Society in the late 1800's was rigid; tensions rose as more people began to question the strict roles and expectations that have been upheld throughout generations.  Feminism specifically broke through during this period of time questioning these standards; was a woman's place indefinitely her husband's home?  Charlotte Perkins Gilmore highlights the time period's unfair expectations and treatment of women in her short story "The Yellow Wallpaper".  By focusing the story on the rest cure, a psychological treatment for hysteria and anxiety, Gilman successfully depicts the sexism faced by women of the 19th century.

The rest treatment was a treatment introduced by Dr. Weir Mitchell in 1873.  It was used to treat Neurasthenia, or nervous exhaustion.  This included hysteria, anxiety, and depression, among other emotional ails.  The treatment lasted anywhere from six weeks to two months and required that patients were isolated from friends and family, maintained a high calorie diet, received a lot of air, and exercise through minor electrotherapy.  They were not to do any kind of work or strenuous activity.  Different stressors caused Neurasthenia in the genders: In men, the illness was caused by overworking, where it was caused in females by doing too much housework, or taking care of an ill relative.  Even though both men and women could be treated, female patients subjected to the rest cure heavily outweighed the male patients subjected.  Even if a woman opposed to treatment aspects, measures of force were taken in order to carry out treatment and once again put the female patient into her submissive place. This further highlights the society's belief in the inferiority of women to men.  Though undoubtedly sexist, Mitchell's rest cure was the first step towards the recognition of mental illness.  The rest cure was eventually discredited by patients and doctors, especially after the gaining popularity of Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper".

"The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is about a young woman subjected to the rest treatment for "hysteria" by the demand of her physician husband John.  It is clear very early on in the story that the narrator is unsure of the treatment but knows that she has no other choice than to submit to her husband's requests, often asking "And what can one do?" (Gilman 209), after all he is a physician.  It is very clear the narrator is not in control her life, constantly being watched over and cared for by her husband and sister in law.  Whenever she presents her opinion, her husband discredits it using demeaning language, as if she is a child, calling her a "blessed little goose" (211) who is too young to come up with anything remotely intelligent on her own.  For example, when the narrator tries to tell John that she is still troubled, he says: 

"'Bless her little heart!  ...  She shall be as sick as she pleases!  But now lets improve the shining hours by going to sleep, and talk about it in the morning!'" (215).  

He doesn't give her opinion thought and sends her to bed.  This is reflective of how dismissive society was towards women, overlooking and oppressing any deviation from the definition of a woman in the 19th century.  The narrator comments on her role as her husband's wife, and how she feels bad that she cannot carry out the "womanly duties" expected of her due the treatment.  In the end, the narrator goes mad, obsessing over, and hallucinating on the wallpaper that has imprisoned her for months.  The ending seems to imply that the lack of autonomy and refusal to broaden women's role in society will yield chaos, insanity.  

Charlotte Perkins Gilman based her short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper", off of her own experience with the father of the rest cure: Dr. Weir Mitchell.  Gilman suffered from post-partum depression a few months after having her first child.  The neurologist reassured her that she was not insane, simply hysterical.  Gilman rigidly followed Mitchell's requests, but after some time felt her state had worsened because of the treatment.  Claiming the rest cure nearly drove her to insanity, she fiercely opposed the treatment.  Her purpose in writing "The Yellow Wallpaper" was to "reach Dr. Weir and convince him of the error of his ways" (Suzanne Poirier, 26).  Gilman, like the narrator in her story, felt meaningful activity would have helped during her treatment.  This activity, writing for both the narrator and Gilman, was contrary to what society defined as meaning in a woman's life.  Soon after, other feminist writers of the 19th century, like Jane Addams and Virginia, emerged in a similar fashion as Gilman.  The rest cure was another way to oppress women, during a time in which social norms and gender standards were unbending.  Through her story, Gilman begins to test the waters of society and dives straight into a revolution for women and their initial push in the long coming fight for equality.   

Now in the 21st century, women have come a long way in their fight for equality.  Though equality has not been met, it is definitely more in reach and thanks to women like Charlotte Perkins Gilman who are not afraid to voice their opinions when met with opposition.  This is perfectly exemplified in her suggestive short story "The Yellow Wallpaper".  Through her focus on the rest treatment, Gilman accurately portrays the grim reality of a woman living in the 19th century.    

