Concede to the Madness

Commonly exhibited in of 19th century literature is the presumption that the anxieties of a woman's life are the direct result of her having acted outside of her domestic realm; a woman’s wish to partake in "male" activities, such as writing, or forgo what is considered to be the norm, is sure to have an ill effect on her, as she is designed to act solely as mother, wife and home-maker. Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" represents the status of nineteenth-century woman within society, their responsiveness to fragmentation, and rebellion against confinement and submission to laws established by, and for, men. Behaving as a literary vessel, “The Yellow Wallpaper” reveals an attempt to escape confinement, fleeing in the form of madness and breaking the shackles of isolation and oppression that enslaves the female self.

Psychological illness has often been exploited in literature to convey and expose deeper, metaphorical implications therefore not surprisingly the theme connected with the human psyche, especially with its darkest sides. The subjects of insanity and mental disorder are touched upon by numerous, remarkable authors, generally serving as a symbol to their character’s superior cognition of the world or deeper sensitivity. For centuries, women in life and literature were often portrayed as submissive, docile, and obedient to men. Focusing primarily on the nineteenth century, literature often characterized women as victims, beleaguered not only by society and culture, but by the male influences in their lives as well. The views of women in early literature are often silenced and their opinions disregarded by a dominant patriarchal society; for those chancing to aspire for such luxuries as independence, self- sufficiency, and self-fulfillment, amenities reserved only for men, are obviously suffering from madness, at the time most commonly referred to as "hysteria" or "monomania.”

Quite often injected into the works of nineteenth century...