Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” Book Review

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” is undoubtedly a masterpiece. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a great example of feminism studies in the field of literature. The work of Charlotte Perkins Gilman is and will always be considered to be a very important story for the definition of feminism and bashing the male patriarchal society. The inspiration to write The Yellow Wallpaper for Charlotte Perkins Gilman was not so usual. Her marriage with a doctor and married life which was dull and irritating according to the story was the inspiration for The Yellow Wallpaper. Charlotte Perkins Gilman was mostly suffering from depression, mental health problems and it is believed the depression came mainly from her marriage. The author of the story had to undergo several treatments. This failure of the marriage was the inspiration for Gilman to write The Yellow Wallpaper.

“These nervous troubles are dreadfully depressing” – this is a line which is quoted from by The Yellow Wallpaper written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The background and the literature age which inspires the story are very interesting. The narrator and the writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman could highly relate to the story and also the protagonist. The background of the yellow wallpaper has a direct connection with the lives of the women in the 19th century. The women in the 19th century were regularly treated by the doctors as they were believed to be suffering from poor mental health and depression. This mental problem and depression were caused because of the reproductive cycles of the women at that period. The physical and mental strain the women went through for the continuous cycle of reproduction, they showed some signs of depression very easily. The background of the yellow wallpaper illustrates the difficulties women of the 19th-century era had to face if they had ambition. Gilman’s doctor thought that her perspectives were introspective which is clearly shown in the short story written by her. The women of the 19th century were continuously pushed down by the men and their patriarchy. The patriarchal society of the 19th century thought that all the women are too vulnerable. If any women tried to go for any political role, if any women tried to take up so-called male roles, if the women went for their ambition or even had an aim to pursue higher studies, they were severely discarded by the society. The women were accused of flouting out the female conventions and also the women put themselves at risk for having an unhealthy mind. Charlotte Perkins Gilman was very concerned about political inequality and also social justice which was reflecting in her writings. But the main context that cannot be missed is her views on the injustice of the women especially in the matter of marriage. She was driven by the desire which could not be fulfilled, that desire was for self-expression.

The yellow wallpaper contained many symbols that represent how much the author herself connected to the story and how much was she waiting to gain freedom. The wallpaper in the wall driven the protagonist crazy, the symbol of the wallpaper affected the author Charlotte Perkins Gilman also. The narrator finds herself trapped in the society, in the family, in the marriage, and also in the tradition and she connects this with the yellow wallpaper that was in the room. At first, the wallpaper seemed old, rusty, and dirty but then some patterns were noticed by the protagonist. After noticing for a very long time the protagonist noticed that it was a desperate woman who is trying to come out. The protagonist used to see a ghostly pattern of that woman which was only visible at a certain amount of light. The woman in the wallpaper tries to get out but she is in the cages and she cannot come out, the woman cannot achieve her freedom. The wallpaper in the story portrays the mindset of Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The author poured her feelings and realizations into the story. Gilman uses the condition of the wallpaper such as hideous, dirty, and trapped. Gilman clearly expressed through the wallpaper that the torn up and frustrated women are trapped in families and societies. Charlotte Perkins Gilman was her saviour and her torturer and well at some points in the story.

