The most interesting thing to me after reading the story and then listening to the podcast is the context Dr. Bezio put The Yellow Wallpaper in. The story hits on underlying themes about the oppression of women and the reality of mental health problems, and Gilman is advocating for women’s rights in writing this. It sounds good, but then when Dr. Bezio put the story in its context alongside the way Gilman (and others) aimed to advance the rights of white women at the expense of people of color, it puts the story and Gilman in a different light. I don’t think this takes away from her credibility or her advocacy for women’s rights and the work she did, but it does make you think how much you don’t know about certain things and what is kept hidden. And, in going back to our discussion about pop culture yesterday, these contexts matter and they determine how important or influential certain people and things are.
I also think it’s important to talk about the reader response theory, and the bonus question we must ask when we read closely, which is “why is this relevant to me?” This is something we should all consider when we read, hear, or see anything — we need to truly understand the importance it plays in our own life. Especially when it comes to feeling angry about something. If something upsets us, we of course have the right to feel upset, but in order to make that anger or sadness mean something, we must understand why it matters to us specifically. I find that a lot of the time people will perceive something they see/hear/read from the perspective of someone else, and although it is vital to put ourselves in others shoes, we should always make an effort to be fully aware about what those things mean to us specifically before understanding what it means to someone else. I think this is the best way to make change.
I love your analysis in the second paragraph about the need to ask yourself why you feel a certain way when talking about something that makes you sad, happy, or angry. In regards to mental health a lot of times it is easy to say to yourself that you shouldn’t feel a certain way. We often fail to ask ourselves why we feel a certain way. In doing so we learn a lot about ourselves and what makes us tick. Understanding yourself is extremely important for your mental health.
I think that stories become more interesting when you place yourself in them, as you mentioned in your second paragraph. By doing so, you can empathize with the characters and the issues that were important to them, which makes the message of the story so much more powerful.
I really enjoyed your analysis! I think asking those important questions like the ones that you mention are so essential and are a part of close reading as they push people to have necessary conversations about difficult topics like mental health or the oppression of women. We need to view these stories regardless of what form they come in and understand what is being said, its context, why its out there, and what it means to different people. Everything you read could mean something to you but different to someone else depending on things like their socio-economic background or even the color of their skin.