Mother’s getting married with this new guy that we don’t really know about. All we know is that he isn’t christian and that he’s taking us away to Chicago. Weird. I'll have to see if I'm going to like him or not. Current status: no. He’s making us leave Mississippi. Mother said that’s exactly what she wants, being a housewife, but we could see it in her eyes that she’s worried and scared about leaving Mississippi, our home. Three of us sat down in our front porch, where the wedding is taking place. I am starting to get annoyed by the cars passing by. What a noise to have in a wedding. Random things come into mind. Would this guy become a good father and a good husband? Soon, the preach is over and we run to mother and we press against her tightly. And then we look at the new husband with awe and distaste. All we can predict is that we’re going to Chicago tonight and that mother has already started regretting by the look of her eyes. Please god. Please let this guy be a good husband to our mom and a good father. I don't want to move again.
The Yellow Wallpaper: Point of View
Q: Analyze how point of view contributes to the story's overall meaning
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman had significant meanings because it had a point of view of the woman. The overall representations in this story included woman suppression, male dominance, post-pregnancy depression, and desire for freedom, which wouldn’t have been significant as it is now if the story was told from the husband’s point of view. These meanings are best represented and explained when a woman tells a story with her experience because a man wouldn’t portray the exact reality of woman suppression and male dominance.
For example, in the story, many quotes from the woman maximized the representations and meanings of the themes in the story. “ It is fortunate Mary is so good with the baby. Such a dear baby! And yet I cannot be with him, it makes me so nervous” represented maternal affection that could only be fully described by a woman’s point of view (Gilman). If the point of view had been John’s, he wouldn’t have expressed the woman’s maternal love as well as when she speaks herself. Other dialogues like “[b]ut must say what I feel and think in some way -- it is such a relief” that she said when she talked about writing represented woman’s strong desire for some expression of freedom even under man’s dominance and suppression (Gilman). If it had been any other character’s point of view, the limitations of freedom at the woman’s state wouldn’t have been fully expressed because the woman is the only one that is trapped in a barred window room. The woman’s dialogue represents the woman’s point of view and desires at that period of time and it can’t be replaced with a man’s point of view. A man wouldn’t be able to portray woman’s desire for freedom as it is because he would think that women doesn’t need freedom. Quotes like “ [t]he fact is I am getting a little afraid of John” wouldn’t have been possible if the story was in the man’s point of view, who would think that all he’s doing is to cure the woman. If the story had been told from an any other character’s point of view, such as her husband or brother, who is a man, or the nanny, who’s not trapped in a room, the story’s mood of insanity and the representations of woman at that time wouldn’t have been as emotional or realistic as it is when the woman tell the story from her point of view.
The part when the woman went crazy would have been interpreted differently from a different point of view such as her husband’s. If the point of view had been her husband’s point of view, he would have practically seen the woman as just a crazy woman that he needs to cure rather than a mother whom has gone crazy due to the isolation. The whole process of getting insane wouldn’t have been as detailed as now nor would the man have been possible to explain how the woman in the yellow wallpaper was actually a representation of the woman’s mental state. The whole imagination and representation would just become a sign of insanity from the husband’s point of view. The process of becoming insane was the main climax of the story where meanings like desire for freedom, male dominance, and woman suppression were represented, so if the whole process was minimized by a different point of view, the whole story’s meaning would be different and less realistic.
Different Point Of View: Roselily by Alice Walker
Point of View: One of her children
Mother’s getting married with this new guy that we don’t really know about. All we know is that he isn’t christian and that he’s taking us away to Chicago. Weird. I'll have to see if I'm going to like him or not. Current status: no. He’s making us leave Mississippi. Mother said that’s exactly what she wants, being a housewife, but we could see it in her eyes that she’s worried and scared about leaving Mississippi, our home. Three of us sat down in our front porch, where the wedding is taking place. I am starting to get annoyed by the cars passing by. What a noise to have in a wedding. Random things come into mind. Would this guy become a good father and a good husband? Soon, the preach is over and we run to mother and we press against her tightly. And then we look at the new husband with awe and distaste. All we can predict is that we’re going to Chicago tonight and that mother has already started regretting by the look of her eyes. Please god. Please let this guy be a good husband to our mom and a good father. I don't want to move again.
The Yellow Wallpaper: Point of View
Q: Analyze how point of view contributes to the story's overall meaning
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman had significant meanings because it had a point of view of the woman. The overall representations in this story included woman suppression, male dominance, post-pregnancy depression, and desire for freedom, which wouldn’t have been significant as it is now if the story was told from the husband’s point of view. These meanings are best represented and explained when a woman tells a story with her experience because a man wouldn’t portray the exact reality of woman suppression and male dominance.
For example, in the story, many quotes from the woman maximized the representations and meanings of the themes in the story. “ It is fortunate Mary is so good with the baby. Such a dear baby! And yet I cannot be with him, it makes me so nervous” represented maternal affection that could only be fully described by a woman’s point of view (Gilman). If the point of view had been John’s, he wouldn’t have expressed the woman’s maternal love as well as when she speaks herself. Other dialogues like “[b]ut must say what I feel and think in some way -- it is such a relief” that she said when she talked about writing represented woman’s strong desire for some expression of freedom even under man’s dominance and suppression (Gilman). If it had been any other character’s point of view, the limitations of freedom at the woman’s state wouldn’t have been fully expressed because the woman is the only one that is trapped in a barred window room. The woman’s dialogue represents the woman’s point of view and desires at that period of time and it can’t be replaced with a man’s point of view. A man wouldn’t be able to portray woman’s desire for freedom as it is because he would think that women doesn’t need freedom. Quotes like “ [t]he fact is I am getting a little afraid of John” wouldn’t have been possible if the story was in the man’s point of view, who would think that all he’s doing is to cure the woman. If the story had been told from an any other character’s point of view, such as her husband or brother, who is a man, or the nanny, who’s not trapped in a room, the story’s mood of insanity and the representations of woman at that time wouldn’t have been as emotional or realistic as it is when the woman tell the story from her point of view.
The part when the woman went crazy would have been interpreted differently from a different point of view such as her husband’s. If the point of view had been her husband’s point of view, he would have practically seen the woman as just a crazy woman that he needs to cure rather than a mother whom has gone crazy due to the isolation. The whole process of getting insane wouldn’t have been as detailed as now nor would the man have been possible to explain how the woman in the yellow wallpaper was actually a representation of the woman’s mental state. The whole imagination and representation would just become a sign of insanity from the husband’s point of view. The process of becoming insane was the main climax of the story where meanings like desire for freedom, male dominance, and woman suppression were represented, so if the whole process was minimized by a different point of view, the whole story’s meaning would be different and less realistic.
Works Cited
Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." University of Virginia Library. Web. 02 Sept. 2009.
<http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=GilYell.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed& tag=public∂=1&division=div1>.
(eek it doesn't move spaces in the second line! I meant to!)