Restricted freedom
English 201 – 080
16 February 2014
Restricted Freedom In the 19th century, women born in the United States have been denied many opportunities and rights that were strictly reserved for men. Women were expected to be timid; they were not allowed to speak for themselves or to act on their own impulses. Women should not have to demand liberty because this is a human right. A woman should have the right to do as they please without a male opinion overpowering her own voice. In the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Gilman captures the heights of emotions for a wife in an oppressive marriage. Many marriages in the late 19th century were similar to the one in this story, a tyrannically imposed marriage. This was an issue of the time period. Women were a man’s “property”; they were subject to the rules inflicted by men. In comparison, “The Story of an Hour” written by Kate Chopin describes the emotional distress and eustress of a woman who felt trapped in a marriage and in a life that was not lived in her own terms. Many women in the past, have always been demeaned because they were not to be taken seriously. A few generations ago, in many American households, woman had no identity and fell short of excellence due to limitation of self. These issues are most pronounced in a previous era.
This era would be the years preceding the 19th century. Gilman uses many literary devices to evoke feelings and emotions to the reader. In my opinion her most prominent literary device is setting. Gilman uses setting to add to the bleak truth that women in the past were indeed suppressed. The wife in “The Story of an Hour” was both emotionally and mentally troubled so she was placed into a giant lonely mansion ordered by her husband who claims he knows her better than she knows herself. Her husband is a physician and this gives him more authority and a higher prestige than her. She is constantly being shut down without her ideas taken
16 February 2014
Restricted Freedom In the 19th century, women born in the United States have been denied many opportunities and rights that were strictly reserved for men. Women were expected to be timid; they were not allowed to speak for themselves or to act on their own impulses. Women should not have to demand liberty because this is a human right. A woman should have the right to do as they please without a male opinion overpowering her own voice. In the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Gilman captures the heights of emotions for a wife in an oppressive marriage. Many marriages in the late 19th century were similar to the one in this story, a tyrannically imposed marriage. This was an issue of the time period. Women were a man’s “property”; they were subject to the rules inflicted by men. In comparison, “The Story of an Hour” written by Kate Chopin describes the emotional distress and eustress of a woman who felt trapped in a marriage and in a life that was not lived in her own terms. Many women in the past, have always been demeaned because they were not to be taken seriously. A few generations ago, in many American households, woman had no identity and fell short of excellence due to limitation of self. These issues are most pronounced in a previous era.
This era would be the years preceding the 19th century. Gilman uses many literary devices to evoke feelings and emotions to the reader. In my opinion her most prominent literary device is setting. Gilman uses setting to add to the bleak truth that women in the past were indeed suppressed. The wife in “The Story of an Hour” was both emotionally and mentally troubled so she was placed into a giant lonely mansion ordered by her husband who claims he knows her better than she knows herself. Her husband is a physician and this gives him more authority and a higher prestige than her. She is constantly being shut down without her ideas taken
Cited: Page Adams C, Donovan J (Eds), 1995, Animals and Women: Feminist Theoretical Explorations (Duke University Press, Durham, NC) Thomas, Deborah. "Charlotte Perkins Gilman"The Yellow Wallpaper"" Gilman, "Yellow Wallpaper" N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. Gardner, Janet E. "Chapter 5." Reading and Writing about Literature: A Portable Guide. 3rd ed. Boston: Bedford/St.Martins, 2013. 75-92. Print. Nadkarni, Asha. "Reproducing Feminism in Jasmine and 'The Yellow Wallpaper '." Feminist Studies 38.1 (2012): 218+. Academic OneFile. Web. 25 Feb. 2014. Papke, Mary E. Verging on the Abyss: The Social Fiction of Kate Chopin and Edith Wharton. New York: Greenwood P, 1995.