The Yellow Wallpaper
The psychology behind it
Many things can be said about Charlotte Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” such as how this is some form of bildungsroman, or how it is a story of female repression and omission from society. Another, potentially more insightful reading, could come from the psychological field of study and suggest that the narrator suffers from postpartum psychosis or postpartum depression. The things that the narrator says, hints at, does, and explains all points toward one universal truth: postpartum depression.
People with postpartum depression are less than likely to verbally express themselves, but here we see the narrator writing her thoughts down. The way she expresses herself on paper is interesting because she will talk about how “unreasonably angry,” or “positively angry” she will get, for no apparent reason (473, 475). Anyone with postpartum depression will have extreme mood swings, similar to that of bipolar disorder. The narrator also continues to explain how regularly she cries for no significant reason. Having no reason to cry or to be angry, yet exhibiting those behaviors in extreme fashions only exacerbates the point that she is clinically depressed.
The narrator also talks of how she has little to no appetite, is shameful to admit her emotions to her husband, lacks emotional attachment, and the list goes on. She verbalizes, through her journaling, how upset she is, yet how little she feels. Being on the border of extreme emotions with no connection to anyone or anything is exactly what it means to be clinically depressed. Her husband takes care of her all day and she feels, “basely ungrateful not to value it more” (474). This lack of emotion paired with mood swings is confusing to her and pushes her to dwell and fixate on anything she can make sense of. This is completely normal for depressive patients.
Now, the one thing she hints at throughout the short story is her overwhelming feelings of shame. When it comes to crying, she
Many things can be said about Charlotte Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” such as how this is some form of bildungsroman, or how it is a story of female repression and omission from society. Another, potentially more insightful reading, could come from the psychological field of study and suggest that the narrator suffers from postpartum psychosis or postpartum depression. The things that the narrator says, hints at, does, and explains all points toward one universal truth: postpartum depression.
People with postpartum depression are less than likely to verbally express themselves, but here we see the narrator writing her thoughts down. The way she expresses herself on paper is interesting because she will talk about how “unreasonably angry,” or “positively angry” she will get, for no apparent reason (473, 475). Anyone with postpartum depression will have extreme mood swings, similar to that of bipolar disorder. The narrator also continues to explain how regularly she cries for no significant reason. Having no reason to cry or to be angry, yet exhibiting those behaviors in extreme fashions only exacerbates the point that she is clinically depressed.
The narrator also talks of how she has little to no appetite, is shameful to admit her emotions to her husband, lacks emotional attachment, and the list goes on. She verbalizes, through her journaling, how upset she is, yet how little she feels. Being on the border of extreme emotions with no connection to anyone or anything is exactly what it means to be clinically depressed. Her husband takes care of her all day and she feels, “basely ungrateful not to value it more” (474). This lack of emotion paired with mood swings is confusing to her and pushes her to dwell and fixate on anything she can make sense of. This is completely normal for depressive patients.
Now, the one thing she hints at throughout the short story is her overwhelming feelings of shame. When it comes to crying, she