`The Yellow Wall` and `A Rose for Emily`

As medical authority has become more extensive , it has necessarily become more diffuse as well so that moral and medical categories are now thoroughly and probably inextricably confused ' -Edgar Z Friedenberg-

The two short stories , The Yellow Wall and A Rose for Emily unravel insanity on two different views . The first gives an in-depth and encompassing autobiographical depiction of a woman 's emotional breakdown , while the latter offers a distant , detached look at a female victim of madness ' Of the two , Gilman 's story provides a better examination of the because

her narrator is also the protagonist thereby , giving the readers a more thorough look into the character 's internal crisis

Gilman 's short story provokes readers to ponder the wife 's affliction especially when , at a closer scrutiny , her narration turns out to be completely comprehensive and rational , ill-befitting a supposed loony person . Is it really insanity that she 's suffering from ? Or is it a case of misdiagnosis on the part of the husband physician ? According to Anne J . Lane 's introduction in Charlotte Perkins Gilman 's novel Herland the latter wrote The Yellow Wall to avenge the horrendous experience she had under the care of professional psychiatrists when she admitted herself under the care of Dr . S . Weir Mitchell in 1887 . Gilman personally opposed Dr . Mitchell 's rest cure ' which according to her almost drove her mad (Lane , pg . vii ) Similarly , her nameless protagonist in the story is forced to undergo the same inhuman torture then fabricated as a necessary medical prescription

Taking into consideration the wife 's accounts in the story , she is most probably undergoing a post partum depression , not insanity . Gilman experienced depression soon after she gave birth to her daughter Katharine . Likewise , the wife in the story mentions a baby that she fails to care for because of her weakened state (Gilman , pg 168 ) Apart from the severe emotional distress that the protagonist experiences there are no solid proof to her supposed intellectual deterioration . In fact , the short story abounds with tangible testaments of her lucidity On top of the list is the deep insight she displays in her writings . The short story is framed like a journal or diary which gives the readers a direct access to her deepest thoughts . This device helps the readers to grasp a better understanding of her character . In her recollections , the wife shows clear , introspective observations of her surroundings . For example , she alone criticizes why the house they 're renting is let so cheaply despite of its hugeness . Her husband thinks that her strange claim about the house is nothing but baseless fancy , but at a closer inspection her assertions actually hold water . And she knows that she makes sense which is why she proudly affirms her reflections in her journal (Gilman , pg 165 ) Worthy evidence is the wife 's clever comment about her unresponsive condition . John is a physician- perhaps that is one reason that I do not get well faster (Gilman , pg 115...