I read “The Yellow Wallpaper” in a class in my junior year of high school, so it was interesting to read again three years later, and I enjoyed getting to close read it again and see how my perspective has changed and what stands out to me now. One part of “The Yellow Wallpaper” that I found really interesting was the following quote as Gilman talks about the bedroom in the story: “If we had not used it, that blessed child would have! What a fortunate escape! Why, I wouldn’t have a child of mine, an impressionable little thing, live in such a room for worlds” (652). After learning about Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s postpartum, this context provides a powerful insight into her experience. In this quote, the woman shows that she cares for her child, as she would not have wanted the child to experience the wallpaper the way she is, however, at the same time, is very detached in how she speaks about her child. The context becomes important to close reading Gilman’s work.
This passage is a prime example of Dr. Bezio’s discussion of close reading, in particular Step 4 and looking at context. Much of the story has a universal context related to themes of first wave feminism and the treatment of women, specifically white women, in the early eighteenth century, and this piece is no exception. This quote provides some insight into the experience of postpartum depression, especially when it goes undiagnosed or even considered real. However, it also a very specific context related to Gilman’s personal experience. Knowing this context allows for a deeper understanding of the story and the role of external information in how close reading requires the reader to put together an array of signs, symbols, and words to create a narrative that requires complex thinking and interpretation. Context demonstrates how this element of postpartum depression is both applicable to a more universal experience of white women and mothers in the early 18t century, and to the unique and particular experience of Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
I agree. I think a huge part of understanding this story comes from its context. I have realized recently from learning about close reading how important it is to look at what context surrounds a story because it can change the whole meaning or ones interpretation.
I appreciate how you pulled out a specific quote to re-read with the additional context. I also noticed how detached she seemed from her child throughout the story, and so learning about postpartum depression really helped put that in context. Depression is one of those universal experiences, not in that everyone experiences it, but that it is not bound to a particular time or cultural context. However, I think the way that they attempted to treat it in the 19th century and the gendered aspect of it that persists today is an interesting insight into how they thought about mental illness and gender together.
I think that examining Gilman’s background and perspective plays into the historiography element of studying history. We can use Gilman as a look into the experiences and attitudes of women at a specific point in time, especially because so few women were allowed/encouraged to learn to read and write in the late 1800s.