign of guilt, where at one time she says, “It does weigh on me so not to do my duty in any way!” (Gilman 72). Even though she as no say on the prescribed therapy, the short story shows that she does not agree to it, and the feeling of oppression and boredom makes her to put her thoughts in writing. The consequence of her inner struggle of misunderstanding and mistreatment regenerate her mental condition leading to full blown psychotic episode. The summer house, with yellow wallpapers, she regarded as disgusting now becomes her source of inspiration and refuge, and insanity becomes her source of freedom (Elaine 7).
Of all themes, the main theme that clearly establishes itself in this story relates to the role of a woman in the society. The society required women to act and behave as loving and charming wives and mothers, and still remain within the domestic sphere of “marriage”. Apart from adhering to social requirements of being a loyal wife and mother, women were treated like mere objects, and at some point the protagonist says, “John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage" (Gilman 70).This reveals that the protagonist clearly knew her acquiescent role in marriage, despite the fact that men viewed them like children or stupid people. The protagonist husband is established as a typical man and husband of the period, and this shows that men where highly regarded in the society where men where represented more than women in a number of activities and events, and that’s why many women just like the protagonist held no jobs and their responsibilities was majorly that of taking care of the house and family. Men tried as much as possible to use their skills, power and ability to dominate and limit women, and this is evident in the manner John speaks and treats to the protagonist (Lucy 5)
Works Cited
Elaine, Fortin. Early Nineteenth Century Attitudes Toward Women and Their Roles as
Represented By Literature Popular in Worcester, Massachusetts. Retrieved from < http://www.teachushistory.org/detocqueville-visit-united-states/articles/early-19th- century-attitudes-toward-women-their-roles > on 30th March ,2012.
Gilman, Charlotte. The Yellow Wallpaper: Third Series1896. American Literature Since the Civil
War. Create edition. McGraw-Hill, 2011. P.70-81.Print.
Lucy, Hawke .Gender Roles within American Marriage: Are They Really Changing?. ESSAI:
Vol. 5, Article 23 pg .2 – 6, 2008.Print.
Marci ,Bounds .Black Women, Mothering, and Protest in 19th Century American Society.
The Journal of Pan African Studies, vol.2, no.01, November 2007. Print.
