The Yellow Wallpaper

by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Dale M. Bauer (Editor)

This edition of The Yellow Wallpaper features historical materials which include nineteenth-century advice manuals for young women and mothers; medical texts discussing the nature of women's sexuality; social reform literature concerning women's rights, the working classes, and immigration; and excerpts from periodicals, diaries, and writers' notebooks that help give you a sense of the changing literary scene that Gilman entered.

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, Horror, Feminism, Gothic, Mental Health

400 pages, Paperback

Published January 15, 1998

About the author

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935), also known as Charlotte Perkins Stetson, was a prominent American sociologist, novelist, writer of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction, and a lecturer for social reform. She was a utopian feminist during a time when her accomplishments were exceptional for women, and she served as a role model for future generations of feminists because of her unorthodox concepts and lifestyle. Her best remembered work today is her semi-autobiographical short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper", which she wrote after a severe bout of post-partum depression.

She was the daughter of Frederic B. Perkins.

Reviews

[Dem · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Yellow Wallpaper is a short story by American writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman, first published in January 1892 in The New England Magazine. It is regarded as an important early work of American feminist literature.

The yellow Wallpaper is written as a series of diary entries from the perspective of a woman who is suffering(by what information we are given) from postpartum depression.

I found this one extremely well written and creepy for a story written in 1892 and it was heartbreaking how badly women’s mental health issues were dealt with back in 1800s and how terrifying and cruel treatments supposed to help patients turned into torture for them. This is a extremely atmospheric and creepy Novella and its only after you finish and ponder on what you just read do you realized how terrifying this was and how creative the author was to engage and draw the reader in, in so few pages.

A great read, very thought provoking and creepy.

[Khush · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice story.

[Avani ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is good and thought provoking.

[Tania · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A creepy, disturbing short story about a woman confined to the upstairs nursery by her husband where she is forbidden to work or write. She secretly keeps a journal and it is through these entries that we slowly realise to what extent she has been imprisoned by her husband. The author uses her descriptions of the yellow wallpaper to track her descent into madness.

A well-written story about how women were treated in the 1900's, and the author would know as she received the same diagnosis and treatment after the birth of her first daughter. The reason that I didn't rate this higher is that I needed more time to connect to the character.

[Roya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I had read it at a time I couldn't identify with her so strongly. It seems like a contradictiry statement, but it's not. The degree of my identification was just, well, disturbing.

[Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

To say "it was amazing" isn't quite right. What is true is this is well-written and thought-provoking, and not to mention terrifying that this was a legitimate practice.

[Irma-The Book&Coffee Addict · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the narrative in this book. I think this really intensified her problems. The fact that her husband treats her like a sickly child and yet she thinks that it is all for her own good because he loves her even though he practically ignores her. The strong feelings for the yellow wallpaper allow for the reader to be captivated in the string of events leading to her ultimate fall into the fascination of the yellow wallpaper. She begins to distrust her husband and finally begins to distrust her own diary in the end by leaving out certain things and keeping secrets. The enigma of the wallpaper to her gradual distrust of people and her own diary as well as the woman or women she describes to see crawling in the pattern in the paper make this a great narrative book of a struggling upper-middle class house wife diagnosed with post partum depression.

[Aaron Esthelm · Rating 3 out of 5]

The unbreakable bond of a woman and her wallpaper

[Lola! · Rating 4 out of 5]

i would make him faint and crawl over his body too

[wiktoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

oj długo nie było angielskiego........

[Marvie Mistry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book follows the Journal entries of a woman supposedly suffering through a temporary nervous breakdown- slight hysterical tendencies as diagonised by her husband John, a General Physician without kuch considering her said symptons. It showcases how the patriarchy comes in the disguise of "Care and Love" but is a constant reminder to believe in what one's body says. She repeatedly mentions how her husband is so caring even though she is tired all the time and supresses her from working at all, as a step to recover from her hysteria.

It consequently shades a light, that in a world where all feelings , emotions , matters and humans itself are expected to follow a "normal" behaviour assumed ; with no concrete efforts or research, by each differently based on the majority of the affairs surrounding them, define your own 'normal' , provide space for your 'unusual' because there is no one guide that clearly draws the line between 'normal' and 'absurd'.

[Sleepless Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am so glad i read this short story by myself,without analyzing it to death in class

[Joseph Genovese · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story spoke to me in a way not many others have. I have personally struggled with anxiety throughout my life and still do from time to time. In my current home that I have lived in for about a year and a half I often look at the slightly torn wallpaper in my bathroom and it tends to make me feel a bit like the main character. It doesn't drive me crazy that it is slightly torn in spots but I can see how someone with a mental disorder or a serious case of OCD could be troubled by the look of a wall in this condition. Also I can relate to a struggle to write when my mind is occupied with every day normal aggravation and stress that everyone goes through. My only criticism is that I wish the story would have gone on longer and dived deeper into her struggle against how the wallpaper was taunting and even torturing her so to speak. To me this was a very gripping and timeless tale that having been written over 100 years ago still holds up in our modern society. I had never heard of this author and story until I joined a discord/steemit group of other book and writing enthusiasts and I am glad I was able to stumble upon it. I highly recommend it to any aspiring writers as a creative tool to get the mental juices flowing.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this years ago for a class in high school and now again for a class in grad school 🥹

Loved it both times. So creepy. Or creeping. ;)

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this short story a number of times since high school but I just adore it. It is such a beautiful little feminist horror story that spits in the face of the resting cure, hysteria, other "women's illnesses," and the inevitable lunacy that all "medicine" becomes in due time. Such a great read.

[Klay Kubiak · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite short stories...very distrubing, great ending scene. It'll get under your skin a little bit.

