Patriarchy In The Yellow Wallpaper
Feminism has made considerable developments, from the First Wave to the present and it has not slowed down in the slightest in achieving equity for women.
Female writers in particular have shown support and recognition through their work, such as The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Gilman and Roman Fever by Edith Wharton. However, The Yellow Wallpaper is a better representation of today’s fight for women’s rights and fair treatment as it depicts female empowerment in the face of the patriarchy.
Jane decimates the patriarchal ideal of a demure woman. Initially, Jane is not assertive; she does not challenge John often when he does not take her concerns seriously as “one expects that in marriage.” When Jane shows the slightest contradiction to John’s diagnosis, such is the dominance of …show more content…
The wallpaper, through a feminist lens, can be interpreted as the patriarchy. The wallpaper is negatively described in Jane’s eyes, for instance, she calls it “particularly irritating“ and “revolting.” But, Jane’s key comment is that it has bars, which the woman in said wallpaper “shakes.” This means that the patriarchy cages women within the sphere of domesticity. In the story, the women have a common denominator of domestic roles. Characters like John and Jane’s brother, who have more ‘active’ and superior professions as physicians, and Jennie the “perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper”, who “hopes for no better profession,” serve to perpetuate this idea. Admittedly, the sentiment of female empowerment is a gradual development. But after Jane realizes that “behind that outside pattern the dim shapes get clearer every day,” it snowballs from there. Jane becomes more assertive, as explained in the earlier paragraphs, and when Jane tears the wallpaper, under the guise of helping the woman, it signifies her breaking free “at last” from the patriarchal system, “in spite of [John] and
Female writers in particular have shown support and recognition through their work, such as The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Gilman and Roman Fever by Edith Wharton. However, The Yellow Wallpaper is a better representation of today’s fight for women’s rights and fair treatment as it depicts female empowerment in the face of the patriarchy.
Jane decimates the patriarchal ideal of a demure woman. Initially, Jane is not assertive; she does not challenge John often when he does not take her concerns seriously as “one expects that in marriage.” When Jane shows the slightest contradiction to John’s diagnosis, such is the dominance of …show more content…
The wallpaper, through a feminist lens, can be interpreted as the patriarchy. The wallpaper is negatively described in Jane’s eyes, for instance, she calls it “particularly irritating“ and “revolting.” But, Jane’s key comment is that it has bars, which the woman in said wallpaper “shakes.” This means that the patriarchy cages women within the sphere of domesticity. In the story, the women have a common denominator of domestic roles. Characters like John and Jane’s brother, who have more ‘active’ and superior professions as physicians, and Jennie the “perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper”, who “hopes for no better profession,” serve to perpetuate this idea. Admittedly, the sentiment of female empowerment is a gradual development. But after Jane realizes that “behind that outside pattern the dim shapes get clearer every day,” it snowballs from there. Jane becomes more assertive, as explained in the earlier paragraphs, and when Jane tears the wallpaper, under the guise of helping the woman, it signifies her breaking free “at last” from the patriarchal system, “in spite of [John] and