"The Yellow Wallpaper" and Male Control

The story is not a simple feminist indictment of an evil man who destroys a good woman. In fact, John, the husband of the woman who is writing the story, is not an evil man, and even believes that he loves his wife and that everything he does for her is for her own good. One might even argue that John is as much a victim of the patriarchal system as his wife.

Also complicating the story is the fact that the woman has just had a child and is suffering from post-partum depression. However, she is unaware of this condition. She loves her daughter and would never consider blaming her situation on Jennie or on the fact that her pregnancy and giving birth play any part in her incipient madness. Despite the role that these factors play in her madness, however, the overriding emphasis in the story is on her writing and the effect it has on her as she struggles

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keep her from writing at all. By focusing on his control over her above all else, he inadvertently deprives her of the one opportunity she has to heal and to be herself. The room in which she finally settles in the house symbolizes the imprisonment of the woman in a man's world, and the imprisonment of an artist in a world controlled by those who do not understand or appreciate the healing which creative self-expression can bring. The room is made not for an adult woman but for children: It is a big, airy room, the whole floor nearly, with windows that look all ways, and air and sunshine galore. It was nursery first and then playroom and gymnasium, I should judge; for the windows are barred for little children. . . . (251). In other words, the world in which the woman finds herself is one in which women are seen as children who do not know what is good for themselves, who must be told what to do and how to live. John refers to her as his "little girl" and speaks to her face as if she were not there, as one would speak of an infant: "He took me in his arms and called me a blessed little goose" (252). To him, she is certainly a creature of value, or even love, but he does not value or love her for who she is, but only as he wa
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Yellow Wallpaper, Jane I've, Perkins Gilman's, husband's control, NP ND, able care, Charlotte Perkins, 251 words, creative imagination, story feminist, wallpaper madness, healthy outlet, takes toll, value love, woman story,
Approximate Word count = 1717
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)

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