Post-Partum Depression And Isolation In The Yellow Wallpaper

On the surface, the narrator in The Yellow Wallpaper simply shows an insane woman who began suffering from depression after the birth of her child. The narrator was placed into a house, which was in the middle of nowhere, where she received dangerous treatment and often gets belittled by her husband, who is also her doctor. Her treatment required her not to do anything active, especially writing. Although some would conclude that the narrator of The Yellow Wallpaper is just about an insane woman struggling with post-partum depression and isolation, it shows the protagonists struggle with trying to break out of the mental constraints she has been placed under and her need for self-expression through her journal. The narrator’s way of venting or expressing herself is through her writing. After being placed in the institute, writing has been taken from her. She says that even her husband, who doubles as her doctor, “hates to have me write a word.” (pg.438) Since the narrator thrives to write and it is taken away from her, others think that she is insane. Every time the narrator would try to write, she would be interrupted by John and get denigrated by her. She often thinks that if she was “well enough to write a little
Through being confined in her room, she is forced to fight her illness on her own while being called a mad woman. John says that “no one but [herself] can help [her] out of it, that [she] must use [her] will and self-control” (pg.441) and not let little fancies distract her. The narrator’s negative feelings blur her surroundings and she ultimately becomes obsessed on the wallpaper. She begins seeing a woman trapped in the wallpaper and realizes that it is really her, needing to be rescued. In the wallpaper, the narrator expresses that there are things that “nobody knows about but [her], or ever will.” (pg.