Essay Example on Symbolism in "The Yellow Paper"

Introduction

Charlotte Gilman’s short story reflects the struggles faced by women in a domestic setting. The plot centers on a woman, the unnamed narrator, who is undergoing postpartum depression shortly after delivering her baby. John, her husband, who is also her physician, brings her to an alienated house in the countryside to rest and to recover. However, the house’s purpose seems not to be working because of the yellow wallpaper that makes the woman more anxious as she tries to figure out its patterns’ meaning. The Yellow Paper talks about numerous topics that mostly affect women, which are hidden. Notably, the symbolism in the story brings out these issues clearly by connecting objects and characters to the themes they represent.

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First Symbol

The story starts by introducing the first symbol, the house. The narrator begins by saying that she and her husband have just moved into a colonial mansion for the summer, which is unusual for people like them. According to her, the house is “the most beautiful place! It is quite alone, standing well back from the road, quite three miles from the village” (Gilman). Importantly, the house symbolizes the narrator. She is beautiful, but she feels alienated, like the house, since no one understands her. For instance, she claims that her husband fails to connect with her emotionally since he is practical and does not believe in intangible and invisible things. As a result, he fails to believe that his wife is sick and prescribes that she rests, without doing any chores or work. The narrator’s brother, also a physician, fails to connect with her, too, as his beliefs are the same as her husband’s. On the contrary, she believes that “work, with excitement and change, will do her good” (Gilman), but she is sure that won’t happen since her husband forbids her. The tendency of here people failing to connect with her inner house makes her lonely like the house.

The greenhouses also represent the narrator’s emotional turmoil. Generally, greenhouses are beautiful since they grow all types of plants; thus, they usually depict life nourishment and optimistic attitude. In the story, the greenhouses are no longer there. The narrator says, “there were greenhouses, too, but they are all broken.” Here, she talks about herself and how her motherly and wifely roles have drained her, leaving a void in her. Her statement, “I’m sure I never used to be this sensitive,” proves that she must have self-determined at one point in her life. She describes her current situation as “a nervous condition,” which is making her emotionally unstable. She is tired and paranoid over everything. She is engulfed with unhappiness and dissatisfaction, revealing her broken personality like the greenhouses, which, once upon a time, were flourishing, too.

Roses

The roses all over the room's windows, which the narrator prefers, are also symbols. They symbolize the desires which the narrator is barred from enjoying. Her husband forbids her from working and doing house chores to grant her enough time to rest and heal her emotional issue. One significant aspect of the roses that connects with her situation is that they are growing all over the window without being limited. They represent the freedom of working the narrator yearns to recover, and it is why she loves the room instead of her bedroom decorated with a yellow wallpaper that she detests. She is denied her desire to enjoy the roses just like she is denied her freedom to work herself out to recovery.

Notably, the storyline in "The Yellow Page" is the narrator's expression through a diary. Since she is forbidden to work, including writing, she updates her diary in secrecy. She says, "... and I must put this away, he hates to have me write a word" (Gilman). Here, the diary symbolizes her rebellious tendency regarding the role of women. Based on how John strives to control his wife, it is argumentative to note that women, in the story's setting, are the weaker gender. The narrator is not allowed to decide for herself concerning what makes her happy and satisfied. John even goes beyond to ignore his wife's interests and wellbeing. Jennie, John's sister, depicts a woman's expectations by being satisfied with her domestic roles. She is described as “a perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper, who hopes for no better profession” (Gilman). The narrator goes against this expectation by voicing her feelings through her diary. The diary extends to her symbol of realizing her ability as a woman, away from the normalcy of being subjected to men's command.

The Fourth of July, the day in which America celebrates her independence from the British Colony, is symbolic in “The Yellow Page.” The narrator is also tired on this day, a day that every citizen should enjoy. She has had company, like desired by her husband, yet she does not feel any change. Importantly, this day symbolizes the independence which she craves for. She yearns to be free to think for herself and do things that make her happy. Just like America managed to slip away from the British Colony, the same, she wants her relationship with her husband to be.

The Room

The room with the wallpaper, which is also the couple's bedroom, is a symbol. The room was once a nursery, but its features are prison-like, with bars at the windows and a heavy gate. The prison-like features represent the narrator’s lack of freedom. She is not free to think for herself. She is subjected to her husband, who careless for her interests and the things that make her happy. For instance, he wants to remain at home without working. He even forbids her from expressing herself by forbidding here to write and laughing her emotional issues. More, so the fact that she at the house where she dislikes shows that her personality is suppressed.

Lastly, the most significant symbol is the yellow wallpaper, which contributes to the story’s climax. It leads to the narrator’s total mental breakdown at the end of the story. It comprises a pattern that she is obsessed with, and she eventually sees a woman she concludes to be trapped. Notably, the patterns symbolize societal norms that restrict people, particularly women, from living freely as the men. The narrator describes them as “a lack of sequence, a defiance of law, that is a constant irritant to a normal mind” (Gilman). In the story, men seem to be empowered to work and lead while the women’s position is repressed by the expectation that they belong to the domestic sectors, serving their husbands and caring for their children. Women cannot lead a happy life of expressing themselves freely, and if they do, they are considered mad.

Conclusion

Indeed, the use of symbolism has played a major part in creating meaning to build the theme. The symbols provide information that helps the readers connect effectively with the narrator and understand here true desires. More so, they elaborate on the central theme of women's role by describing the troubles they have had to endure as men’s subjects.

Work Cited

Gilman, P. Charlotte. The Yellow Wallpaper. (1892)