Public reader discussion about The Yellow Wallpaper in the WeRead Catalog by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
By shoremole
I had to read this for my comp 2 class. Has anyone else read this short story? If you did, what did you think of it? If you haven’t, I’d say give it a read because it’s pretty interesting and kind of messed up. http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Charlotte_Perkins_Gilman/The_Yellow_Wallpaper/The_Yellow_Wallpaper_p1.html That link has the whole story
By MariaInDublin
The curtains were seriously fucking blue! 😠
By Garden
I could tell it was about postpartum depression, and also how patriarchy has always been trying to keep women boxed in and away from creative freedom. But I’m still confused about the ending. I didn’t really get what “creeping over” was supposed to mean, and when I checked it out I saw it meant crawling around on the floor and things like that. The way I read it, that’s basically her way of resisting. She pushes back against the power setup and breaks out of that whole old-fashioned way of thinking. Still, the ending really stood out to me. The narrator not having a name, I don’t think that’s just because the author wanted her to stand in for women of that time. I also feel like the character herself has kind of lost track of who she is. She starts thinking she’s the woman in the wall, like she’s trapped inside it. And then when she says: “...in spite of you and Jane, I've pulled out most of the paper. You can't put me back.” it feels to me like losing that supposed identity is what lets her break free, not the other way around. That’s just how I see it though, so please correct me if I’m wrong.
By cipherSail937
I finished it three days ago and I still keep thinking about it. Yesterday I kind of summarized the plot for my partner, and even doing that gave me chills just picturing the narrator ripping the wallpaper down, crawling around on all fours, stepping over her husband’s passed-out body. I don’t think any other book has ever made me feel this uneasy, especially not still 72 hours later.
By focus-sky31
I looked this book up and it says it was first published in 1892. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is pretty well known for being an early American feminist kind of work, and it kind of shows what people back in the 1800s thought about women’s health—like both the physical and the mental side.
By Meadow-Delta79
Honestly, the internet feels like this giant mess of stuff, but tucked in there is Project Gutenberg with a bunch of free books that actually seem pretty interesting. I like the idea of quick little snap reviews instead of long, super serious takes. The books they’re talking about sound kind of wild in a fun way—like mixing up the usual rules and going into stranger worlds. They mention everything from old historical stuff all the way to weird future settings where time and space feel all jumbled. And it’s not just that either, they’re also saying they’ll cover more normal “everyday” books that could still be really engaging.
By KettleKeeps
Just wrapped up *The Yellow Wallpaper* and honestly, I didn’t think it would stick with me like that. It drives me nuts that everyone keeps acting like she’s totally okay just because she looks physically fine, but they ignore that she’s worn down, alone, and clearly not doing well emotionally. What got to me most was seeing her pushed away from reading and writing—the things that seemed to be her main outlet and where she felt like herself. As it goes on, it’s harder and harder to read, but not because the wording is confusing. It’s more like you get dragged into her head and it keeps getting creepier as you go. I kept wondering where her reality ends and her fixation starts. And once her life feels more and more controlled, she starts seeing herself in that woman behind the wallpaper. By the end it doesn’t even feel like a “symbol” so much as something that mirrors her own trapped feeling. Also, for something so old, it feels weirdly current. It’s unsettling that people can still relate to it now—especially if you’ve ever been brushed off or not listened to when you were struggling.
By FogPocket
This is a really good short story. It was written before Lovecraft, but it always felt kind of Lovecraft-ish to me.
By CafeSleepy90
I just finished Shirley Jackson’s *We Have Always Lived in the Castle* and really liked it. While reading, I kept thinking about Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s *The Yellow Wallpaper*, which is another novella I love, and I couldn’t help noticing how similar they felt. It seemed like in both books the men were part of what pushed the main women toward their mental breakdowns. I also kept seeing the same thing with the house/room in both stories, where the women are basically trapped and the place starts falling apart as their psychosis gets worse. I’m wondering if anyone knows of any articles about this exact comparison, or has any thoughts on it? I thought it was a really interesting connection and I’d love to read more about it.
By Couplet-Yarn39
Really liked how they used this in the latest episode. If you haven’t read it, it’s pretty short and honestly one of the best short stories—just a quick thing.
By heatherkey1989
I really like her short stories, especially “The Yellow Wallpaper,” and I’m curious if there are any full-length novels that have a similar vibe. I like when the narrator can’t be trusted, and I’m into the whole thing where things get more and more messed up as the story goes on. It doesn’t have to be a super early feminist book or anything, but I’d love it if it was. Thanks :)
By springTiger9
Wait, isn’t this supposed to be a short story? Why does the cover look so massive?
By FernKettle
Post your love for horror (or hate it) here, just don’t be a jerk about it. You can totally disagree with other people—horror’s subjective so nothing’s really “off-limits.” If you start going abusive on people, though, you’ll get banned. They also want the discussions to stay decent, so stuff like image-only posts, blog spam, surveys, promoting unpublished/self-published stuff, or linking to fundraisers/products isn’t really welcome. If you mess up, you could get hit with a temp or even permanent ban on the first try. Spoiler tags are up to you. If you want to hide something, use the format: [spoiler text here] There are also upcoming AMAs (times are ET unless they say otherwise), and a bunch of “essential resources” links and other horror-related subs if you’re looking for more.
By Stone_Brown1977
This was such a cool story. I’m trying to decide what book to read next—any suggestions?
By shelfrainy1972
My little confession: if the main character doesn’t end up winning, getting somewhere, or at least finding some peace by the end, I feel kind of like I wasted my time. I read to get away and have something good happen in real life, even if it’s just through a story. So if everything starts off awful, they’re dealing with awful stuff the whole time, and then it basically ends the same way, I’m like… why did I even spend those hours? I mean, isn’t the point to be reading something like Anne of Green Gables instead? 😅
By Lake_Frog
“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is one of those short horror stories I still remember from when I was a kid—like, it gave me nightmares. I didn’t really shake that feeling as I got older either, and it still freaks me out. Do you have any other short horror stories you’d recommend that really stuck with you? Or ones you remember being weirdly scary when you were younger?
By redPencil3
Ugh, paywall again. Anyway, here it is without the paywall.
By night-beacon
I just got Audible—should I use a credit on The Yellow Wallpaper? And if it’s worth it, who’s the best narrator version to listen to?
By chaptericy
Okay, I need help—I've got a window to get through two short stories (maybe three) right before finals week. What should I pick? I’m looking at “Araby” (Joyce), “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas” (Le Guin), or “A Clean Well-Lighted Place” (Hemingway). I know stuff like “The Lottery” and “There Will Come Soft Rains” gets people’s attention, but I’m kind of over the usual favorites. Also, these are high school sophomores in 2021 and we’re studying like three miles from the Pacific Ocean, so… yeah, any ideas that actually work for that vibe would be great. Edit: thanks everyone for all the suggestions—there are so many good ones. I can’t read through all of them this week, but I’ve got plenty to think about for later.
By luckyBucket2001
This is the RPAN channel where people read, write, and talk about literature, just please stay civil. Also, looks like there’s an announcement that RPAN is ending on Nov 15. They say you’ll have until Dec 3 to request your old streams before everything disappears, but I’m not totally sure what the process is. I guess I’ll just have to check the details and see.