The Yellow Wallpaper Gender Analysis

In “The Yellow Wallpaper” Charlotte Gilman creates a comparison of power between the narrator and her husband through the use of sexism. The narrator, after the Fourth of July, remarks, “John says if I don’t pick up faster he shall send me to Weir Mitchell in the fall,” (3). Through this, she presents John’s ultimatum in a way that makes him look as if he is domineering. She implies that she has no say, and that he has the final decision on any of the actions that happen in order to heal her illness of depression. He is simply the dominant one in the relationship, a male with the power to control whatever happens to her. He also forces her to try to get better by herself, refusing to take in the fact that she may not have control over her own emotions at this point.

This continues with his demeaning manner as he says, “What is it, little girl?” (5). Often, “girl” represents a female who is often immature and puerile. This shows he thinks of her as beneath him and she is something that should not even be recognized as an equal. Finally, there is the instance where he tells her that her temperament is, “... a false and foolish fancy,” asking her to “trust [him] as a physician when [he tells her] so,” (5). In this dialogue, John puts the fact that he is a physician over anything she has to say. Within the time period this short story was written in, doctors were often male and being one was often associated with high stature, logic, and upper-class life. Within that same era, women were not allowed to do such masculine jobs. This resulted in them having to resort to other professions such as writing; however, writers, unlike doctors, were often portrayed as creative, imaginative, and poor. Such qualities were simply not valued as much as those of doctors at the time. John takes advantage of this and asserts his stature by telling her what to