The Yellow Wallpaper has a very big impact as the feminist gothic part is visible in the short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It has nearly taken more than a century to understand the true meaning and the expression of the author’s The Yellow Wallpaper. It is a brilliant example of psychological horror and well as the theme of feminism and gothic. The Victorian patriarchy was completely smashed by the feministic short story by Gilman. The short story might contain many gothic and thriller toppings but beneath that layer, the wonderful tale of freedom, expression, and repression lies. The symbolism of the freedom and the terror was only visible by the narrator’s eyes and the eyes of the author Gilman. The Victorian idea of “rest cure” was another push that affected the mental health of the author and the narrator of The Yellow Wallpaper. The feminist connotations cannot but discussed and taken into consideration from the story. John, who was the husband of the protagonist in the story, can be moulded into the patriarchy itself. Language is such an important tool and the men always use it to push women. The expression and voice of women are very necessary. Charlotte Perkins Gilman has used symbolism slightly and told about her feeling while continuing with the male dominative thinking as well. In the opening of the story, the author makes it very clear that the husband was dominant in the story. Even in the private life of the author, she was too submissive and respectful towards the men in her life. Her active imagination is shown by the following story and how much she wants to express herself. The author implies in the story that John, who was the protagonist’s husband was very different from her. She also mentioned in the story that John thought that the ideas of the narrator were jokes. By this, we understand how Gilman was writing about the suppression she faced from her personal life. The author’s brother is another figure of male dominance in her life. In the realm of patriarchy, the author cannot express herself so she chooses another path to do so. The author as the narrator finds the house very beautiful and the surroundings very friendly. The house was surrounded by green and the author used symbolism to tell that the house at first seemed very friendly and passionate. The imagination and the expression of the author wanted to be free but the male figures around her tried to tell her to stop imagining and also to control the expression and her feelings. The author got disapproved all her life constantly and this also created an impact in the protagonist of the story where the feminine character in hr always faced disapproval. The author’s and also the protagonist’s general feeling and also her marriage was like the wallpaper in the wall, old, dirty, and ready to be teased off. The narrator in the story did not like the room that her husband John had selected, it was a nursery and the narrator liked a room on the ground floor which was filled with warmth. The thinking of the author undoubtedly matches with the thinking of the narrator. This context tells us how the author did not want to have a baby right away but she was again pushed by the terrible patriarchal society. The author wants to set her soul free but she is unable to reach her freedom. In the story, we also see how the author is describing her captivity. The narrator thinks that the room is ugly, the author thinks that the room is like a cage in which she is held captive. The author calls the yellow wallpaper “dull but irritating” which is connected to the author’s marriage life. The women were compelled to be married to someone to spend their life even if they want to do that. The author as a woman of ambition could not stand that she could not control her own life. It was very irritating and a sad fact for her. Staying in the room, staying in the cage, the author feels like she is lacking all kinds of strength. The author is very defeated by the fact that some male figure is continuously controlling her life. The author as a woman slips into the hands of madness and wants freedom but she cannot achieve it. The men always ignored women just because of gender. The narrator in the story sees a woman in the wallpaper, here the author has played a trick of symbolism and also tried to express the feeling that she had been holding for so long. As the author’s unhappiness grows and the desperation of the author which is followed by the narrator is shown in the story, the narrator gets more and more conscious about the fact that she can see a woman in the wallpaper. The author can see herself and all the women of the 19th century trapped in society and crying to be free.

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This story is based on the experience Charlotte Perkins Gilman had as a woman in the 19th century who is expected to be perfect, have a baby, and be submissive to the society. The social order in the story is very oppressive. The narrator of Gilman and somehow herself is imprisoned within the marriage and her house too. Gilman was a socialist, feminist, and novelist too. The rest cure which was proposed to Gilman was devastating especially for all the women who have an ambition in their lives. The women who went through the rest cure were not allowed to touch a pen, pencils, or even a brush. They were not allowed to express themselves or even experience anything that someone might enjoy. The Yellow Wallpaper screams out the necessity of having financial independence and also to have an equal status in marriage. The story concentrates on how much the women of the 19th century had to suffer after giving birth to their children and also going through horrifying depression. The shifting consciousness of the mind of the narrator was connected to the mind of the author herself. The author perceived reality in a different way than her husband which is visible in the story The Yellow Wallpaper. The male society always tells the women what they had at that time and there was no way to argue with that. In the story, John tells the narrator that she has nervous exhaustion and the narrator has to way but to agree to her husband’s words. Gilman was forbidden to do many things when she was going through the depression so when the narrator and the protagonist of the story go through the same time, she has no option but to express her feelings to the dead papers. In the writings, the author projects her mental disintegration with the patterns that she sees on the walls. Gilman wanted the women to find meaning in the lives of the 19th century. The Gilman’s captivity is depicted through the woman who was the protagonist of the story as well as the woman who was living inside the wallpaper. Many women are trapped in the hands of society and injustice. The author made the narrator rip out the wallpaper so that the women can be freed from that. The author tried to send a message to free all the women of the 19th century who were being held captive, who were not allowed to express themselves. The Yellow Wallpaper is not just a story but it is indeed a terrific masterpiece that indulges several themes and emotions written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.