"When society is rightly organized, the wife and mother will have time, wish, and will to grow intellectually, and will know that the limits of her sphere, the extent of her duties, are prescribed only by the measure of her ability." - Susan B. Anthony
![Picture](/uploads/2/4/0/7/24077701/1386478289.png)
There were many social issues occurring during the time period of The Gilded Age that influenced Charlotte Perkins Gilman's world as she was writing "The Yellow Wallpaper". There were many different ideas that people, mainly men, had regarding women during this time period. The first of these ideas was the idea that women were weaker, more vulnerable, and more fragile than men were. "Women during this time were deemed to be highly susceptible to becoming mentally ill as they did not have the mental capacity of men, and this risk grew greatly if the woman attempted to better herself through education or too many activities" (2010). This idea became one of the main reasons that women continued to be confined to the realm of the household, rather than being out and about in society. Women were certainly not encouraged to explore their ideas and creativity; in fact, they were advised not to do so for the betterment of their role as wife and mother, which was the most important role they acted in at the time. This, of course, stifled the imaginations of women during The Gilded Age. Gilman embodies this idea through the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" by portraying her as a woman whose mental condition deteriorates as she continues to carry out the creative process of writing.
Hysteria became the most popular diagnosis of women with any problem whatsoever, whether it be mental, physical, or emotional. Some of the symptoms included things like "faintness, nervousness, insomnia, fluid retention, heaviness in the abdomen, muscle spasms, shortness of breath, irritability and loss of appetite for food" (2007). Physicians used this word to describe any ailment of the women who visited them "and cures included bed rest, seclusion, bland food, refrain from mental activities (such as reading), daily massage, and sensory deprivation" (2010). Gilman was clearly influenced by this over-diagnosis, as she was a victim of it before she wrote "The Yellow Wallpaper". Her physician had diagnosed her with hysteria and had suggested that she get a great deal of rest and try to carry out as many of her domestic responsibilities as she could to cure her "ailment". This drove her into an even deeper depression, she realized, and caused her to near a complete mental breakdown. The very thing that was supposed to cure her mental illness was causing it to worsen or, some would say, appear in a place where it had not been before.
Hysteria became the most popular diagnosis of women with any problem whatsoever, whether it be mental, physical, or emotional. Some of the symptoms included things like "faintness, nervousness, insomnia, fluid retention, heaviness in the abdomen, muscle spasms, shortness of breath, irritability and loss of appetite for food" (2007). Physicians used this word to describe any ailment of the women who visited them "and cures included bed rest, seclusion, bland food, refrain from mental activities (such as reading), daily massage, and sensory deprivation" (2010). Gilman was clearly influenced by this over-diagnosis, as she was a victim of it before she wrote "The Yellow Wallpaper". Her physician had diagnosed her with hysteria and had suggested that she get a great deal of rest and try to carry out as many of her domestic responsibilities as she could to cure her "ailment". This drove her into an even deeper depression, she realized, and caused her to near a complete mental breakdown. The very thing that was supposed to cure her mental illness was causing it to worsen or, some would say, appear in a place where it had not been before.
The word hysteria is derived from the Latin word for womb, which explains why the male doctors of this time saw it everywhere - "almost any form of behavior, such as excited chattering with other women, could be diagnosed as hysteria" (Wallace, 2012). Basically, any excessive expressions of emotion, good or bad, was seen as a sign of some sort of mental illness or problem occurring within a woman. A woman during this time only had meaning in her life when she became a mother. Becoming a mother was the most important thing in reaching "true womanhood". Women were only to be seen as sexual beings when the intent was to create a child in their womb; however, being pregnant and having children was also a prominent cause of mental illness, according to doctors of the time period. "Women were thought to be at particular risk of mental illness caused by supposed disorders of the reproductive system. Cases of melancholia associated with the menopause were treated with leeches to the pubis" (Wallace, 2012). In creating the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper," Gilman embodies this idea as well. The narrator has just recently given birth, and this event has contributed to her "mental illness"; which, in all actuality, was probably postpartum depression, a common diagnosis nowadays.
During The Gilded Age, The Industrial Revolution had also been taking place. All of the changes happening with the economy and the manufacturing industries were opening up opportunities for women to work in factories and make their own money. This did not sit well with the men of the time, and they felt slightly threatened by the idea of the women leaving the realm of the household and entering the realm of the workforce. "This sense of disempowerment resulted in an understanding of the home as the last refuge for traditional values for both men and women. However, the responsibility for maintaining the home and the culture of the home was shouldered solely by women" (2011). Men especially, and society alike, viewed the home as the very last place that was sacred to the institution of women as keepers of the domestic household and men as the bread-winning providers of the household and family. In order to keep this institution alive and well during a time of economic change, "women were expected to embody the traditional values represented by the home. In this way, women were equated with the home; both were symbols of the morality Americans hoped to preserve" (2011).