The Yellow Wallpaper Literary Analysis

The Yellow Wallpaper Literary Analysis

Looking forward to marrying or getting married comes with its unique characteristics. Married couples in different families display the uniqueness and diversity of relationships and the common similarities, including power dynamics. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a narrative fiction narrating the marriage of John and his wife, the story’s narrator. In the story, the couple and their child rent out a house while the narrator, described as ailing, recovers from her illness. At the house, the narrator begins her self-discovery journey through the yellow wallpaper on her bedroom wall to finally obtain some power in her marriage. The Yellow Wallpaper displays numerous themes, including power dynamics, which can be explored through the setting, characters, and plot.

First, the setting displays the power dynamics in the story. The story takes place in the 19^th Century, before women’s liberation, when women and wives could not work in occupations outside those expected of women, such as household chores. Understanding that women had no power in society is a vital indication of the lack of power in their homes as married women. Whenever the narrator speaks up her opinions to her husband, John, she states, “John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage.” This shows that power dynamics were displayed in decision-making in a household; the setting is vital in emphasizing the power dynamics in the story.

Second, the characters display power dynamics. In the story, the power dynamics vary between the husband, one of the antagonists, and the wife, the protagonist, with the husband having more power. The narrator states, “am absolutely forbidden to “work”” and one can only assume that her husband John is the one to forbid. The narrator resorts to journaling secretly, as John does not approve of any form of creativity. Accordingly, it is apparent that between John and his wife, John has more power than his wife, and their characters constantly show the same.

Third, the plot displays power dynamics. In the exposition, the narrator introduces herself and John in the rented house, which she describes as a “colonial mansion” where her will is not hers but her husband’s and society’s would be done. Later, there are numerous rising actions, including John selecting their bedroom as the previous nursery, which had the yellow wallpaper on its wall as though confining her to the expected motherhood. The climax is the secret journaling despite John’s disapproval. The falling action is the rediscovery following the discovery of self, and the denouement occurs when the narrator breaks free of the factors limiting her power as a woman, wife, and mother.

In conclusion, several ways of getting a point across include using literary devices. The Yellow Wallpaper utilizes literary devices to pass along the message of power dynamics in marriages. Given the setting, the piece is expected to be relevant for many women who relate to the message. The plot emphasizes the power dynamics in marriage with the help of all the characters introduced in the story. Therefore, all these devices are essential in emphasizing the story’s themes.

Works Cited

Gilman, Charlotte  Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.”

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Definition: Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature.

The Yellow Wallpaper Literary Analysis

Topic: Present your analysis and interpretation of the selected work you have read of narrative fiction as only one among many possible interpretations. You want your readers to learn something of value from your
interpretation, but you need not set out to convince each and every one of us to accept only your interpretation of the literary work. Keep in mind that there is no single “right” or “correct” interpretation of a given literary work. Diversity of opinion and interpretation is inevitable, and it is also thought-provoking, valuable, and interesting in the study of literature.
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