The Yellow Wall Paper

The yellow wall paper reveals the struggles that women go through in their quest for freedom of thought. The author, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, tries to bring out the political feminism and the oppression of women. The story puts across the women’s status in the early 19th century when males used to control the societies. The theme is made clear through the personality of John, a self centered husband and the surroundings in which Jane is placed portrays the way women are being imprisoned by men. Jane is the woman imprisoned in marriage. Jane complains that her husband who is also her mental doctor is not concerned about her anymore. As a treatment to her mental illness, she is prohibited from doing anything, even writing. Nevertheless, she starts to write a journal about the way she feels about her husband. The strange formless pattern of the yellow wall paper in the bedroom disturbs her. At the start of her vacation, she successfully hides the journal from John and criticizes his patronizing ways. John is worried about the way she is consumed by the yellow wall paper. She often refuses to refurbish so as to keep away the fear she has.

She loves to look at the people walking in pavements around the house, which is discouraged by John. She describes the bedroom as an elementary unit for young schoolers,-basically a nursery school. Soon Jane becomes possessed by the wall paper, frightening Jennie who is John’s sister and her nurse. At some point John thinks she is improving at her calmness. Moreover she completely destroys the paper on realizing that John and Jennie are aware of her obsession. At the end Jane becomes completely insane. She starts distorting the wall paper, which makes John faint on seeing her. She creeps over him several times.

John used as a protagonist husband looks down upon her. He laughs about the ideas of his wife until she becomes mad. She says that even though John laughs at her, it is expected in marriage. However, when Jane takes the role of her husband, he faints having seen his wife taking control over him. The yellow wallpaper is similar to customs that hinder the protagonists in their quest to achieving their goals in day to day life. The narrator tries to change up a world behind the paper. Jane reverses the way the traditional society thinks of women.