Critical Analysis of "The Yellow Wallpaper"

I chose to do the Feminist theory response of "The Yellow Wallpaper". Feminist theory response is a feminist viewpoint of the story that pays close attention to the description of both male and female characters and try to determine the underlying power asscociated with these descriptions. "The Yellow Wallpaper" is a story of how women were treated in the early 1900's. If women display or have been diagnosed  with a mental illness the treatment is "rest cure". Rest cure is bed rest for months at a time and is restricted any form of mental stimulation. The narrator is diagnosed with a nervous disorder which is what we call today Post-Partum Depression. She is not allowed to read, write, or even see her baby. To carry out this treatment, the woman's husband John takes her to a country house where she is kept in a former nursery decorated with yellow wallpaper.
The plot is based around her mental illness and the progression of the illness through the state of the wallpaper. The theme of "The Yellow Wallpaper", is the subordination of women in marriage. The woman is forced to be passive, forbidden to exercise her mind in any way. It is apparent in the story that the woman allows herself to be inferior to men, in particular her husband John. Being a physician he orders her to stay in bed, surpress her imagination and most importantly to discontinue her writing. The symbolism of this story is that her mental state is characterized by the encounters with the wallpaper in her room. The woman's illness is displayed throughout the state of the wallpaper. The wallpaper itself is symbolic of the mental perseption that men portray of women in the early 1900's. The color of the wallpaper is yellow which is associated with sickness and weakness.
The narrators husband John, a physician forbids his wife from doing any type of work and does not allow her to see her baby. The narrator believes that work, excitement, and change would do her good, but her opinion does not matter. She likes to write, which is forbidden and secretly keeps a diary doing so exhauts her as does trying to oppose her husband. The woman decribes her writing as "Such Relief", but because of John's constant observations of her as well as her low energy level she must direct her imagination elsewhere, so she begins to fantasize about the wallpaper. The wallpaper, when first introduced sets the scene between the woman and her illness. The paper is being described as being, "dull enough to confuse the eye in the following, pronounced enough to constantly irritate and provoke study, and when you follow the lame uncertain curves for a little distance they suddenly commit suicide-plunge off at outrageous angles, destroy themselves in unheard of contradictions," (Gilman,7). What makes this story a feminist theory is why the woman narrator is unknown but the husband is given a name?

Rough Draft

Jeana Vasconcellos                                                                                                    Vasconcellos 1

English 1B

Mrs. Knapp

13 March 2011

                                                                     Flower Power

            In the book The Flowers by Dagoberto Gilb, the character Sylvia Bravo is a single

mother who is struggling to make it on her own and raise a teenage son named Sonny. Sylvia is

an unconventional woman. She works consistently and doesn’t seem to have time for cooking

and cleaning. Sylvia uses her looks to attract men and is more concerned with her social life then

being a mother figure for Sonny, “It was that my mom, if she wasn’t at her job, was out on dates

and whatever”, (5). Men base their opinions of Sylvia by her appearance, she looks pretty on

someone’s arm or looked at as a sex object, “I was always seeing how men looked at her, how

pretty she was in the way men are flipping through pages of dirty magazines”, (10). Sylvia is

stuck in a male chauvinistic world that views her in two ways, a traditional housewife because of

her Mexican heritage and a sex object.

            Sylvia decides that she wants to have a better life for herself and her son by marrying a

man named Cloyd Longpre. Sylvia wants Cloyd to take care of her and Sonny with the idea of

not having to work for a living and being a traditional wife and mother. Sylvia decides that she

was going to do what all housewives are expected to do, take care of the family, home and cook

and clean. Sonny doesn’t know what to think when he sees his mom doing chores around the

house, “My mom never picked up after me at home, before we moved here, except maybe every

few months, if somebody was gonna come over. For a minute she did almost everyday. She even

made my bed”, (37). Sylvia gives Sonny the notion that she either wants the best for Sonny or

she is using Cloyd to get the best for him. Sylvia asks Sonny, “You don’t like the TV in your

room?” (73), because Sonny never watches TV in his room therefore Sylvia thinks the TV isn’t

                                                                                                                                   Vasconcellos 2

good enough. “You want me to make him get you a better one?” (73).

