GenderRoles: A Controlled Female Psyche
Theyellow wall paper story focuses on the narrator’s situation inwhich she is often misunderstood and misjudged by her husband, adoctor, who finds it difficult to comprehend a woman’s psyche. Hebelieves that the only solution is for her to confine herself to herroom and rest. ‘If a physician of a high standing, and one’s ownhusband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothingthe matter with one but temporary nervous depression. What is one todo? Her husband has forbidden her to write because he believes thatit is too taxing so she writes her article in secret. She sleeps in alarge room which she highly believes that it was once a nursery. Theroom contains a bed, barred windows and ugly yellow wallpaper.
Thestory explicit a situation where medical officers found it difficultto deal with women’s mental health problems which were oftenmisdiagnosed. The physicians recommended a rest cure in order tocontrol it. The narrator who was believed to have a nervous conditionis as a result of having given birth recently. The narrator’sconfinement is because of her gender. Women in this story aresupposed to have fulfillment in the home. Men have a high position inthe society than women for example the have the role of being thephysicians. The narrator’s lack of a name shows that she isspeaking as the voice of women as a whole.
Thewriter uses a fictional narrative which has a broad implication forwomen the narrator says ‘There is more than one trapped, creepingwoman ‘.it indicates that it’s beyond an individual situation.The story focuses on the struggles, discrimination and difficultiesfaced by women in seeking freedom of thought. The theme of the storyis clear which is about the imprisonment of women and how they arecontrolled by men. The story is also in the first person narrativebecause there are various impressions that the narrator leaves on thereader. There is the impression that is obtained from the descriptionof her house, the husband’s treatment to the narrator and how sheresponds to the treatment given to her. She says” john is aphysician and perhaps I would not say it to a living soul of course,but this is dead paper and a great relief to my mind’.
Itis quite obvious that the isolation of the narrator did not help hersituation but on the contrary it worsened it. A lot of critism canbe made in order to actually identify the behavior of the narrator.The story advocates for the need and the realization that is vital inensuring for the independency of a woman. It is indeed true that thenarrator is a battling woman who tries to battle her thoughts andfree them. The female character’s anger at not being able to dowhat she wants finds ways of expressing itself initially inunchallenging descriptions from her forced patriarchalsubmissiveness.
Inconclusion, this story brings many aspects that are faced by women.Majority of them have been stipulated above. One major aspect is thatof oppression that is reveled in this story. The environment forwomen is not condusive as it brings a lot of suffering to them. Forexample the narrator’s depression oppresses her. Her inability topull herself out of her mental condition worsens her situation.Instead she is only left to fight it on her own.
WorksCited
Thomas,Deborah. "Charlotte Perkins Gilman" The Yellow Wallpaper."