"The Yellow Wallpaper"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how after reading Charlotte Perkins Gilman's story "The Yellow Wallpaper," it is clear that the protagonist has major psychological struggles. For easier narrative flow, the author provides the main character with the nickname "Anna," as no name is provided. Through an examination of "The Yellow Wallpaper" and diagnostic criteria, Anna is shown to have a diagnosis of major depressive disorder with the most recent episode being severe with psychotic features. In order to support this diagnosis and provide a complete overview of the character's life, the paper is written in sections according to the five axial system used in formal diagnosis.

Outline:
Introduction
Axis I
Axis II
Axis III
Axis IV
Axis V
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Anna discusses how she gets "unreasonably angry...I'm sure I never used to be so sensitive" and in attempting to regain control of her anger, she feels exhausted (Gilman, 1996). In addition, she reports that within a few weeks of being at the rental house, she no longer feels like writing, feels a loss of strength, reports a feeling of depression, anxiety around being with other people including her baby, crying "at nothing, and [crying] most of the time," being "fretful and querulous...awfully lazy and [lying] down ever so much" (Gilman, 1996). She has found it difficult to be with people, particularly her baby. These overall physical and psychological complaints that Anna experiences continue to arise in her story until the end when Anna believes she is improving. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed. Text Revision.). Washington, DC: Author
• Gilman, C.P. (1996). The yellow wallpaper. In S.M Gilbert & S. Gubar (Eds.), The Norton anthology: Literature by women (2nd ed., pp. 1133-1144). New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
• Kovacs, M., & Beck, A.T. (1985). Maladaptive cognitive structures in depression. American Journal of Psychiatry, 135, 141-150.
• Surgeon General. (N.D.). Mental health: Culture, race, and ethnicity. Retrieved May 19, 2008, from http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/cre/execsummary-1.html.
• Valliant, G.E. (1985). Loss as a metaphor for attachment. American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 45, 233-240.

More papers on "The Yellow Wallpaper":

• Analytical Essay # 127732 : "Jane's Insanity in "The Yellow Wallpaper"
• Essay # 89300 : "'The Yellow Wallpaper'"
• Book Review # 94713 : "Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper"
• Essay # 71169 : "Settings in the "Yellow Wallpaper"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: