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It is very seldom that mere ordinary people like John and myself secure ancestral halls for the summer.
It is very seldom that mere ordinary people like John and myself secure ancestral halls for the summer.3
A colonial mansion, a hereditary estate, I would say a haunted house, and reach the height of romantic felicity but that would be asking too much of fate!
A colonial mansion, a hereditary estate, I would say a haunted house, and reach the height of romantic felicity but that would be asking too much of fate!7
1
John is practical in the extreme. He has no patience with faith, an intense horror of superstition, and he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen and put down in figures.
1
John is practical in the extreme. He has no patience with faith, an intense horror of superstition, and he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen and put down in figures.8
2
John is a physician, and — perhaps (I would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper and a great relief to my mind) perhaps that is one reason I do not get well faster.
2
John is a physician, and — perhaps (I would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper and a great relief to my mind) perhaps that is one reason I do not get well faster.11
4
If a physician of high standing, and one’s own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression — a slight hysterical tendency — what is one to do?
4
If a physician of high standing, and one’s own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression — a slight hysterical tendency — what is one to do?13
So I take phosphates or phospites — whichever it is, and tonics, and journeys, and air, and exercise, and am absolutely forbidden to “work” until I am well again.
So I take phosphates or phospites — whichever it is, and tonics, and journeys, and air, and exercise, and am absolutely forbidden to “work” until I am well again.
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here she is letting us know that it is the view of society and her small circle of peers and relatives that she is not nervous but borderline “hysterical.” She herself does not think she is nervous nor does she feel she has a choice in the matter of her own diagnosis. Her admission into this “treatment” center was, in itself, a form of robbing her of the ability to be self-aware or attentive to her own needs! THis was the ultimate form of repression, sending women to a facility that diagnoses them as “nervous” “disturbed” or “hysterical” if they are the least bit depressed or anxious! excitedly participating in expressive activities such as writing would only worsen their condition. IN essence, this place is not treating a condition but teaching women that they are not sick but simply viewing life wrong and making their own conditions by being expressive and concetrating on “fanices” and unhappy with their lives…just be happy with your monotoneous existence and do not strive for any higher achievement and youll be fine!! UGH..awful this makes me angry.
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After reading the entire story, and going on to read “Why I Wrote “The Yellow Wall-paper”, I realize that in this paragraph, her husband John is Gilman’s (the writer) real life specialist to help with her disorder. Both John and her real life specialist both try to control her and not let her do the things that she wants to do. In part 4 at paragraph 15 she talks about writing and how it is a “relief” to her. In the part where Gilman talks about why she wrote this, she mentions that this story saved one woman who had the same problem. Her family let her do her normal things in life, and she eventually recovered.
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The definition of an extremist, John plays no games when it comes to religion, and immediately puts down petty things that, in his opinion, makes no sense.
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It sounds as if she is being suppressed by those around her. I wonder why she is scared of the paper to begin with. What is with the journal other than it being it being the source of the story?
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In this paragraph and the one following it she is telling us that her husband and her brother who are both experienced physicians are both saying to her that she’s fine mentally and that she’s just a little depressed; maybe she needs the opinion of someone who isn’t so close to her because surely your close family members aren’t going to examine you the proper way if you say that something is wrong with you with no action or proof of foul play.
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I think that in her husband lies this woman’s whole problem. He has the nineteenth century mentality that he, as a man, knows what is right and his wife, as the weaker sex, cannot possibly know what is ailing her. He also blindly insists that his wife is getting better even when she clearly shows signs that she is losing her grip on reality because he has to prove his diagnosis is correct. I think this is a stab at Gilman’s own husband as well as her physician, both of whom she blamed for her own near insanity.
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From stanza 11 to 16 she presents her problems to be the authoritative voices of her husband, her brother, and the other phosphates urge her to be influence my their ideas and treatments, but she personally disagrees with her treatment, but she has no power to change the situation.
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It seems that she is very suspicious of this place from the very begining. She is doubtful and gets a “queer” feeling from the house. Maybe it would have been better for her to have been able to work out her issues like she wanted to.
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She feels that her husband care less of both her illness and her thoughts and concerns. Her own husband and her brother are physician of high standing who tells her she is having mental depression for which she needs to do almost nothing active, and she is not allowed to work and write.But she feels working ,writing and active activities might help her to relieve her mind.
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She is saying that she does not think that her husband takes her illness serious. Almost as if he thinks since he is a Dr. That this should not happen and he does not have to deal with it.
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If he feels that she is not sick then why is she medication. Is given her medicine and not believing she is sick a way to keep himself sane.
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