            Sylvia plays into the role of traditional housewife but she didn’t think Cloyd would hold

her to it. “She was fixed up like behind the stove door wasn’t enchiladas but one of those too-

dark restaurants she expected to be taken to before she was married,” (51). Sylvia is trying to

maintain her role as a traditional housewife and because of her heritage Cloyd expects more out

of her. Cloyd constantly boasts about Sylvia, “I love to eat them tacos, and how I even got

myself married to a pretty Mexican gal,” (51). Cloyd wants Sylvia to make food by scratch and

Sylvia has no problem letting him believe so, “Cloyd complimented her on the chili salsa. He

might as well have complimented her on the tortilla chips, because she bought them at the store

too,” (51). Sylvia goes as far as to pretend to make salsa to keep her image as a traditional

housewife. “He doesn’t even know I buy este chile at the grocery store, he thinks I make it. He

tells everybody I do,” (76).

            Sylvia acts inferior to Cloyd and tries to make Sonny act the same way. Sylvia puts Cloys

on a pedestal and she doesn’t want to do or say anything that will make Cloyd upset. It seems

that Sylvia puts Cloyd first before her own son, “Don’t eat those!” Those are for him and his

client,” (79). Sonny gets upset with his mom because Cloyd was supposed to pay him for the

work he is doing and Sylvia doesn’t want Sonny to say anything for the fear it will upset him.

“He said he was gonna pay me for that work, I want to be paid,” (81). Eventually Sylvia grows

tired and unhappy of being a housewife. “ I am not happy here, what do you watch, meaning the

TV. I’m trying to like TV,” (73). Sylvia decides that she needs to get out of the house and tells

Sonny she is going shopping. “I just need to get out some, it helps me to go shopping,” (141).

Sonny has to suffer for Sylvia actions. Sylvia goes “shopping” and Sonny has to deal with

Cloyd’s and his drunken rage. Sylvia may want to be married to Cloyd for a chance at a better

life, but I think she got more than she bargained for.

Blog #2 Character Description

When reading the next fifty pages Sylvia's character gets my attention. Sylvia lets Sonny know for the first time how she feels about Cloyd when Cloyd complains about the toliet paper. "He cars about the toliet paper, how much is used", (50). Sylvia couldn't believe that Cloyd was making such a big deal about how much toliet paper was being used."I don't think I ever know anything like this", (50). Sylvia decided to cook to make Cloyd happy and because of her ethnic background she like to cook, Mexican food in particular. "I knew something was more messed up when Cloyd complimented her on the chili salsa. He might as well have complimented her on the tortilla chips, because she bought them at the store too", (51).
I think Sylvia wanted to really try to be a housewife but she is unhappy and bored. "I'm bored", (72). Sylvia is even trying to make herself  enjoy watching TV because she is bored. "What do you watch? she asked, meaning the TV". "I"m trying to like TV", (73). I do think that Sylvia has mixed feelings about her daughter Ceci because at one point Sonny asks his mom, "Don't you wonder how she is?", (74). Sylvia doesn't reply directly and ignores the question. "I've called everybody", (74).

Idea Paper

My idea paper would be an analysis from the feminist viewpoint on how Cloyd views Sylvia in the role of a traditional wife and mother. Cloyd thinks Sylvia is only capable of being a housewife.I think he only wants her to be a housewife. Maybe he can't handle a woman who works and is independent. Cloyd wants a traditional wife. A wife who stays home that cooks and cleans on a daily bases while her appearance must be well kept. Does this sound familiar? It sounds like I am watching a re-run of "Leave it to Beaver". Cloyd wants Sylvia to mirror June Cleaver's behaviors and romantizies her ethnic background to boast about her cooking.