‘‘The Yellow Wallpaper’’ By Charlotte Perkins Gilman Historical context and notes

Inspiration for the Story An exaggerated account of the author’s personal experiences in 1887, shortly after the birth of her daughter. Gilman began to suffer from serious depression and fatigue; she was prescribed a “rest cure” of forced inactivity. The goal of the treatment was to promote domesticity and calm her agitated nerves. When she recovered from her treatment, she wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper.”

Setting: Victorian Era - Late 1800s Social Context Woman’s Role: wife and mother. Women could not vote or own property. Women were to be “pure, pious, domestic, and submissive.” Women could not live on their own; their husbands or fathers served as their guardians.

Public Reception of the Work Gilman was writing at the very beginnings of the Progressive era in America, a time when many writers were using their art to contribute to a national conversation about social issues. In many circles, “The Yellow Wallpaper” was perceived as nothing more than a horror story, stemming from the gothic example of Edgar Allen Poe and Mary Shelley. It was not until the 1970s that the story was also recognized as a feminist narrative worthy of historical and literary scholarship.

Themes & Symbols Themes Repressed Imagination Sanity Roles and Expectations Freedom and Confinement Symbols The Wallpaper and Pattern The Diary The Mysterious Figure Moonlight The House The Bed

Allegory (Allegorical Meaning) A story that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. Allegorical texts have a literal plot and a symbolic plot. Characters, objects, setting all represent other things. Famous examples: Animal Farm The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Avatar The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe The Lord of the Flies

Stream of Consciousness A style of narration in which a character's thoughts are thrown at us, one after the other, as if we were thinking those thoughts right along with them. Gives the illusion that we're privy to a character's unedited, uncensored, and sometimes more than a little nonsensical thoughts.

Foreshadowing & Irony Foreshadowing A hint or a warning about a future event. Irony Verbal: when a speaker says one thing, but means another. Dramatic: when an event occurs whose significance the audience understands, but the characters do not. Situational: when something happens and a reversal of expectations occurs.

As We Read… Consider the rhetorical situation: the reasons for which Gilman wrote this story (knowing what you know about the social context of the time). Consider her use of symbolism and allegory and how those symbols contribute to her purpose for writing.