In Charlotte Gilman’s short story The Yellow Wallpaper, one of the characters is Jennie, who is directly influenced by the gender norms and expectations of the time. This story, like the story of this hero, holistically talks about how gender stereotypes and society’s expectations negatively affect the mental health of women. Jennie is seriously influenced by gender issues and stereotypes, which requires a detailed analysis.
The story in the novel tells about the limitations of the stereotypical ideas of the society of that time. At the same time, such ethical norms directly affect the lives of all the characters in the story. Women were expected to obey their husbands in everything since patriarchy was the dominant value system. The story shows Jennie’s brother, John, who is presented as an authoritative character. At the same time, he completely controls Jennie and treats her like a child. He never listened to her opinions and feelings, rejected her ideas, and treated her unequally. This is a great demonstration of how gender has affected Jennie’s life. When she gets into trouble, John prescribes her a rest treatment which involves isolating her in a room and not doing anything (Gilman 2). He made such decisions because he believed any activity could harm her and began to prohibit her from reading, writing, or engaging in physical activity. This behavior on the part of her brother and forcing Jennie to give up all her activities negatively affects her mental and physical health. This behavior on the part of John towards his sister demonstrates, in general, the attitude of the then medicine to women’s mental problems.
Another aspect of how gender affects Jennie is the yellow wallpaper in her room. They become an obsession for her that a woman is locked in them. Jennie spends a long time every day looking at them and imagining this woman trying to find her. This moment in the story can be interpreted as symbolic, as it perfectly illustrates the attitude towards women in the society of that time. An extreme disregard manifested for their problems and emotions, so it was considered normal not to react and downplay their worries. The representation of a woman in the wallpaper alluded to their then societal position when they were forced to be locked up with their husbands. As the story progresses, Jennie becomes increasingly frustrated as she begins to associate herself with the woman she imagines inside the wallpaper. This experience conveyed in the story shows how stereotypes about gender roles can be destructive and degrade women by depriving them of their freedom.
The constant observation of the wallpaper and the imagination of the woman locked in them does not pass without a trace of the story’s main character. Stern’s analysis (10) argues that the short story has become one of the main artistic assets of feminist literature. This can be explained by revealing how the dictatorship of patriarchy can be destructive and painful. Jennie’s mental state becomes increasingly unstable, and over time she falls into insanity. This is reflected in her becoming obsessed with the wallpaper and seeing the woman in it with her face (Gilman 10). This deterioration in her psychological state manifests as a result of the restrictions her brother imposed on her, forbidding her to do many things. Jennie is constantly confined in her room without the possibility of any social interaction, which destroys her well-being. This is a major factor in how gender affects her due to the standards of behavior of society at the time.
In conclusion, the Yellow Wallpaper provides a powerful demonstration of how gender affects Jennie’s life. The character begins to gradually go insane by staying locked up in his room for a long time and not interacting with society. Such behavior on the part of her brother, who limited her in everything, was due to the opinion that the man is the main one in the family. Because of this, the woman experienced deep depression, which everyone treated lightly because she was a woman.
Works Cited
Gilman, Charlotte P. The yellow wallpaper. Virago, 2012.
Stern, Jennifer. “Gender, Genre, and Thematic Expectation in Logan Thomas’ The Yellow Wallpaper: How Filmmakers Can Use Palimpsest against the Audience.” HyperCultura, Vol. 9, (2020), 1-11. Web.