Description

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s 1892 story The Yellow Wallpaper is the terrifying fictional account of a woman whose mental illness makes her a prisoner in her own home. The unnamed female narrator is a typical married woman of the stifling late-nineteenth century era. After giving birth to a child one summer, she begins suffering from what her husband, who is also her doctor, deems to be “hysteria.” Because of her diagnosis, one all too common for women of her day, the woman’s husband forces her to rest in a locked bedroom in their summer home. With her protests going unheard and no one else to turn to, the woman begins keeping a journal of her illness. In particular, the room’s strange yellow wallpaper occupies her thoughts almost constantly. The four walls of her prison, all papered in the odd yellow pattern, begin to come to life and give rise to disturbing visions. As the woman spends day after day trapped in the horrid room, her journal entries reveal her complete descent into insanity. A landmark in American literature, The Yellow Wallpaper is an eye-opening look at the detrimental effects of nineteenth century views on both women and mental illness.

About the Author

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860–1935) was a prominent American novelist, writer of short stories, poetry, and non fiction, and a lecturer for social reform. She was a utopian feminist during a time when her accomplishments were exceptional for women, and she served as a role model for future generations of feminists because of her unorthodox concepts and lifestyle. Her best remembered work today is her semi-autobiographical short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper," which she wrote after a severe bout of post-partum depression.

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Opening Lines (Experimental)

It is very seldom that mere ordinary people like John and myself secure ancestral halls for the summer.
A colonial mansion, a hereditary estate, I would say a haunted house, and reach the height of romantic felicity--but that would be asking too much of fate!
Still I will proudly declare that ...