Similarities Between The Yellow Wallpaper And The Last Leaf
¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ by O. Henry and ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ by Charlotte Perkins Gilman are essentially two very different pieces of writing when looked at from a perspective on story style. However, that is not the aspect we are focusing on. In terms of both stories¡¦ theme and characterization method, the themes are actually quite similar with some differences but the characterization process is very different, except for the antagonists. In the following paragraphs, here are the main points and elements I will address. I will talk about the similarities and show evidence regarding the themes of the role of women and science versus faith; how women repression plays a big role in the themes as well as faith prevailing against science. I will also talk about how the characterization methods are vastly different for the protagonists and antagonists in both stories, a comparison between Johnsy as the protagonist and the actual narrator as a protagonist as well. Minor characters will also be thoroughly discussed, such as the indirect characterization of the Doctor in ¡§The Last
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Leaf¡¨ when put next to Jennie from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨.
I will now talk about the similarities regarding the theme ¡§role of women¡¨ in both stories. In one of the scenes from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, there is a particular phrase from the Doctor in the story to Johnsy when she is sick- and I quote, ¡§Paint? - bosh! Has she anything on her mind worth thinking twice - a man for instance?¡¨ This sentence quite simply implies the fact that men are important, and that painting is considered foolish. An ulterior meaning could be the fact that it¡¦s trying to say that men is superior to women. Other possible evidence supporting this could be the fact that Sudie (the only other woman in the story) is portrayed as someone taking care of things and the chores around the household, perhaps showing qualities of a housewife.
In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, it is almost a mirror image of this discrimination against women except when it gets out of hand; turning into a repression and a form of control. In the story, John the husband and physician is constantly condescending and patronizing to the narrator, belittling her in many cases. Here is one example from the text, ¡§Then he took me in his arms and called me a blessed little goose, and said he would go down cellar, if I wished, and have it whitewashed into the bargain.¡¨ Once again, it implies the men > woman superior factor. Also, the story portrays women¡¦s role at home, taking care of the baby and such, similar to Sudie in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨. Both stories have a theme revolving around women¡¦s discrimination and repression, especially relating to the two protagonists in the story.
However, there are also some differences in the ¡§women¡¦s role¡¨ theme. Firstly, while the narrator from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is repressed and controlled by her husband, Johnsy and Sudie only suffer from slight sexual discrimination. The narrator is a housewife either way, even if she gets better from her sickness. Johnsy and Sudie aren¡¦t and won¡¦t necessarily become housewives; they paint and they have a future career. The narrator suffers from her husband but Johnsy and Sudie are looked down upon in general; in work or among other things. A main difference between both characters and ultimately the theme is that the narrator from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is obedient yet possesses an inner desire for freedom; we can see this in what she says, ¡§Personally, I disagree with their ideas.¡¨, ¡§Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good. But what is one to do?¡¨, and ¡§I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus¡Xbut John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad.¡¨ Meanwhile, Johnsy and Sudie aren¡¦t controlled and they indeed are ambitious - quoting Johnsy, "Sudie, someday I hope to paint the Bay of Naples.¡¨ One story could be said to have the theme of repression of women while the other the theme of discrimination against women.
There are also a lot of similarities between both stories regarding the second major theme, ¡§Science versus Faith¡¨. However, I will first talk about the differences, weak as they may be.
In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, there was actually no faith involved on a technical basis. Yet in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, Johnsy put an incredible amount of faith, whether it was good or bad, on the leaf. In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, science actually made the narrator worse, driving her to insanity and eventually to revealing her multiple personalities. In ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, science didn¡¦t necessarily make her worse; it just failed to help improve her condition. What I¡¦m trying to say is, ¡§The Last Leaf¡¦s¡¨ theme could be that faith prevails against scientific judgment, and ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¦s¡¨ theme being simply that the scientific diagnosis and treatment was wrong.
As for the similarities, the theme for both stories could be that science may not always be right; it may not solve all of our life¡¦s problems. Firstly, you can see that both doctors/physicians are sexist men. I may be playing on a stereotype, but usually men like that lean towards science rather than faith (in fiction anyways). Either way, they both have a firm and pure belief in science and no tolerance for faith whatsoever. However, they are both wrong at the end. John made a wrong diagnosis and gave her incorrect treatment, not knowing that the Narrator suffers from schizophrenia. As for the Doctor in ¡§The Open Window¡¨, he gives a diagnosis and prediction from the wisdom he has gained from experience, even though it was relatively wrong. Johnsy¡¦s life in actual fact depends on the leaf outside her window. Both women turned out exactly opposite of what both doctors¡¦ thought; Johnsy¡¦s survival was unexplainable and the Narrator was driven to a point where she completely lost control.
