Jean Toomer's "Karintha" and Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper," are both two works that deal with women in the 20th century. "Karintha," written in 1920, is the first entry of Toomer's book "Cane" is about a woman who grows up too quickly for her own good and in result, is perceived as a bad person. "The Yellow Wallpaper," written in 1890, is about an allegedly mentally ill woman who has "temporary nervous depression," which prevents her from being able to access the outside world even if she wanted to (Gilman 209). Although they speak to different communities, "Karintha" and "The Yellow Wallpaper" can be seen as two works of feminist literature that allow the reader to understand both through the theme of being trapped. 

The reader encounters this theme in "Karintha" through her lifelong struggles at the hands of perverse men within the African American community in the early 20th century. Karintha, the main character, is perceived to be very beautiful, so beautiful that older men were lining up to wait for her to become of age. She is described "perfect as dusk when the sun goes down" (Toomer), which indicates that she is of mixed heritage, something considered as a very high beauty standard in many African American communities. This is interesting because Toomer is using this to emphasize to the reader just how beautiful Karintha is and that she is hypersexualized about it from childhood. Through the work, the reader can infer that Karintha witnessed sex at a very young age, making her very comfortable with it. Quotes such as "this interest of the male, who wishes to ripen a growing thing too soon, could mean no good to her," give the reader the impression that she is not valued by anything but her looks and is subsequently viewed as an object. Said quote also foreshadows that these men are possessive in their pursuits of her which would lead to her ruin. Behavioral problems such as interpersonal and animal abuse emerge as Karintha begins to grow older, but she does not get into any trouble for things because of her looks. Toomer shows this when she is caught abusing animals saying, "Even the preacher, who caught her at her mischief, told himself that she was as innocently lovely as a November cotton flower" ("Karintha").