[Elena Delaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creeped out for the second time by this story. Kind of a Gaslight theme: is the husband trying to help or hurt, free or imprison?

[Esther Nijboer · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me an embarrasingly long time to read such a short story. Proof that just because terms like post-partum depression or schizophrenia didn't exist, doesn't mean people didn't suffer from them.

[Savannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my Hell, this book was creepy. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get a chance to read this, but so glad I finally have. A classic and eerie psychological thriller with no bit of supernatural or paranormal elements, just one crazy lady. The last several pages had my mouth gaping open with shock; I didn’t actually suspect that ending at all. Great read!

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I think that this is one of those things where it was shocking at the time because it was the first book of its time, or the first book to talk about postpartum depression/psychosis. I had high hopes for it because I knew this going in, but I kind of realized after I read it that it's not really that shocking or emotionally impactful for people who already have some knowledge about the subject matter, or even women in the 21st century. I think that the writing was good, it was just such a short story and such a big, unexplored topic that the ending kind of came too soon and fell too flat for me. Still, if I was a male doctor reading it back when it was written, it likely would inspire me to take a closer look at the effects of childbirth on women, and the support system that they need to have in order to begin a new phase of their lives. I hated her husband, of course. I also though it was funny because I looked up a few analyses afterward about the woman lady she keeps seeing, and every site was like, yeah, we have no idea either. All in all, I see the vision, but I'm a little disappointed.

[Minhaz Joester · Rating 5 out of 5]

[The Yellow Wallpaper ]
— Charlotte Perkins Gilman

“দ্য ইয়োলো ওয়ালপেপার” এর থেকে ভালো মনস্তাত্ত্বিক গল্প পড়ার সৌভাগ্য আগে হয়নি। গিলম্যানকে মার্কিন সাহিত্যের প্রথম দিককার নারীবাদী লেখিকা হিসেবে বর্ণনা করেন অনেকে‌ই। বিশ শতকের গোড়ার দিকে নারীদের মানসিক চিকিৎসা বলতে বোঝানো হতো সকল কর্মকান্ড থেকে বিরত থেকে বন্দি অবস্থায় বিছানায় শুয়ে থাকা। পুরুষতান্ত্রিক সমাজে তাদের ভূমিকা কতটুকু গুরুত্বপূর্ণ তার এক ছটাক উঠে এসেছে প্রতীকধর্মী এই গল্পে। শারীরিক অসুস্থতার চেয়েও যে মানসিক পিঁড়া আরো ভয়ানক হতে পারে তা নিয়ে আলোকপাত করেন লেখিকা। আকারে গল্পটা এতো ছোট যে এরচেয়ে বিস্তারিত আলোচনা করা ঠিক হবে না, তবে আগ্রহী পাঠকদের পড়ার অনুরোধ রইল।

— মিনহাজ উদ্দিন
— (১১/১১/২৪)

[Isabel Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have also been linked to a man with a ‘J’ name who tried to control what I do.

Jokes aside, solid read. Very entertaining and gives you the heebie-jeebies towards the end.

In high school, I remember ppl arguing saying that she killed herself, but I say no. My girl just went insane. <3

[Gigi ༓☾✧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a bit repetitive in some places, but i could clearly see how Gilman used symbols and imagery to create an iconic story that was way ahead of its time

[paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVE

[Ariel Demo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this one was fine. It felt a little bit in your face with the metaphor which I won’t spoil. It just seemed very fast and obvious but it was described very nicely:)

[Heather Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creepy, anxiety provoking, and the epitome of being gaslit. This short story was chilling!

[Kira · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was SO good and I’m very glad I read it. Interesting to hear how the author was inspired by her own diagnosis and it really was chilling to read - I was unnerved to say the least. I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s interpretations of the story and it’s also crazy to think this was written before women could vote

[Ilorii · Rating 5 out of 5]

is it bad i kinda relate lolol

[Cora Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was horrendous how terrible a woman would have been treated BECAUSE she has ample mental health issues. It also was very confusing because I knew she had issues, but I couldn't tell what was real vs. her psychiatric illness. Other than that, it is very in alluring: meaning intended to be thrilled/amusing short story.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Yellow Wallpaper", a short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is the kernel of this book. It is a very modern-feeling, hallucinogenic portrayal of crippling late Nineteenth Century postpartum depression. This affecting and vivid piece is just a few pages of this compendium of period excerpts edited by Dale M. Bauer. The pieces help understand the context of the piece and include autobiographical material from Gilman who met the institutional treatment depressed women met at this time. The picture is of the final decades of that century and the first of the Twentieth. What emerges is a fumbling, ur-feminism where this half of the population fenced into maternity, housework, and being helpmeet to their husbands while burdened with blinders of racism, nativism, and classism groped to some future apotheosis on the other side of temperance unions and before suffrage. Also, during all this, wallpaper was often poisonous with arsenic or mercury.

In this time of xenophobic concern with immigration and an almost as great fear of the imagination activating powers of novels during a concerning "feminization" of political life, there was a build up to establishing Mother's Day. Of course, not Woman's Day, but a day to praise those taking up the traditional role in patriarchy. This is all expressed in (included here) Teddy Roosevelt's speech in Washington on March 13, 1905, before the National Congress of Mothers.

No piled-up wealth, no splendor of material growth, no brilliance of artistic development, will permanently avail any people unless its home life is healthy, courage, common sense, and decency, unless he works hard and is willing at need to fight hard; and unless the average woman is a good wife, a good mother, able and willing to perform the first and greatest duty of womanhood, able and willing to bear, and to bring up as they should be brought up, healthy children, sound in body, mind, and character, and numerous enough so that the race shall increase and not decrease.