Essay Sample on The Yellow Paper: A Woman's Battle Against Oppression in 1892

Introduction

Charles Gilman's short story of the Yellow paper was published in 1892, at a time when woman discrimination and oppression was center stage. At this period, men could live a public life, work in factories, and socialize with their fellows in bars and clubs while women were expected to spend their time mainly homebound. The narrator in the Yellow paper is a woman who suffers from a depressive condition and whose husband, a physician, feels the depression is a wildly uncontrolled emotion (Gilman 67). The author uses symbolism as an augury and descriptive tool for a society that was male-dominated and highly patriarchal.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Symbolism of Male Misunderstanding and Lack of Empathy

The failure of the narrator's husband, a doctor to understand her condition, symbolizes how male doctors at this period failed to understand women's situations. Historically, the nineteenth-century era did not understand how to deal with women's mental issues. The narrator's husband recommends a rest cure citing that the condition was a hysterical tendency (Gilman 67). However, this is untrue because it is probable that it was a result of a recent birth. The author was herself, diagnosed with a nervous condition, and in the Yellow Paper, she uses the narrator to inform the audience of male doctors who did not listen to their female patients.

The characterization of the narrator and her husband is symbolic of patronizing the inclination that the author disapproves of. The author demonstrates the effect gender disparity has on both men and women (Gilman 69). The narrator's husband is portrayed as a rational and respectable professional whom people take seriously while the narrator appears as an overemotional lady. She is also described as imaginative. The use of the term imaginative to express her fantasy and creativity is a symbol of femininity and weakness.

John's action to deter the narrator from writing is symbolized efforts taken by men in society to derail women's progress. The narrator says that her husband doesn't like to see her express her creative urges, for it is through repression of such urges that she would recover and resume her mother and wife duties (Gilman 72). Even though the narrator has a passion for writing, her husband rubbishes it as a false and foolish fancy. He argues that it is a dangerous habit that would do injustice to the narrator's temperament. Such notions were meant to alienate women from their interests so that they only concentrated on their household duties.

Symbolism of the Yellow Wallpaper

The yellow paper is symbolic as it acts as a reflectional mirror of the narrator an the society. The article is described to be peculiar with nobody but the narrator noticing it. It's said to change so quickly that the narrator rarely believes it. Besides, there are new shades of yellow and fungus all over it. The paper also has a yellow smell and creeps all over the house (Gilman 78). She cannot figure out the intricate pattern of the yellow paper as much as she tries to. The design symbolizes the patriarchal patterns of the society that are attributed to women's repression. The creeping of the yellow paper is symbolic of the narrator's hiding from a world that considers her an outcast and a domestic ornament.

In the narrative, John believes that he is supposed to be the thinking engine of their relationship. This belief implies that because his wife is a woman, she cannot think. The narrator's husband proceeds to demean her by ignoring and calling her belittling names such as 'blessed little goose,' and 'little girl'(Gilman 79). These signify that John perceives his wife as a child, one who cannot think on her own. John reminds the narrator that he Iis a doctor, implying that he is intelligent and rational, unlike herself. Through degrading name-calling, the narrator demonstrates women oppression in the eyes of men during the nineteenth century

Symbolism of the Room as a Mental Prison

The narrator's description of her literal room symbolizes the figurative mental prison she is living in. The setting of the room is like that of a prison. The windows are iron bar- grilled, and there is a gate at the top of the stairs. The narrator admits that she doesn't like that room(Gilman82). She would have preferred the downstairs one, but her husband would not allow it. This forceful situation symbolizes the narrator as an inmate and his husband as a prison warden. The decay scratched and hole- plastered floors in the room symbolically represent the crumbling mental capacity of the narrator and how it continues to worsen.

Symbolism of the Narrator's Conformity and Liberation

The narrator's character portrays women who, despite oppression, continue to conform. The narrator sees herself as a burden to her husband(Gilman 82). In disregard of her desires, she blames herself for not coping with the room that her husband forces her to live. The narrator should have put her interests first. She worries about hurting her husband upon the realization that she was engaged in writing. She feels inept at questioning her husband because he is so wise Her ability to pull off most of the paper at the end signified that women could overcome the male dominance and put their interests first.

Conclusion

In conclusion, symbolism in the "Yellow Paper" depicts the conditions under which women were oppressed in the male-dominated society. Women's views did not matter, and as the author reveals, such a community only spells doom for itself since, in the end, the narrator and her husband lose as they intermingle in a fixed gender roles crisis.

Work Cited

Gilman, Charlotte P. The Yellow Wall-Paper. 1899

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for Essay:

How does the symbolism in "The Yellow Wallpaper" depict the conditions of women in a male-dominated society?

"The Yellow Wallpaper" portrays the oppressive conditions under which women lived in a male-dominated society through its symbolism. The story highlights male doctors' failure to understand women's experiences and lack of empathy towards them; while characters such as the narrator and her husband symbolize patronizing and demeaning attitudes toward them. Yellow wallpaper represents patriarchal repression with its intricate pattern representing society's expectations on women; its symbolism suggests mental prison like conditions, with conformity depicting how society exerts pressure for women to conform; ultimately depicting its consequences through this story depicted male-dominated society portrayed within it's pages.

How does the yellow wallpaper symbolize the patriarchal repression in the story?

In this story, yellow wallpaper represents patriarchal repression imposed upon women. Its pattern represents intricate and confining societal expectations placed upon them and limiting their freedom and self-expression. Its creeping nature symbolizes how she seeks shelter from an environment which considers her an outcast and domestic ornament; decayed wallpaper with holes reflecting how her mental capacity was slowly diminishing due to oppressive conditions; overall it stands as an powerful symbol of patriarchy that restricts women's lives.

How does the room symbolize a mental prison in the story?

"The Yellow Wallpaper" depicts its protagonist's room as an allegory for mental imprisonment. With iron-barred windows and an isolation gate at the top of stairs creating an aura of confinement and isolation, she expresses her dislike of it to her husband but is denied her request; this symbolizes their position as prison wardens versus inmates within this oppressive confinement; decayed walls with scratch marks and holes symbolic of her mental capacity deteriorating further under its oppressive confinement.