"The Yellow Wallpaper"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the characters of John and Jane in Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper." The paper shows how the characters can be seen to represent a clear dichotomy of practicality and imagination. The paper gives examples from the book to illustrate this theme of practicality and imagination coexisting in a state of a fragile balance.

From the Paper:

"Whether or not these two opposite interests exist within the same mind or within the same house, the message is relatively clear. This message is that practicality and imagination coexist in a state of a fragile balance. If that balance is disrupted and one side begins to win over other in a dramatic fashion then a serious struggle will ensue. Both traits must give way to the wisdom of the other without overwhelming it--very much like the classic yin-yang symbol. If only Jane were allowed to write, it could have operated as a release valve in her mind. Just as a hyperactive child will run himself ragged and collapse into a sleeping heap when the energy has run its course, imagination will eventually be spent and the capabilities of practicality will resume. "The Yellow Wallpaper" shows us that this is not a reciprocal process, however, and that practicality must allow the hyperactive child of imagination run wild on occasion or else it will lead to spontaneous mental combustion."

Sample of Sources Used:

• "A Tragic Triumph: A Look at Individuality in 'The Yellow Wallpaper'". Online Internet 18 November 2006. <http://sparta.rice.edu/~lspiro/portfolio/wallpapr.htm>.
• Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The Yellow Wallpaper".
• Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "Why I Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper". The Forerunner, Oct. 1913. 8 June 1999. Online Internet 18 November 2006. <http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/whyyw.html>.
• Gilbert, Kelly. "'The Yellow Wallpaper': An Autobiography of Emotions by Charlotte Perkins Gilman". American Literature Research and Analysis Website. Editor, Dr. Jim Wohlpart. 27 July 1998. Online Internet 18 November 2006. <http://itech.fgcu.edu/faculty/wohlpart/alra/gilman.htm>.
• Notaro, Anna. "Space and Domesticity in 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman". Journal of American Studies of Turkey, 10 (1999): 59-68. Online Internet 18 November 2006. <http://www.bilkent.edu.tr/~jast/Number10/Notaro.html>.

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"

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