Nowadays, mental health is a significant concern in the United States, as more and more people become affected by psychological conditions. However, the discourse around this topic, especially that of schizophrenia, has existed for a considerable time. The main characters of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper and Edgar Allan Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart are both schizophrenic. However, their condition goes unnoticed because of a lack of attention on the part of the people closest to them.
In the first story, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the main character, who may be named Jane, has schizophrenia, as indicated by her progressing delusion. Her husband and brother, both physicians, fail to notice her mental decline, possibly because she internalized her issues, as women are prone to doing (Needham and Terrence 1472). Ultimately, she starts believing that she is the person she created as part of her delusions: “’ I’ve got out at last,’ said I, ‘in spite of you and Jane?” (Gilman 656).
In the second story, The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, the unnamed main character also likely has schizophrenia. He starts believing that his benefactor’s eye is evil and murders him because of it, a delusion that is consistent with the description by Owen et al. (87). However, the murder does not resolve his issues, and he starts hallucinating the sound of the dead man’s heartbeat, which leads to a breakdown: “Why does it not stop!?” (Poe 67).
The similarities between the two stories, The Yellow Wallpaper and The Tell-Tale Heart, are that the characters both develop visual hallucinations. Moreover, those close to them fail to notice their progressing mental degradation until it is too late and provide inappropriate treatments, which is also a problem today (“Mental Health” 923).
The stories highlight how schizophrenia can arrive unnoticed in both men and women and only result in an episode after it is too late. To prevent such situations, it is essential to observe patients with mental issues and develop suitable treatments. The current state of the healthcare landscape endangers mental health patients and contributes to the creation of new ones.
Works Cited
“Mental Health in the USA: Hopes and Fears.” The Lancet, vol. 379, no. 9830, 2012, p. 923.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The Yellow Wallpaper.
Needham, Belinda, and Terrence D. Hill. “Do Gender Differences in Mental Health Contribute to Gender Differences in Physical Health?” Social Science & Medicine, vol. 71, 2010, pp. 1472-1479.
Owen, Michael J., et al. “Schizophrenia.” The Lancet, vol. 388, no. 10039, pp. 86-97.
Poe, Edgar Allan. The Tell-Tale Heart.