YELLOW WALLPAPER
I had to read this twice just to make sure I understood it better. But one can tell from the beginning that John, her husband, has such a strong hold on her. She tells us from the start that John, as well as her brother, is a well-known physician and we can assume that she doesn’t have such a high degree. Actually, considering the time this story is written, she probably hasn’t finished school. So it’s clear to see that John uses the fact that he is an all-knowing physician as an excuse to tell her what to do. He basically controls her and dismisses any questions or worries she tells him. John says that it is unwise to “give away to such fancies” when she voiced her opinions about the wallpaper. We already know that she is mentally unstable but he seems to force his thoughts on what she and should not do or who she can or cannot see. So in this case, we see two different ways of how the husband can overpower the wife. The first way is by having a higher degree which is used to John’s advantage in this story. The second way is to have the upper hand by using her mental state as an excuse to run things his way.
I think the last paragraph is the most important one to the overall argument that the story is making. It’s their last day at the house and John is away at work. The wife finally decides to rip away all of the disgusting yellow wallpaper. She locks the door and starts to tear away the paper. When John comes back and finally unlocks the door, he is shocked at what he sees. The wife tells him she is out at last and that he won’t be able to put her back into the paper since she had pulled most of it out. He faints. Of course, it’s pretty obvious to see how trapped she felt being in this marriage. In reality, she is not physically behind the bars of that horrible yellow wallpaper. But in this marriage, she is not free and her husband has the control. He decides who she’s able to see and says that he is looking out for her best interests. She is actually obedient and agrees that he loves her very much and cares about her health. There is a difference between protecting someone you love and trapping them in an isolated location away from the rest of the world.
STORY OF AN HOUR
In this story, Mrs. Louise Mallard is told that her husband was killed in a railroad disaster. Her sister, Josephine tries to break the news to her gently as possible because she knows of her heart problems. Louise of course breaks down and weeps and then goes upstairs to her bedroom, where she sinks in an armchair overlooking the window. As she sits there, she begins to feel something coming over her. She starts to whisper “free, free, free!” Her pulse beat wildly and “she did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstrous joy that held her.” Mrs. Mallard realizes that she does not have to live for anybody from now on, but she will only have herself to live for. There will not be an overpowering control over her like she was used to in the years of her marriage. She admits that she loved him but now that her husband is dead, she is free “body and soul”. She sees days of herself running in the spring and winter. Josephine then knocks on her door and Louise comes out to see her after reassuring her sister that she is okay. As they walk down the stairs, the front door opens and Brently Mallard, Louise’s husband walks in. Mrs. Mallard faints and when the doctors come, they said she had died of “heart disease – of the joy that kills.”
When Mrs. Mallard found out her husband died, she became happy because this meant freedom for her. There is a passage in the first half of the story that describes the surroundings outside, including the weather, the rain in the air, and the birds chirping. I think this passage is such a strong one in relation to the point of this story. This is a sign of spring and spring is usually a symbol of revival and a new beginning. This was going to be the case for Mrs. Mallard, until she walked down that staircase and saw that her husband is alive. That was the real tragedy, not that of his death. She died of a heart attack because she realized that the joy, freedom, power, and hope she felt only a little while ago were completely diminished. It was too good to be true. This is the joy that kills. After years in marriage, she got so close to being free. It’s too sad to see how short these feelings of joy and hope lasted. If only she waited to double check.
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