The characterizations for the protagonists in both stories are very different. Once again, I will first address the similarities.
For Johnsy and Anon (the narrator), they both have some indirect characterization shown through their actions and the reactions of the other characters, as well as through speech as the protagonist and the dialogue between other people in the story. Also, Johnsy and the narrator are both characterized by the two authors as rounded characters in my opinion; they show many different traits and qualities, possessing a full personality, even though we as readers may not know their ulterior motives behind their actions.
The characterizations of both protagonists in the stories are very different due to the fact that the narrator is actually the protagonist itself. Anon from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is indirectly characterized through her thoughts, actions, and opinions. Johnsy from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ however, is indirectly characterized by her actions and her speech, including dialogue with other characters. The narrator¡¦s context is very false and flawed; she is not believable and her words cannot be trusted. However, in a way she is indirectly characterized by her lies. Johnsy¡¦s context is believable and reliable; possessing a conviction in her voice. Because of this, her bare truth exerts a convincing force and shapes her character. Johnsy is a static character. At the end of ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, she has a will to live, and physically she gets well, but her characteristics and traits don¡¦t change. Her personality stays the same. As for Anon, the narrator is a dynamic character. While she is slightly normal in the beginning, she becomes completely delusional and crazy in the end, driven to the point of insanity. Her character completely changes, literally since she has multiple personalities. There is an incredible transition. In some cases, Johnsy is directly characterized by O. Henry as the narrator. Anon is never directly characterized by the narrator in ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, since she actually is the narrator. However, she still doesn¡¦t talk about her characteristics directly either way.
As I stated before, the characterizations from both authors are very different. However, this is different for the antagonists, Sudie from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ and John from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨.
I will start with the slight differences. Sudie is indirectly characterized through her actions and her speech. We can see her character quite clearly in the things she says. However, John is directly characterized through the narrator¡¦s opinions or thoughts, which could actually be biased and untrue. Sudie has no direct characterization.
There are an immense amount of similarities in the characterizations between both antagonists.
Firstly, both Sudie and John are indirectly characterized through their actions. Sudie and John are both static characters; they don¡¦t change throughout the whole story in terms of personality traits and characteristics. In the end, Sudie is still the caring roommate and we naturally assume John is still the controlling husband, even though we don¡¦t know for certain. Both Sudie and John are also flat characters, two people that serve a particular purpose in the story. John is indirectly characterized by the narrator, showing minimal traits and characteristics, even after we account the fact that Anon¡¦s recount in her diary were often biased and sometimes untrue. Sudie¡¦s actions and speech only give us a sense of her flat and weak personality; motherly and caring, never showing her darker
side.
The characterizations have very little similarities for the minor characters in the story. Both Jennie from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ and the Doctor from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ are flat characters with a weak personality, and minimal traits and characteristics. We can see quite easily that Jennie and the Doctor are static, they don¡¦t change and they just do their duty. However, even though their part is small, it is significant and important to the telling of the story.
As for the differences, the Doctor is indirectly characterized by his speech while Jennie is indirectly characterized from the opinions and thoughts of the narrator. Behrman is both directly and indirectly characterized. He is directly characterized by the narrator in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, with this quote quite simply showing that, ¡§For the rest he was a fierce little old man, who scoffed terribly at softness in any one, and who regarded himself as especial mastiff-in-waiting to protect the two young artists in the studio above.¡¨
Behrman is also indirectly characterized through his actions and his speech (including dialogue). From this quote we assume that Behrman is reluctant or even strongly opposed to helping Johnsy, "Vass!" he cried. "Is dere people in de world mit der foolishness to die because leafs dey drop off from a confounded vine? I haf not heard of such a thing. No, I will not bose as a model for your fool hermit-dunderhead. Vy do you allow dot silly pusiness to come in der brain of her? Ach, dot poor leetle Miss Yohnsy." However, from this quote, ¡§Didn't you wonder why it never fluttered or moved when the wind blew? Ah, darling, it's Behrman's masterpiece - he painted it there the night that the last leaf fell.¡¨, we learn of Behrman¡¦s sacrifice to save Johnsy¡¦s life, and that shows a lot about his selfless and caring character. Because of all this, Behrman is most definitely a rounded character; we can see many traits and his personality thoroughly. Obviously, Behrman is a dynamic character, as he changes drastically when he gives up his life to paint the leaf.
