The Yellow Wallpaper

10 Pages 2394 Words

takes the form of a journal of the main character. Therefore, the reader’s view is limited to the impressions of a single character, who can be interpreted as Jane. Considering some background information on Gilman, one can easily draw the conclusion that the story is actually a reflection of personal experience. Gilman has suffered an extreme mental depression as the result of psychiatric treatments, prior to writing this short story. The author identifies herself with this character. Gilman herself admits this as truth when in an essay entitled “Why I Wrote the Yellow Wallpaper”, she states, “It is a description of a case of nervous breakdown beginning something as mine did, and treated as Dr. S. Weir Mitchell treated me with what I considered the inevitable result, progressive insanity” (Gilman 102). Due to her poor health, Jane listens to the doctor’s advice and redirects the energy she formerly spent on worries to "…journeys, and air, and exercise…" (153). She continuously focuses her attention on the surrounding environment and she pays much attention to detail in her journal descriptions, accompanying these descriptions with personal impressions. Setting is important for the character - she has come to this place in the hope that the surrounding environment will have a positive influence in her state of health. However, it is at least as important for the reader as well, because the reader is very closely bound to the character’s thoughts and impressions and also to her mood and state of mind. Jane seems to be deeply preoccupied with the influence the surrounding environment has on her. We learn from the first paragraphs that focusing on the scenery will help her forget the nervous depression which she has been diagnosed with: "So, I will let it [her illness] alone and talk about the house" (153). The main character’s focus on the environment is the reason for which the reader gets plenty of information about ...