Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story “The Yellow Wallpaper,” does the narrator improve with the rest cure?
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Throughout history, we have seen an immense amount of improvement regarding how to deal with mental health and the psychology behind why and how it occurs. Today we are strongly encouraged to be open about our deep struggles and refrain from isolating ourselves or others. As we look back in time, it has been made clear to us that mental health and the ability to be honest with those around us were actively looked down upon even many short years ago, almost making those who spoke up appear weak or mentally ill. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a perfect example of how damaging one’s thoughts can be, not only their spirit but also their physical health. Being told that you do not have the right to show any self-expression or personal feelings slowly breaks you down so much to the point of no return. This short story gives us an inside look at the importance of self-expression and the danger in “the resting cure.”
The present medical information has since demonstrated the rest cure accomplished to the storyteller as insufficient; this was a well-known treatment in the eighteen century. Since information on the human cerebrum was restricted during that time, the reasons for mental clutters, particularly in females, were left to assumptions. The storyteller and Gilman experienced an uncommon change in manner following the event of a child being born. Insanity was the most well-known conclusion of these progressions in enthusiastic steadiness. A progressively explicit and logical term for this issue was named as neurasthenia, which was treated by similar techniques (Gilman pp. 528). The Rest Cure Revisited characterizes neurasthenia as a catch-all verdict for the host of nonpsychotic enthusiastic scatters that were not comprehended and not receptive to clinical treatments. The most generally acknowledged therapy for both of these psychological issues was the rest fix, educating ladies to live as household a real existence quite far, to have two hours’ scholarly life however daily, and never to contact pen, brush, or pencil again. The present clinical information shows that this confinement and absence of intellectual upgrade would effectively drive an individual to absurdity, regardless of whether they were not effectively crazy. Be that as it may, conspicuous analyst Silas Weir Mitchell as often as possible directed this fix to intellectually sick ladies, driving them to mental ruin. Through further research, it is resolved that Mitchell was, in reality, the specialist that treated Gilman for her psychological sickness, which is likely the thinking for Gilman’s reference to Mitchell in the short story ( Pearson’s pp. 123). The storyteller reviews that her better half John expressed that if I don’t get, he will send me to Weir Mitchell in the fall. This further shows Gilman’s involvement in the rest fix is reflected throughout the story.
The reason for these adjustments in demeanor was misjudged during this time; the present mental information uncovers that Gilman and the storyteller, in reality, experienced post pregnancy anxiety. This issue happens in a mother not long after conceiving an offspring, causing sentiments of bitterness, dejection, uselessness, fretfulness, and uneasiness last any longer than half a month (Gilman pp. 129). The storyteller of The Yellow Wallpaper expresses that “I can’t be with the infant; he makes me so anxious.” Since the wellspring of the storyteller’s distress is her infant kid, and Gilman expresses that she experienced post birth anxiety herself, it is effortlessly derived that this condition additionally influenced the storyteller.
The central themes of this particular story consistently circle back to one of three themes:
The importance of self-expression, the submission of women in marriage, and the dangers of “the resting cure.” Which all directly relate to the main symbol of the story: the wallpaper. To begin, we notice Jane’s constant longing to be herself freely. It is expressed multiple times throughout her writing that she is unable to voice her anxieties and fears to John to maintain a “happy marriage (Martin pp. 109).” John continually reminds her to refrain from using her imagination; otherwise, she will drown in her thoughts, which she tends to do. This is why she continues to secretly keep a journal in hopes of retrieving that emotion or healing she has been longing for. Her vivid imagination is what ultimately leads her into truly examining the wallpaper, and giving her the ability to see the deeper meaning behind it. She even mentions that attempting to break down the purpose being the wallpaper has become her form of primary entertainment. She becomes obsessive and secretive, hiding her interest in the wallpaper and making sure no one else studies it so that she can find it out on her own (Gilman pp. 140). As her obsession slowly grows over time, she notices somewhat of a “second pattern,” and the wallpaper becomes more explicit. It begins to resemble a woman “stooping down and creeping” behind the main pattern, which looks like the bars of a cage, which she believes directly back to her feelings of being trapped in her mind. Whenever the narrator tries to discuss leaving the house, John acknowledges her concerns, permanently silencing her. Each time he does so, her fascination with the paper grows as this becomes her only way to finally express her feelings into something other than just words alone.
The “Resting Cure” is a term that is not used lightly in this particular story. The “Resting Cure,” which was introduced in the late 19th-Century by Silas Weir Mitchell, who is mentioned in the text, was a cure to treat hysteria. Mainly it advised patients to avoid anything physically demanding. John, being the doctor he was, interpreted this as no social interactions, no thinking too much, the list goes on. This “resting cure” idea that was suggested was the complete opposite of what Jane wanted for herself. It brings back the “bars” Jane had seen in the sub-wallpaper, her ultimate fear, being trapped and unable to escape. This idea of complete isolation was detrimental to the state of her mental health (Wood, pp. 119). The resting cure even began to drive her more insane, as she began to have constant hallucinations of seeing a hopeless woman trapped behind the bars of the wallpaper, which she related to herself being locked behind the bars of her mind. This was an unhealthy way to cope with the feelings that were overpowering the thoughts in Jane’s mind. Although confused and angry, Jane continued to remain silent, slowly suffering. The author mentions that John had taken the medical advantage of Jane as he was an authoritative figure in that area. He fails to view her as his wife and a human being at that and treats her more as a test subject. Our minds are more prone to think irrational thoughts and result back to an isolated state when inactive, and this is precisely what was happening to Jane, thus making her obsessive over the yellow wallpaper.
In the final analysis, we see that the narrator has completely lost her mind. Rather than seeing just one woman in the wallpaper, as she did early on, she now sees multiple. She has become overly infatuated with every piece of it, to the point where she believes that she is the woman trapped behind the wall, with no hopes of escaping (Gilman pp. 535). The themes reiterated time and time throughout the story all fall back to the notorious wallpaper symbol. We see all three themes of self-expression, submission of women in marriage, and the dangers of the resting cure highlighted in multiple situations through Jane’s experiences (. She can never come to terms with the fact that she let herself be dominated for too long and cannot pick herself back up off the ground. She is too far gone, and there was no hope in receiving the freedom she so profoundly wanted for so long. Ultimately this is not a happy ending, but it is an outstanding example that stresses the dangers of staying silent and sheds light on a genuine problem. In times of pain and hopelessness, we need not remain silent, instead, seek the help we need to feel whole once again.
Works cited
Gilman, Charlotte P. “‘Why I Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper.’” Gilman, Why I Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper, 1913, csivc.csi.cuny.edu/history/files/lavender/whyyw.html.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper. The Norton Introduction to Literature, shorter 12th edited by Kelly J. Mays, W.W. Norton, 2017, pp. 526-537
Martin, Diana. “The Rest Cure Revisited.” American Journal of Psychiatry, American Psychiatric Association, 1 May 2007, 146ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/ajp.2007.164.5.737.
Pearson, Catherine. “7 Crazy Things People Used To Believe About Female Hysteria.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 7 Dec. 2017, www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/21/female-hysteria_n_4298060.html.
Wood. “The Rest Cure In Relation To ‘The Yellow Wallpaper.’” Writing on Women Writers, 22 Mar. 2013, writingonwomenwriters.wordpress.com/2013/03/21/the-rest-cure-in-relation-to-the-yellow-wallpaper/. 119-124