English Literature: Kate Chopins The Awakening and Charlotte Perkins Gilmans The Yellow Wall- - Term Paper Example

English Literature Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wall-Paper, share the need of women empowerment in the society and the ramifications when the freedom of expression is denied. In both the stories, the female protagonists wrestle with the dogmatic and irrevocable conventions of the society in order to liberate themselves so that they could express their true feelings. However, in their quest for independence, they relinquish their rational thinking to insanity and subjugation by the hands of a misogynistic society and their family. In order to liberate and self-determine themselves, these meek women either commit suicide, as seen by Edna in “The Awakening” and give into insanity as seen with the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Being submissive to their male counterpart’s biding, these women did not have enough authority to live their lives according to their heart’s desire. The solitude which followed with their subjugation plummeted their confidence and spirit. Therefore, the need to self-express and live independently was ignited so that their pitiful plight could be heard and understood. The thrill of articulation and self-expression when once experienced eventually gave the women free reign to control and express their sentiments. However, the struggle in such an established society allowed them temporary freedom only, costing them their sanity and life (Gray 2004). The escalating yearning for emancipation left these women unsatisfied. The theme of liberation in the society during this epoch, especially concerning women wasn’t a matter much appreciated due to the perception and prevalence of an andocentric society. It was a time where women were subjected to suppression and under control of their men, who held prominent professional position in the society. Even if the women were working, they wouldn’t have had the assurance of their “emotional and physical freedom”, as the constitution of marriage would have entwined them in the phallic pride of their men (Nazrul 4). Even though the women in both the stories had affectionate, doting husbands but as per the norms then, they were self-aggrandizing and preferred subservience. These stereotypes portrayed the men as domineering figures in their wives’ life. Not only did their attitude support the conventional norms of men’s superiority but also the restriction which consciously bound women into docility through marriage. And this confirmed the fallacy that women are fragile and passive and can easily be mollycoddled as they are intellectually inferior to men. The aforementioned gets confirmed when in the “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the narrator asserts that “John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage” (Gilman 271). And similarly, Edna’s husband, Mr. Pontellier pampers his wife by sending her “friandises, with luscious and toothsome bits--the finest of fruit pates, a rare bottle or two, delicious syrups, and bonbons in abundance” (Chopin 9). This all exemplifies that women were not treated as equals, rather were thought as naive. They were not given the carte blanche to express themselves or their thoughts. Having shredded their identity in this marital enslavement, they suffered from the lack of independence, both consciously and unconsciously. This solitude triggered the need for self-determination. And this is the major theme in both the stories which encompasses and initiates all the other themes in them (Ford 1985). When these women get the chance to express and understand the sense of freedom, they feel an exhilarating thrill which previously was missing from their lives. Edna, in the “The Awakening”, learns about the excitement of freedom when she goes to Grand Isle. There she is exposed to the openness which breeds in the attitude of the people. With such exposure, she compares her prudish behavior and the women living there in Grand Isle. It awakens her repressed desires and she realizes how her ambitions never had an outlet to be expressed. Hence, the awakening and self-discovery of Edna’s hidden persona. Compared to Edna, the narrator of the “The Yellow Wallpaper” had a different way of self-discovery. Yet, the motivation and the yearning for liberating her thoughts were the same as Edna’s. For the narrator, the continuous patronizing attitude of her husband, shutdown from the society and no release to vent her emotions heightened her need to control her life alone. The methods of articulation of feelings and emotions were different in both the scenarios, but nonetheless, the need was persistent. Edna found “her position in the universe as a human being, and to recognize her relations as an individual to the world within and about her” (Chopin 17) in the cascading affections and attention of Robert Lebrun. Not only she regains her passion for painting and swimming but in the process of metamorphosis, she ignites her sexuality. With her husband away and Robert to understand her and by her side, she carries an illicit affair with him. She enjoys spending time with him where “no multitude of words could have been more significant than those moments of silence or more pregnant with the first-felt throbbing of desire” (Chopin 40). In the process of her awakening and new found freedom with Robert, she learns to overcome her fears and acknowledges her sexuality candidly. What is impressive, and to be noted is her resilience in controlling her animalistic urges and not submitting to male domination again. In the case of “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the narrator’s physician husband, John patronizes