Charlotte Perkins Gilman incorporates domestic ideology and feminism into “The Yellow Wallpaper” to emphasize the role of women in the nineteenth century. Gilman, an author and activist greatly recognized in her time as the “brains” of the woman’s movement, wrote the tale “The Yellow Wallpaper” in 1892, the late-nineteenth century. In the nineteenth century, women and men were expected to live their lives within their own “separate spheres;” women expected to live privately, meaning taking care of the home and the children, while men were expected to live their life publicly, meaning working in a factory or socializing with other men in public places, such as restaurants or bars. Several scholars, such as Christopher Sailus, William Veeder, and the author of “Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper – “The New Woman”,” along with St. Rosemary Educational Institution, all examine the role of women, feminism, and domestic ideology in the nineteenth century, the period in which Gilman lived most of her life and the period in which “The Yellow Wallpaper” was written. These references serve to highlight gender roles within the nineteenth century and aid in tying them back to “The Yellow Wallpaper” and sites of feminism, along with sexism, within the story.

St. Rosemary Educational Institution’s summary and analysis of “The Yellow Wallpaper” begins by introducing the fact that the nineteenth century was a period in which women in literature were often depicted as obedient and submissive to men. The summary/analysis continues to say that, overall, the literature of the nineteenth century also often characterized women as downtrodden to the men in their lives along with society as a whole. This summary also states that the gender roles in “The Yellow Wallpaper” are a direct representation of the domestic ideology at the time, when men did not want their wives to work because they wanted to protect them, but they did want their wives to work in the house by cleaning and taking care of the home and the children, which actually destroys them. In the story, the narrator is sick and her husband/doctor John wants her to stay in the house and rest, which is his way of “protecting” her, but it ends up making her mentally ill. In the beginning of “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the woman actually convinces herself, in order to provide herself an explanation for her confinement, that her husband wants her to get better, but by the end of the story, she realizes that his “treatment” is destroying her and she needs to break free. 

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s representation of the relationship between the narrator and John is blatantly characterized by the gender roles at the time. The woman is expected to stay home, while the husband is expected to go to work and socialize in the public world. In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the narrator, a woman, is ill and her physician-husband “treats” her by not letting her leave their home or let anyone but himself see her. This is an exaggeration of the nineteenth century gender roles, but Gilman is illustrating the struggle between gender roles in this time. In the nineteenth century, men believed that they were more powerful than women in society and, therefore, believed that it is alright to treat women as lesser. Throughout “The Yellow Wallpaper,” John takes advantage of his “power.” In the story, the narrator says, “There comes John, and I must put this away – he hates to have me write a word.” (Gilman 301.)

In William Veeder’s “Who is Jane?: The Intricate Feminism of Charlotte Perkins Gilman,” Veeder discusses Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s marriage, childhood, and mental stability throughout her life and he relates it to the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Veeder also argues that if the character “Jane” can be defined, much will be explained about Gilman’s “intricate feminist vision.” Veeder begins by explaining that, like the narrator in the story, Gilman had a rough relationship with her husband, Charles Walter Stetson, and also had a history of depressions throughout the few years before she had met her husband. Throughout his writing, Veeder sites other scholars and their thoughts on women and gender roles in general. “For girls and women, issues of femininity or feminine identity do not depend on the achievement of separation from the mother or on the progress of individuation,” states Carol Gilligan in In a Different Voice, used by Veeder to emphasize the fact that girls and women are subject to feminism no matter the achievements or successes of the women that they are surrounded by, whether that be grandmothers, mothers, or teachers. Veeder recognizes Gilman’s idea that women establish their identity as reflective of their husband’s identity. Veeder says, “Projection is reenactment; regression is proleptic. Psychology recapitulates misogyny.” He explains this statement as what the character “Jane” becomes from what culture says about women. He explains Jane’s identity and is arguing that psychology recaps sexism. 

In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the story begins with the introduction by the narrator of “…John and myself…” (Gilman 1). Identity is an issue from this sentence and so-on in the story. When the narrator refers to herself as “myself” instead of “I,” the woman introduces her identity under her husband’s. Later in the story, the woman says “John laughs at me…but one expects that,” and she goes from a personal identification of “me” to a generic, impersonal “one.” In these cases, the woman is dehumanizing herself and washing away her own personal identity. 

In EDSITEment!’s “Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper – The “New Woman”,” the domestic ideology of the nineteenth century is discussed and explained in context with the timing of “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The “separate spheres” are explained such that men are supposed to work publicly in their lives, working at a job in the real world along with socializing with other men in and out of the work force through work, economics, and politics, and women, on the other hand, they are expected to live privately in their home, fulfilling women’s roles of mother and wife, by cleaning the home, cooking, and taking care of the children. EDSITEment! states that Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper” during a “time of great change,” where feminists, such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, were standing up to discuss and fight for women’s rights and roles, and by the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century, women were ready to stand up and fight for the change that they wanted. In this period, “The Yellow Wallpaper” was written and published in The New England Magazine, a magazine that was only published for a little over 20 years in Boston, Massachusetts. The New England Magazine was published from 1884-1917, the period known specifically for its feminist movement. Knowing that “The Yellow Wallpaper” was written during this time, one can gather that Gilman knew that her writing would gain popularity because of the historical context of the time and she was a feminist wanting to share her story.

Feminism was an important aspect of the nineteenth and twentieth century, with high gender expectations and low chances of anyone straying from the norm. Women, especially, knew what was expected from them and knew their role in the household. While men were also very aware of their expectations, there was more acceptance for a man to break away than for a woman. Women in general during this time period were entirely shut out from the public sphere, unless they were accompanied by their fathers or husbands (Sailus.) Gilman wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper,” almost as an autobiography, to emphasize her position on the feminist movement. Gilman was directly inspired by the feminist movement of the century and had a strong vision for women in the future. The feminist movement of the late-nineteenth century influenced “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Gilman’s idea of the future of women’s rights.
