The Yellow Wallpaper

Within the "Yellow Wallpaper," by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the narrator transitions from a state of subordination to a state of authority; finding an escape from her husband and society's dominance through utter insanity.  Throughout the story, the narrator is treated as if she were a child and is placed in a nursery to emphasize her lack of authority within society, having as little power as an infant when it comes to her relationships and her status. John, the narrator's husband, never listens to her concerns and brushes off the severity of her case, postpartum depression, because he has "more serious cases" to tend to. When the narrator wishes to discuss important matters with John, he often speaks with the most condescending tone calling her his "blessed little goose" (1686 Gilman) and he even carries her to her room and reads to her until she falls asleep one night following a disagreement.  It is not until the narrator fully loses herself (her dependable and accepting nature that all women are "supposed" to possess) that she is able to experience a sense of freedom that she lacked in her marriage.  Earlier in the story the narrator mentions how inappropriate it is for a woman to creep in the open causing her to creep in private: "It must be very embarrassing to be caught creeping by daylight...I always lock the door when I creep by daylight" (1693 Gilman). The narrator is bound to society's rules and expectations so she hides whatever society deems unpleasant because she does not want to bring to light what the rest of the world does not wish to see. At the end however, the narrator is freed from her subordinate role through her lunacy and overcomes her husband when he finds her creeping by daylight: "Now why should that man have fainted? But he did, and right across my path by the wall, so that I had to creep over him every time!" (1695 Gilman).  John no longer has power over the narrator; she, on the other hand, brings to light the dire situation of her case and no longer allows him to prevent her from doing what she, not society as a whole, deems fit.

                Gilman attacks the "rest cure" within the "Yellow Wallpaper" because she believed that this treatment represented the inferiority of women during this time period. She wrote this cautionary tale not only to combat the "rest cure" but also to warn against the inevitable outcome if society did not change its view.  Gilman warns that women will eventually break free from their lesser positions in one of two ways, whether it be through society's change of heart or through madness.

Response to "Thanksgiving" by Celia Thaxter, in The Atlantic Monthly

I kind of liked Thaxter's "Thanksgiving" poem It just reminded me of "A Night Before Christmas," except there was a lot of description about nature: roses, irises, trees, and birds. She was giving thanks for all of the beautiful aspects of nature and personified the different natural wonders of the earth. It highlighted how amazing the annual cycling of the seasons are as it travels between death and rebirth year after year.  I do think it is strange when an author talks to inanimate objects and wishes for a response. I would rather admire in silence and accept that the roses do not have thoughts. I do appreciate Nature though. I think that it is often taken advantage of. As we grow older, its easy to forget and take for granted the miracles of nature. When I was a kid, I was mesmerized by nature and wanted to know all there was to know about it. As I have aged, I have also lost sight of the gloriousness of just everyday processes that flowers and trees and insects perform. Anyway, I choose this poem because it was published on my birthday, November 14, 1871. "Thanksgiving was originally published from The Atlantic Monthly, but was republished in this article from The Milwaukee. I was looking more for an actual Thanksgiving holiday story, but I have been having a very difficult time finding one, which is frustrating. However, I did like reading a poem that gave thanks to nature for everything that it does that we have the ability to sit back and enjoy.  We need to step back and "smell the roses" if you will. Another plus for the poem is it used the word gonfalons, which means a banner or pennant.

Kate Chopin's "Desiree's Baby!"

I was a little nervous about reading this short work because I was not a fan of, "The Awakening" at all in high school. It may have been that we read the novel at too young an age to really grasp the meaning and scandal, but I'm pretty sure that I got lost in the descriptions and never really put together the main plot. It was several years ago, but I distintly remember I did not like it. I was pleasantly surprised that I actually did enjoy "Desiree's Baby" a lot. It reminded me of the mini series North and South. I loved that series, but a woman within it, very light skinned, finds out that her mother was colored (she was adopted at a young age and no one knew of her past). She was married to a very cruel husband who would have killed her if he found out the truth. When her husband passed away and she was planning to marry her true love, who knew the truth and loved her anyway, she hesitated because she didn't want to place shame upon the name of her fiance. I think it is so strange that just the knowledge of "being cursed with the brand of slavery" even if one does not look like it, can make a husband fall out of love with his wife and child. Armand blames Desiree for ruining his family name, but she had no idea of her life before she was adopted. She was lucky enough in that time period to have light enough skin to pass as a white woman. The idea of slavery and thinking of a particular race so poorly, that you would send away your wife and son sickens me. And Arman is such a hypocrite. He too is of the colored race, as they called it, and just because he wanted to maintain his farce and save his reputation, he forces out the person he said he loved. Ohhhh,,,I think it just clicked for me. It wasn't Desiree that was colored but Armand was, so he blamed Desiree in order to save himself and his own reputation. What a jerk!