Women in the 19th century were not nearly treated to the standards they are today.  Females were seen as inferior to males in most aspects of life and were treated as such.  This treatment translated into specific medical treatment that was illogical and was not proven to be effective.  In "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the narrator is subject to one of these medical treatments, more specifically the rest cure.  This short story is an example of how women were treated during the time period.  An analysis of "The Yellow Wallpaper" was writed by Catherine Sustana to uncover the deeper meaning of this story.  It is also necessary to explore an article called "Rest Cure" to deepen one's understanding of the time period and therefore better understand the text.  With these sources, "The Yellow Wallpaper" allows for a deeper understanding of the research article mentioned earlier as well as any research relevant to women of the 19th century.

In "Analysis of 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman", Catherine Sustana goes into detail regarding different aspects of the short story.  First, the author discusses the health problems with the narrator, which is a "temporary nervous depression -- a slight hysterical tendency" (Sustana).  After the narrator was diagnosed with this condition, her husband prescribes her with the rest cure.  This is when the patient sits in a bedroom 24 hours a day until they get better.  For the narrator, however, this caused her to go even crazier.  Patterns on the wall started to look like objects as the narrators mind created images in the wallpaper.  The narrator is also discouraged from doing any activity that involves thinking or using her brain too much.  Sustana points out parts of the short story where the narrator's husband, John, seems to talk down to her because she is a woman.  John uses phrases such as 'little girl' and 'blessed little goose' to address his wife.  These phrases show how disrespected women were in the 19th century.  Sustana also points out how the narrator wasn't even able to stay in the room of her choosing.  She was forced to stay in the nursery, which symbolizes her return to childhood and emphasizes her inferiority as a woman of that time period.  Later in the analysis, Sustana quotes the text when it talks about how the narrator thought she came out of the wallpaper.  The narrator wonders if all the people she sees in the wallpaper will come to life like she did.  This shows how the rest cure has made her condition much worse and has made her crazy.  Also, the narrator points out how in the end of the story the roles are reversed.  When John faints, the narrator addresses him as 'young man' in a very condescending way, showing her retaliation and how she is tired of being belittled because of her gender.

In order to understand the time period and the medical advancements of the time, it is necessary to exam the details of what the rest cure was and to understand the background behind it.  In "Rest Cure", the author states that Silas Weir Mitchell developed rest cure in the late 19th century to combat nervous illnesses.  The rest cure typically was a six to eight week process that consisted of bed rest and a milk based diet ("Rest Cure").  The patients were cleaned, fed, and helped with normal life processes by nurses.  The patients were also often not allowed to speak, read, or write ("Rest Cure").  The purpose of the rest cure was to increase the patients weight and to remove them from stressful environments ("Rest Cure").  Charlotte Perkins Gilman received the rest cure, but was outspoken about it, which is why she wrote the short story "The Yellow Wallpaper".

When a piece of historical-cultural literature is read in a future time period, not all aspects of the story can be completely understood.  The piece of literature will likely have one person's account of an event or events.   In order to have a better understanding of the time period and the text in question, it is necessary to do research on the time period to get a more unbiased view of the situation.  To be more specific, "The Yellow Wallpaper" wouldn't make sense to a reader who knew nothing about the way women were treated in the 19th century.  Once the reader does research and learns facts to back up things in the story, they will have a complete understanding of the time period in question.  In a similar sense, research alone on a time period does not offer a complete view of the truth.  Literature is important in offering a more first-hand view of the time.  "The Yellow Wallpaper" gives readers an account of what it was like to be a woman prescribed with rest cure.  The narrator in the story slowly goes crazy because she is not being properly treated.  However, doctors from the time period believed the rest cure to be a proper treatment for the narrator.  This situation offers a good example of how literature and research have an important relationship when it comes to learning about all aspects of a specific time period. 

"The Yellow Wallpaper" shows the corruption of the medical system and the disrespect towards women during the 19th century.  This short story also shows how a text can allow a new understanding of research from a historical-cultural moment such as the 19th century and women's rights.  Charlotte Perkins Gilman was one of the few women who recognized the poor treatment women were received and was willing to stand up against it through literature.  Through her short story, generations in the future will be able to reflect upon the past, when medical care and women's right were not up to current standards.  