her for being mentally ill from nervousness. His attitude situates her into a mental asylum as he restricts her from doing any mental or physical work. His condescending attitude and lack of understanding about her feelings reduces their relationship into “...trust me as a physician?” (Gilman 278). Rather than interacting and understanding his wife’s problem, he abandons her to isolation of the house to cure her depression. Assuming that isolation from work and an idle mind would heal depression was actually not the right conjecture here. It’s because of this her imagination soars to new heights. With nothing worthy to do except stare at objects around her, she falls for the menacing yellow wallpaper in her bedroom which becomes her personal consolation and a subservient object of her undivided attention. She obsesses about discovering the intricate patterns and for the first time feels the thrill of the power to solve the enigmatic wallpaper patterns. In both the stories, arts have been used as a creative outlet which indicates the idea of self-expression. Edna paints and plays piano passionately after Robert’s departure. It allows her to express her burgeoning emotions which arises due to solitude and helps her define herself and emotions. And for the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper”, writing about the discoveries she makes in the patterns of the wallpaper excites and keeps her going. As she figures that her perceptions about anything wouldn’t be appreciated or understood, writing becomes her sole companion. It understands her emotions without any objection, unlike her husband. The provocation to communicate is quite intense and these women find reprieve either in painting or playing piano or keeping a secret diary. By exposing their feelings through such media, they find a relation with the ‘dead paper and a great relief to my mind’ (Gilman 272). These extenuating circumstances encourage them to release their sentiments and convince others about their feelings. However, the facade of their marriage and conventions of the society to disregard women emancipation or an ill person’s rationality of mind takes control of their mind, body and soul. Therefore, it becomes their personal mission to liberate themselves and feel the freedom in the male dominated society and the sapient world. The narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper”, ventures to rescue the woman in the wallpaper which she discovers in her room. By rescuing the woman of the wallpaper from the clutches of ‘old foul yellow things’ (Gilman 280), the narrator separates and frees herself too. Whereas Edna, in “The Awakening”, tries to deal with Robert’s rejection after her transition but couldn’t make others understand about her true self. Even though she articulates her thoughts via painting and music but her friends are unable to comprehend to the right intent or console her. She calls her friends as mocking birds who doesn’t speak anything other than inarticulate notes with “maddening persistence (Chopin 1) Their daring attitude due to despondency possesses them; their minds fail to accept or serve to opposition from mental and emotional suppression. Keeping this in mind, it is also important to deconstruct the view which reveals that Edna’s husband and the society may have tolerated her expressed needs: they let her abandon her children’s need. However, with so many boundaries imposed by the irrevocable conventions and dogmas, these women compromised too much while breaking free. Eventually it cost them their lives (Gupta). Edna commits suicide in the ocean. Fighting these conventions in the myopic society becomes a major feat for her. Surviving would have, eventually, become difficult for her children as well because of the stigmas which would persist and shadow their footsteps. But given how she learns to separate herself from the clutches of the society and rely on her own independence, she ensures that she doesn’t give in. Hence, she prefers dying peacefully before anyone could have “thought that they could possess her, body and soul” (Chopin 152). On a similar note, the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper” tries to rescue herself by indulging in her vivid imagination but she losses her sanity. It becomes easier for her as she already was a victim of nervousness and mental instability. Chopin and Gilman, in both their final pages emphasize on the unprecedented satisfaction and independence, these women feel when they try to sever ties with their families and the manipulative society at large. The impositions placed by the society controls their freedom just because of their femininity and marital responsibilities associated with that. By imprisoning them, the protagonists are held back from emotional and spiritual liberation. During the process of escaping and expressing themselves, they sacrifice their beings. Therefore, Chopin and Gilman criticise this very restraints put upon women and the denial of emancipation from the society. Works Cited Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. Washington D.C . Bantam Books. 1981. Print. Gilman, Charlotte. The Yellow Wallpaper. 1892. Print Gupta, Linda Ayscue. Deconstructive and Feminist Analysis of the Awakening. 2009. Print. Nazrul, Shehrin. The portrayal of marriage and feminine sexuality in some women’s writings. 2009. Print. Top of Form Ford, Karen. "The Yellow Wallpaper" and Women's Discourse. Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature. 4.2 (1985): 309-314. Print. Top of Form Gray, Jennifer B. "The Escape of the "sea": Ideology and "the Awakening"." The Southern Literary Journal. 37.1 (2004): 53-73. Print. Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Read More