Originally published in 1892, “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is considered to be one of the pillars of feminist literature. The short story, based on the author’s own experience with postpartum depression, is a dramatic narrative highlighting the horrors of the poor medical advice she received to treat her condition. The “rest cure”, pioneered by Dr. Weir Mitchell, was a commonly prescribed period of inactivity thought to cure hysteria and other nervous conditions in women in the 19th century. Characterized by her obsession with the wallpaper in her room, the story chronicles the unnamed narrator’s descent into madness as a result of the Victorian “rest cure”.
Thesis: Although the autobiographical aspects of the story
Thesis: Although the autobiographical aspects of the story