The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman

In the late 19th century, mental illness was considered an embarrassment to the family, and it was something that was dealt with behind closed doors. In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the narrator, who suffered from depression, is literally concealed behind closed doors as she is locked away in an old nursery, surrounded by a grotesque wallpaper. The narrator does not understand the unfair treatment on account of her husband’s orders. She naively accepts her fate until she finally realizes that she is capable of freeing herself from the yellow wallpaper, literally and figuratively. The author of the short story, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, explores the woman’s perspective of the oppressive situation utilizing point of view. The story offers a unique perspective on the situation; it is written like a diary, full of confessions from the narrator, so supposedly, she hides nothing from the reader. On the other hand, the first person point of view limits the story because the narrator’s interpretation of the situation is very one-sided and could be interpreted as biased. Through this literary technique, the narrator is much more
She does not understand the reality of her situation. She thinks that her husband, John, is doing his best to make her feel better, but he is doing quite the opposite. The narrator is not allowed to have her own opinion on the situation because of the patriarchal standards of that time. To the reader, it appears that John is useless if not more harmful to her situation. The narrator relays that her husband is always so busy with his work in town; however, there is no actual evidence within the text that proves he is really doing what he claims to be doing. From the beginning, the reader is aware that John is not overly concerned with the narrator’s recovery; instead, he rather abandon her and wait until she recovers on her