The works of medicine are drastically different today than they were just a century ago. Technology, drugs, and treatments have all made significant advancements since the late 1800’s. New diseases and disorders have been found while others have faded out due to preventions and cures generated by scientists. During this early time period in medicine, physical sickness was taken more seriously than mental sickness, if mental disorders were even considered “real” at all. Specifically, mental disorders in women were almost ignored and when they were not ignored, they were strongly mistreated. Women were often placed in asylums in which they did not belong or given treatments that did nothing but enhance the disease. Many women experienced this traumatic wrongdoing prior to the early 20th century. One woman, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, was able to write a story about a woman put under these treatments as she was attempting to battle her mental disorder. Her writing was based on fact and true experiences that women with mental disorders faced in this time. The story “The Yellow Wallpaper” describes the treatment that women underwent for neurasthenia as well as post-partum depression. Women were put under “The Rest Cure” treatment that was developed by Doctor Silas Weir Mitchell in order to combat her illness. The negative effect this treatment had on women both mentally and physically is portrayed through her writing. “The Yellow Wallpaper” as told by Charlotte Perkins Gilman showcases the unjust treatment of mental disorders in the early 1900’s as well as the struggles women faced in this era.

Treatment for mental disorders and diseases have not always been about curing the patient and doing what is best for them. The introduction of humane mental treatment did not come in to play until the mid-20th century (Foerschner). Treatment of patients with mental conditions started out with cruel punishment. Mental patients were thought to be insane with no hope of being cured. Mental illness treatments date back to ancient Mesopotamia times. It was first thought that all mental disorders were caused by evil spirits. The treatments provided by doctors and religious personnel were cruel and inhumane. “Cures” such as trephining- a procedure in which a hole was drilled into one’s head to release evil spirits were common practice in the early years of medicine (Foerschner). Since these times, medicine has come a long way. In the beginning of the 20th century, patients were still receiving radical “treatments” that did not do much other than harm them. Some humane cures had been put in to practice but many doctors were using old ways or beginning to incorporate somewhat new treatments. A new treatment stepped in to play in the late 1800’s called the Rest Cure. This cure treated patients (mainly women) with a nervous mental disorder called neurasthenia. Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote of one of the many women to receive this treatment. In her short story “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the woman suffered from neurasthenia. She was put under treatment by the Rest Cure as created by Doctor Silas Weirs Mitchell. This treatment called for “six to eight weeks of isolation, bed rest, a high calorie diet, massage, and electrotherapy” (Goldberg).  Not only was Gilman’s character forced to participate in The Rest Cure due to her neurasthenia, she was also suffering from post-partum depression. This “cure” would not be an appropriate treatment for anyone today. By the woman being left alone to rest all day in a small room with nothing to do, she focused solely on the wallpaper that irritated her: “It dwells in my mind so! I lie here … and follow that pattern about by the hour. It is as good as gymnastics, I assure you. I start, we’ll say, at the bottom, down in the corner over there where it has not been touched, and I determine for the thousandth time that I will follow that pointless pattern to some sort of conclusion” (Gilman). This nonstop dwelling on the wallpaper led her further into the depths of neurasthenia rather than bringing her away from the condition. She continued day-after-day to follow the pattern and eventually it had completely consumed her mind. She went so far as to tear apart the wallpaper and rip it from the wall. Not being allowed to do much other than rest in her room, the woman focused all of her attention on that wallpaper causing her to dive further and further into neurasthenia. The use of treatment in this era did not treat these women suffering from neurasthenia, but in some cases, only made it worse.

It is well known that in this era women were not treated equal to men.  Men were given more rights and could do much more under the law than women. It was socially acceptable for men to participate in certain acts whereas women were prohibited. The work force was compromised almost completely of men while women had expectations of doing the work around the house. Even in medicine, men were prescribed more accurate treatments to help them recover from illnesses. An example of this is the difference in treatment for men and women suffering from neurasthenia, as the woman in Gilman’s writing did. The men had their own cure named The West Cure (also created by Doctor Silas Weirs Mitchell). This cure shipped men out West to find jobs and activities that would keep their minds occupied. They were not ordered to rest and exclude themselves from exercise but were rather told to exercise physically and work the brain by participating in manual labor to attempt to bring the mind and body back to a healthy state of being (Goldberg). The West Cure and The Rest Cure differences showcase the differences in the treatment of men and women in medicine and in strength. Aside from medicine, another unfair treatment of women was the control husbands held over their wives. There were many instances seen in “The Yellow Wallpaper” where John (the woman’s husband) took control of her life. John was a physician himself that believed there was nothing wrong with Gilman. He told her and their family and friends multiple times that “there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression” (Gilman). Gilman did not attempt to argue back or seek other physicians, rather she just obeyed her husband and did as she was told. The only treatment he ever wanted her to try was the Rest Cure. He did not allow her to exercise or visit family and friends. Gilman attempted to get out of the house that was driving her further into her mental illness by asking permission to visit family. However, John’s response made it clear that he would not allow her to visit: “…I wish he would let me go and make a visit to Cousin Henry and Julia. But he said I wasn’t able to go, nor able to stand it after I got there” (Gilman). The husband advised her of not seeing the family due to how he believed she would handle herself around them. He believed her condition would cause her to be stressed and further encourage the neurasthenia. However, this control over Gilman’s life seemed rather unhealthy for her condition. She was not able to make any decisions on her own, but rather her husband decided for her. Her freedom was stripped away from her by her husband’s control and the working of her mind. What Gilman experienced with her husband is in many ways the same as what other women were experiencing in this time frame as well, both medically and socially. The lack of control women had over their own lives in this time period is significant because it directly impacted their health and social wellness. The differences in equality between the two genders in this time era impacted women’s lives by oppressing their needs in life and their ability to make decisions to benefit themselves without the approval of men.

Through Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s writing of “The Yellow Wallpaper,” she was able to show many ways in which women were treated unequally to men. Their disorders and diseases were not taken as seriously and they had little say in the treatments they received and how they wanted to live their lives. The lack of humane treatments given to patients with mental disorders was also part of the cruelness presented. The earlier days of skull drilling and the latter days of asylums and The Rest Cure are both treatments that acted more as punishments rather than cures. The Rest Cure that was implemented on the woman in “The Yellow Wallpaper” drove her further in to the depths of her mental disorder. The control her husband held over her as well did not enhance her ability to cure her disorder either. Both the treatment of her mental disorder along with the lack of equality between men and women are able to accurately portray the culture and time period in which women were being treated in as well as living in.
