Perkins

The short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, takes place in the 19th century. The story begins just after the main character Jane gives birth to her first child. Shortly after she suffers from what is now known as postpartum depression. She tells the story through a series of diary entries which she keeps a secret from her husband as this disobeys her medical instructions. “The Yellow Wallpaper” explains the importance of American feminist literature, as well as attitudes…

“Women are pretty much people, seems to me” (Gilman, 38). These are the words that Charlotte Perkins Gilman, a famous feminist author, uses in one of her famous short stories, “If I Were a Man”, in an attempt to break down the walls of misogyny built up by society in the mid-nineteenth century. In this story (and many of her other stories), Gilman portrays the common idea that women are lesser than men. She then discredits this idea by creating thought-provoking female characters that break the…

The Yellow Wallpaper A Character Analysis Charlotte Perkins Intro A story of a young woman devolving into madness, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins, details the narrator’s initial normalcy turn towards hysterical and delusional thoughts. The main character starts out as Jane whose identity becomes more and more confused toward the end of the story. Her husband, John, is a physician and takes responsibility for Jane’s care with the help of his sister Jennie. John insists on keeping…

emotionally and physically. But, this simple fact was once used to justify a dark reality. In the history of mental illness, women’s complicated mental and biological nature was seen as a disability and resulted in mistreatment and abuse. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” captures this abuse and creates a vivid description of it from the eyes of an unidentified woman. The significance of this story lies not only in it’s unique literary technique but, in it’s unsettling passages…

Unabashed and slightly eccentric, Charlotte Perkins Gilman delivers a story of the chaotic mess known as reality. Gilman’s “The Yellow Wall-Paper”, is a story that has been both criticized and debated about the true nature of the piece. With some readers claiming it to be a ghost story, and others believing the story as one of a controlling relationship between man and wife. While there appears to be an element that can only be described as eerie or ghostlike, this story is not one of ghosts.…

The first person narration in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” allows the reader to gain an understanding of the main character through her dialogue, actions, and thoughts. Throughout the story, the narrator thoroughly describes the setting, which changes in her mind, over the course of her stay in the rental house. This change in the narrator's perception of the house and the world outside of her bedroom can allow readers to understand her feelings of isolation, depression,…

Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote the short story, “The Yellow Wallpaper,” to mirror her own experience coping with the improper treatment of her postpartum depression. In the story, the protagonist (who will be henceforth referenced as the narrator) believes engaging in intellectually and socially stimulating activities will be the best course of treatment for her depression. However, her husband, John, disagrees and forces her to follow Dr. Mitchell Weir’s famous “rest cure” regimen: “Mitchell’s…

women to be dominated by men. In literature, during the 19th century, women were often portrayed as submissives to men. During this time period women were controlled by “superiors” like their husbands or fathers. “ The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is an excellent example of literature that portrays the submissions of women toward men. “ The Yellow Wallpaper” is an accurate ,useful description of the process of a woman's descent into madness through oppression. Hysteria was…

Contribution of Oppression To Charlottes Mental Distress Charlotte Perkins Gilman, in the “The Yellow Wallpaper” uses an unusual writing style for her journal-like story; as a result revealing her gradual mental breakdown throughout the story. The excessive usage of “and” and dashes implies withheld information and shows lack of coherency between her sentences and thoughts while the use of exclamation mark shows her nervous excitement. Although, John fails to understand his…

Arian Rivera Ms. Paterson Honors 10 Literature 20 February, 2017 Oppression in The Yellow Wallpaper The story The Yellow Wallpaper written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in 1892 depicts a young woman suffering through both oppression and depression. Seen as “a man’s property” during the 19th century. Families could be classified as patriarchal with the me being the breadwinner and the women staying back to tend to normal house duties. Women during this time would suffer through oppressive states…