As citizens of the 21st century, our society is working through issues regarding inequality in the aspects of race, gender, and sexual orientation. However, some of these inequalities have not been completely resolved, as they were very prominent and obvious during the 19th century. Women's struggles to be equal with men are still present today, although these struggles were not as clear several hundred years ago. The differences in the rights of a man and the rights of a woman seemed natural, and it was not until the 1800s that these differences were viewed as extremely unfair. Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" is centered around the struggles of being a woman during the 19th century. The protagonist's hidden feelings towards her husband are an important area for analysis, as this aspect of the writing can be interpreted in several ways. Conrad Schumaker suggests that she is not understood by her husband because females have a complex and admirable mind, and this provides a new outlook on Gilman's story. Investigating the repetition of words, the language of uncertainty, and the symbolism within the piece provides a decent amount of insight on the narrator's feelings and historical background of her writing.

Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" clearly tells of a time of struggle between one woman and those surrounding her, and this becomes most apparent through the author's repetition of certain terms.  Deemed to be mentally ill by her spouse, the protagonist repeatedly uses the word "creep" in various tenses, and this sets an eerie tone for the entire piece. The repetition of differing forms of 'creep' creates a pattern through the work that is easy for readers to follow, but it also proves the narrator's emotions and so-called mental issues. Though her husband is a doctor, it is likely he is diagnosing her without fully examining all of her symptoms because he supposes he knows his wife well enough to make these assumptions. She describes the imaginary woman in the wallpaper as "creeping about", yet the creeping is not confined to that sole character (Gilman 214). By describing her imaginary figure as someone who suspiciously moves about the room, the narrator seems to be in her own world of fantasy. Though this imaginary creeping may be connected to the narrator herself, Gilman is writing with a style that cannot be overlooked because this setup suggests that the female mind is advanced and creative. Just as Conrad Schumaker suggests in his analysis of "The Yellow Wallpaper", the male mind is incapable of understanding how females think because of their "imaginative and artistic powers" (Schumaker). The incomprehension of the female mind explains why the opposite gender views women as a species that is fairly different, despite the fact that both genders are of the same biology. This unique take on why inequality among the genders exists provides a new understanding of how the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" is feeling, as her anger is clearly not limited to her husband.

By using specific diction to hint at uncertainty, Gilman portrays the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" as a woman who is easily influenced and overpowered by her supposed authority. In a time of inequality towards women, the narrator does not have the freedom to make many choices outside of her husband's influence. While describing her feelings towards writing this piece, the narrator eventually becomes tired and states "I will take a nap I guess" (Gilman 214). The ending of uncertainty insinuates that she is not sure whether her actions will be accepted by her husband, but in comparison to the rest of the text it is apparent that she has freedom only within the confines of her bedroom. This lack of freedom was common during the struggle for woman's equality, and writer Kate Austin touches on the fault of the dominant male during the late 19th century. Suggesting that a woman's "brain lacked in quantity a certain substance," Austin shares that man believed himself to be superior due to this fact, yet it is never stated what the female mind was lacking in (Austin). It is likely that man did not understand the female mind due to the complex differences between the genders; however, that does not prove the female to be of lesser intelligence or ability. Selecting the phrase "I suppose" for usage several times throughout the writing, Gilman yet again points out the narrator's hesitation in regard to her own actions (Gilman 214). This phrase is used while the narrator is trying to explain her husband's reasoning behind his diagnosis for her, and she believes that "John never was nervous" (Gilman 211). Although the man might have never experienced true anxiety, he does not have the right or the experience to claim that his wife is suffering from said illnesses. By using speech that does not insinuate a definite outcome, the narrator is presented as someone who is mentally unstable and unsure of how to proceed in this stage of her life.

As a symbol throughout the whole story, the word 'yellow' truly lives up to its presence within the author's title. Not only does the narrator use yellow to describe the color of the wallpaper, but she carries that color into other visions within her life. Though it is made clear that she dislikes the "repellent" and "smouldering unclean yellow" color of the room she is locked in, the narrator is alluding at something more than just unhappiness with her current environment (Gilman 210). This hatred references her sorrow with her current life as a whole, specifically her husband's lack of understanding her feelings. The narrator specifically states that the horrendous yellow color reminds her not of the good yellow things she has witnessed in life, but the "old foul, bad yellow things" (Gilman 217). This bland statement leaves room for interpretation, but based on the heavy focus on women's inequality, the narrator is most likely referencing situations within that category.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" tells a story greater than a woman who is unhappy during her vacation, but the various literary devices must be understood in order to make a new interpretation of the writing. The repetition, diction of uncertainty, and symbolism are all tools that Gilman included to aid her readers' understanding of the work. Although there is always room for interpretation, especially in a radical and declarative piece of writing, the author selected specific devices to lead the readers in a certain direction. The narrator is now viewed as someone who is struggling not just with her own emotions but with all the people close to her in life. Placing the writing in a historical time period provides more explanation as the why the piece was written, why certain words were selected, and how the author was feeling during this time of women's inequality.