In conclusion, the themes are similar for both stories. Although there were a few differences, in my opinion it is quite understandable due to the fact that they both are different stories after all. I would say that the main theme for both stories is probably related to women¡¦s roles and they were treated back in the 1800¡¦s. The theme ¡§Science Versus Faith¡¨ contributes more to the actual unfolding of the plot mixed in with the ending. Basically, the main difference between the characterizations for both stories is that the protagonist is actually the narrator at the same time, causing many problems when we are trying to interpret a character¡¦s personality. Overall, I would still say that both stories are incredibly different and diverse in their own ways, yet a comparison gives you a clear and better understanding of the story.
Leaf¡¨ when put next to Jennie from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨.
I will now talk about the similarities regarding the theme ¡§role of women¡¨ in both stories. In one of the scenes from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, there is a particular phrase from the Doctor in the story to Johnsy when she is sick- and I quote, ¡§Paint? - bosh! Has she anything on her mind worth thinking twice - a man for instance?¡¨ This sentence quite simply implies the fact that men are important, and that painting is considered foolish. An ulterior meaning could be the fact that it¡¦s trying to say that men is superior to women. Other possible evidence supporting this could be the fact that Sudie (the only other woman in the story) is portrayed as someone taking care of things and the chores around the household, perhaps showing qualities of a housewife.
In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, it is almost a mirror image of this discrimination against women except when it gets out of hand; turning into a repression and a form of control. In the story, John the husband and physician is constantly condescending and patronizing to the narrator, belittling her in many cases. Here is one example from the text, ¡§Then he took me in his arms and called me a blessed little goose, and said he would go down cellar, if I wished, and have it whitewashed into the bargain.¡¨ Once again, it implies the men > woman superior factor. Also, the story portrays women¡¦s role at home, taking care of the baby and such, similar to Sudie in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨. Both stories have a theme revolving around women¡¦s discrimination and repression, especially relating to the two protagonists in the story.
However, there are also some differences in the ¡§women¡¦s role¡¨ theme. Firstly, while the narrator from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is repressed and controlled by her husband, Johnsy and Sudie only suffer from slight sexual discrimination. The narrator is a housewife either way, even if she gets better from her sickness. Johnsy and Sudie aren¡¦t and won¡¦t necessarily become housewives; they paint and they have a future career. The narrator suffers from her husband but Johnsy and Sudie are looked down upon in general; in work or among other things. A main difference between both characters and ultimately the theme is that the narrator from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is obedient yet possesses an inner desire for freedom; we can see this in what she says, ¡§Personally, I disagree with their ideas.¡¨, ¡§Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good. But what is one to do?¡¨, and ¡§I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus¡Xbut John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad.¡¨ Meanwhile, Johnsy and Sudie aren¡¦t controlled and they indeed are ambitious - quoting Johnsy, "Sudie, someday I hope to paint the Bay of Naples.¡¨ One story could be said to have the theme of repression of women while the other the theme of discrimination against women.
There are also a lot of similarities between both stories regarding the second major theme, ¡§Science versus Faith¡¨. However, I will first talk about the differences, weak as they may be.
In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, there was actually no faith involved on a technical basis. Yet in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, Johnsy put an incredible amount of faith, whether it was good or bad, on the leaf. In ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, science actually made the narrator worse, driving her to insanity and eventually to revealing her multiple personalities. In ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, science didn¡¦t necessarily make her worse; it just failed to help improve her condition. What I¡¦m trying to say is, ¡§The Last Leaf¡¦s¡¨ theme could be that faith prevails against scientific judgment, and ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¦s¡¨ theme being simply that the scientific diagnosis and treatment was wrong.
As for the similarities, the theme for both stories could be that science may not always be right; it may not solve all of our life¡¦s problems. Firstly, you can see that both doctors/physicians are sexist men. I may be playing on a stereotype, but usually men like that lean towards science rather than faith (in fiction anyways). Either way, they both have a firm and pure belief in science and no tolerance for faith whatsoever. However, they are both wrong at the end. John made a wrong diagnosis and gave her incorrect treatment, not knowing that the Narrator suffers from schizophrenia. As for the Doctor in ¡§The Open Window¡¨, he gives a diagnosis and prediction from the wisdom he has gained from experience, even though it was relatively wrong. Johnsy¡¦s life in actual fact depends on the leaf outside her window. Both women turned out exactly opposite of what both doctors¡¦ thought; Johnsy¡¦s survival was unexplainable and the Narrator was driven to a point where she completely lost control.
The characterizations for the protagonists in both stories are very different. Once again, I will first address the similarities.
For Johnsy and Anon (the narrator), they both have some indirect characterization shown through their actions and the reactions of the other characters, as well as through speech as the protagonist and the dialogue between other people in the story. Also, Johnsy and the narrator are both characterized by the two authors as rounded characters in my opinion; they show many different traits and qualities, possessing a full personality, even though we as readers may not know their ulterior motives behind their actions.
