Reflective Essay On The Yellow Wallpaper

Through her many stories, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, developed the notion of how being a strong independent woman can be inspirational to all. The expression of her personal feelings and opinions behind the guise of a seemingly fictional story brings new life to the story itself. During the nineteenth century, there were many stereotypes on what was expected from women. In the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” Gilman composes the story of a woman who suffers from postpartum depression and stares at yellow wallpaper. Seeing that Gilman herself has experienced this form of mental illness, we can analyze the context of the text and see the reflection of her own life and in “The Yellow Wallpaper.” “The Yellow Wallpaper” starts off with two characters, John and a woman who is unnamed. The woman has recently had a baby and is showing signs of

He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him” (Gilman 314). This text gives evidence that the woman is suffering, but despite that John views her as being over dramatic. It is clear to us that the woman needs more psychological help, as opposed to the physical treatment of constant rest that John prescribes her. John puts as much distance as possible between the woman and her friends as well as her family. He starts by putting her away in the upstairs room of their vacation home: the room with the yellow wallpaper. She has to take medicine every hour and he continuously takes care of her when he’s not away at work. John only saw her condition as a nervous depression, without knowing what it actually was. Locking her away seemed like the best idea in his head. Other reasons why he might have put her way could be that he thought she was crazy. Her tendencies to obsess over unimportant things, such as the intricate detailing of the yellow wallpaper, were most likely worrisome to John. Perhaps he figured locking her away would tame her wild and obsessive