I thought the reading was not only an interesting story but a strongly symbolic message. Clearly the author intended for there to be many underlying themes about the oppression of women and oppressive gender stereotypes as well as stigmas around mental health. The beginning of the reading reminded me a lot of my 101 class when we talked about the ‘silent problem’ in the 50s and 60s when many housewives of middle class families were having mental breakdowns similar to the one depicted in the reading. They were the result of oppressive gender roles that did not allow educated women to do anything but tend to house chores and babies. This lack of fulfillment lead to insomnia, anxiety, and depression like the kind the main character here suffers from. I think my point is made obvious when she mentions how she never would have wanted a baby but that is not something she could ever say out loud. Equally telling is the fact that everyone surrounding her finds it disturbing that she writes and therefore she finds the need to hide it.
Critical Thinking
I like the connection you make to your 101 class. I remember learning about the silent problem as well and agree that many of the same themes are represented in this story. Both the silent problem and the Yellow Wall Paper definitely highlight many of the struggles women faced.
I love how you bring up the silent problem of the 50s and 60s. It seems like that is almost exactly what is happening here! However, I think when talking about issues like the silent problem and what Gilman describes in the Yellow Wallpaper, we should always be sure to include how these problems work in relation to class and racial status, much like what Dr. Bezio brought up in the podcast. Many poor women and POC women could not afford to be stay-at-home wives and mothers – they had to work fulltime to make a living. This meant that using the silent problem as the rallying point for 2nd wave feminism excluded these women, and made it clear that their often intersectional concerns would not be centered in a fight for women’s rights. The first wave did a similar thing in using breaking out of the cult of domesticity as the main rallying point, when in fact, many POC and poor women never had the option of domesticity in the first place.