Critical Analysis based on ‘The Yellow Wallpaper.”
Inequalities and Gender Roles
In this tale, Gilman provides her vision of the issue surrounding marriage and females’ role in both the society and family. She also presents the problem women face in light of the ‘mental illness’ theme. It is also vital to realize that the representation of women’s character a well as the mental problems they go through is characteristic of several families in the 19th era. The position of women in the modern world, as Gilman explains, is one of the most contentious topics, mainly from the view of feminist groups and various psychological concepts. The narrator also discusses the problem of women’s role in a male ruled society in respect to domestic life, women’s work, as well as marriage. The narrator’s perspective is that rendering women idle in the community is one way of oppressing and isolating them from vital social roles. Alongside her exploration of the mental issues facing women, the author also condemns outdated gender roles structure, mostly as found in the 19th Century. In this way, she rejects and, in the strongest terms, censures the trappings of the out-of-date domestic life while endorsing the recognition of women’s role in society (Carey).
Unequal Relationship between Men and Women in Society
Gilman’s conception of the male-dominated household establishments of the 19th Century is that males took the central part in everything in society. In her book, she warns her audiences that such communities, where females have no place, pose significant dangers to the societal process. She says patriarchal families assign male more duties. She further argues that in these societies, men take the role of being the head, husband, and rational thinkers. At the same time, women become dutiful as well as submissive beings, with no authority to question their husbands’ administrations (Carey). Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
By and large, Gilman also looked at the community in terms of associations that existed among men and women. She further explores the idea of societal evolution from a broader view. With this theory, Gilman observed that traditional setups gave males an upper hand in everything, including in the selection process. She equally argues that men took the obligation of deciding the type of relationship they had with women. Because men were superior to women, it similarly meant that women were to play submissive roles towards men in every way. In terms of sexual contact, Gilman also noted that it was a requirement for women to have sex with men. But, she observed that sexual contact, particularly in women’s view, was not often out of their free will. From her scrutiny, Gilman believes that women have always faced subjugation and oppression. For instance, she argues that women are forced into sexual intercourse, forming the source for gender-based violence (Gilman).
Stunningly, women fill the position of homemakers. According to Gilman, the place of women has traditionally revolved around the home. She argues that they are supposed to remain at home and support men in their professions. In this way, society compels them to surrender their goals, dreams, and aspirations to support their families. On their part, men take up different functions and occupy the public arena. As for Gilman, men generally enjoy the best of things that societies have to offer while controlling the economy and political spaces. Since societies construct gender roles and other related concepts, she suggests that societal needs must change to allow the survival of all humanity, including women. Gilman says that the separation of women as well as men based on gender is outdated and does not apply in the contemporary world. She further asserts that what worked in the old world is now primarily dysfunctional. In this sense, Gilman believes that gender identities and functions are build created through the process of socialization. Also, she notes that sexual relationships and home economics are strictly interconnected. Gilman claims that while women need to satisfy their men through sex, men play the role of providing for their families. For this reason, Gilman holds that relationships among women and men exist through sex and money as opposed to genuine love. For her, both men and women must enjoy the same freedoms and allowed to work as well as gain from economic independence.
How John Demeans and Disregards His Wife
The main drive behind Gilman’s story is portraying the suppression of women in the 19th-Century family and community settings. John’s family unit primarily falls along customary lines. He is presented as a rational, practically minded, and protective husband. Besides, he is the ultimate decision-maker in his family. According to Gilman, he often belittles his wife of many years, treating her as a ‘little girl.’ Gilman also says that he regularly brushes off her complements. His wife is confined to the home and is not permitted to work. She argues that her husband regards her as delicate, pleasure-seeking, as well as emotional.
John also cautions his wife against following her dream and passion for writing because he hates to see her write and wallpapering their room. He demands his wife to repress her creative urges and assume her roles as a mother and wife. Sadly, she internalizes his advice, admitting to taking a lesser part as John’s helper. Since John holds that he is the think-tank and decision take in the household, he does not let his wife to think and make her decisions. Every time she attempts to ask anything from her husband, he dismisses her and calls her names. Besides, because he also believes that he is more rational than his wife, he assumes that she knows nothing. According to Shumaker (592), imaginative reasoning hinders John and undermines his world. By considering his wife as temperamental, he controls most of her world by controlling everything she does. In the same way, by suppressing his wife’s urges and artistic desires, he leads her into a state of hopelessness (590).
Physical and Mental Deterioration of Women in 19th Century
Because of their prescribed treatments in society, women in the 19th Century have to deal with many conditions, including depression. For instance, John’s marriage disintegrated because he lost his wife to madness, the same thing he had attempted to stop. In such a society, Haney-Peritz (104) argues that women remain condemned, and none can survive the rigid gender anticipations place on them. For instance, if John had not remained adamant, perhaps he would have saved his wife. Besides, if he had listened to her and addressed her concerns, she might not have developed mental problems. Her state degraded because of her belief that her husband knew everything. Ultimately, the family falls because of their traditional values and fixed gender roles.
Symbolism in “The Yellow Wallpaper”
The author uses the term ‘wallpaper’ to derive a sense of her inner feelings and to symbolize what directly affects her. She also develops various symbols as she takes her readers through her life’s journey, from the start of the book to the end. The ‘wallpaper’ also reflects the structure of a family unit, tradition, and customs, where the narrator finds herself entangled (Gilman). It also symbolizes the domestic life that traps women’s aspirations, dreams, and strengths.
Works Cited
Carey, Elizabeth. “Controlling the Female Psyche: Assigned Gender Roles in “The Yellow Wallpaper”.”
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The Yellow Wallpaper. USA: Simon and Brown, 2011. Print.
Haney‐Peritz, Janice. “Monumental feminism and literature’s ancestral house: Another look at “The Yellow Wallpaper”.” Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal 12.2 (1986): 113-128.
Shumaker, Conrad. “Too terribly good to be printed”: Charlotte Gilman’s” The Yellow Wallpaper.” American Literature 57.4 (1985): 588-599.