The characterizations of both protagonists in the stories are very different due to the fact that the narrator is actually the protagonist itself. Anon from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ is indirectly characterized through her thoughts, actions, and opinions. Johnsy from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ however, is indirectly characterized by her actions and her speech, including dialogue with other characters. The narrator¡¦s context is very false and flawed; she is not believable and her words cannot be trusted. However, in a way she is indirectly characterized by her lies. Johnsy¡¦s context is believable and reliable; possessing a conviction in her voice. Because of this, her bare truth exerts a convincing force and shapes her character. Johnsy is a static character. At the end of ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, she has a will to live, and physically she gets well, but her characteristics and traits don¡¦t change. Her personality stays the same. As for Anon, the narrator is a dynamic character. While she is slightly normal in the beginning, she becomes completely delusional and crazy in the end, driven to the point of insanity. Her character completely changes, literally since she has multiple personalities. There is an incredible transition. In some cases, Johnsy is directly characterized by O. Henry as the narrator. Anon is never directly characterized by the narrator in ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨, since she actually is the narrator. However, she still doesn¡¦t talk about her characteristics directly either way.
As I stated before, the characterizations from both authors are very different. However, this is different for the antagonists, Sudie from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ and John from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨.
I will start with the slight differences. Sudie is indirectly characterized through her actions and her speech. We can see her character quite clearly in the things she says. However, John is directly characterized through the narrator¡¦s opinions or thoughts, which could actually be biased and untrue. Sudie has no direct characterization.
There are an immense amount of similarities in the characterizations between both antagonists.
Firstly, both Sudie and John are indirectly characterized through their actions. Sudie and John are both static characters; they don¡¦t change throughout the whole story in terms of personality traits and characteristics. In the end, Sudie is still the caring roommate and we naturally assume John is still the controlling husband, even though we don¡¦t know for certain. Both Sudie and John are also flat characters, two people that serve a particular purpose in the story. John is indirectly characterized by the narrator, showing minimal traits and characteristics, even after we account the fact that Anon¡¦s recount in her diary were often biased and sometimes untrue. Sudie¡¦s actions and speech only give us a sense of her flat and weak personality; motherly and caring, never showing her darker
side.
The characterizations have very little similarities for the minor characters in the story. Both Jennie from ¡§The Yellow Wallpaper¡¨ and the Doctor from ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨ are flat characters with a weak personality, and minimal traits and characteristics. We can see quite easily that Jennie and the Doctor are static, they don¡¦t change and they just do their duty. However, even though their part is small, it is significant and important to the telling of the story.
As for the differences, the Doctor is indirectly characterized by his speech while Jennie is indirectly characterized from the opinions and thoughts of the narrator. Behrman is both directly and indirectly characterized. He is directly characterized by the narrator in ¡§The Last Leaf¡¨, with this quote quite simply showing that, ¡§For the rest he was a fierce little old man, who scoffed terribly at softness in any one, and who regarded himself as especial mastiff-in-waiting to protect the two young artists in the studio above.¡¨
Behrman is also indirectly characterized through his actions and his speech (including dialogue). From this quote we assume that Behrman is reluctant or even strongly opposed to helping Johnsy, "Vass!" he cried. "Is dere people in de world mit der foolishness to die because leafs dey drop off from a confounded vine? I haf not heard of such a thing. No, I will not bose as a model for your fool hermit-dunderhead. Vy do you allow dot silly pusiness to come in der brain of her? Ach, dot poor leetle Miss Yohnsy." However, from this quote, ¡§Didn't you wonder why it never fluttered or moved when the wind blew? Ah, darling, it's Behrman's masterpiece - he painted it there the night that the last leaf fell.¡¨, we learn of Behrman¡¦s sacrifice to save Johnsy¡¦s life, and that shows a lot about his selfless and caring character. Because of all this, Behrman is most definitely a rounded character; we can see many traits and his personality thoroughly. Obviously, Behrman is a dynamic character, as he changes drastically when he gives up his life to paint the leaf.
In conclusion, the themes are similar for both stories. Although there were a few differences, in my opinion it is quite understandable due to the fact that they both are different stories after all. I would say that the main theme for both stories is probably related to women¡¦s roles and they were treated back in the 1800¡¦s. The theme ¡§Science Versus Faith¡¨ contributes more to the actual unfolding of the plot mixed in with the ending. Basically, the main difference between the characterizations for both stories is that the protagonist is actually the narrator at the same time, causing many problems when we are trying to interpret a character¡¦s personality. Overall, I would still say that both stories are incredibly different and diverse in their own ways, yet a comparison gives you a clear and better understanding of the story.