The Suffering of Women in The Yellow Wallpaper
             I think this story is represents the suffering of all women. In the
             story the narrator is suppressed by her husband, though he means well, and
             by her brother. Medical science also suppresses her because of it's views
             on women's health in the Nineteenth century. They keep her from doing the
             things she wants because they believe it is best for her to rest. She
             disagrees. "I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change,
             would do me good." (p. 801) On page 807 she tries to convince her husband
             that this treatment is not working, but he does not listen and just tells
             her to go to sleep. This just shows how she is not considered to know what
             is best, even for her own mental health. She does not even realize that
             this is happening. She just says things like "And what can one do?" or
             Maybe the whole reason for her mental problems
             lies in the fact that she is trying to hold back the feeling that she is
             being discriminated. It is considered improper for a woman to openly
             express discontent and anger. She says at the bottom of p. 801 that she
             gets "unreasonably angry with John sometimes" and she blames it on her
             "nervous condition". John tells her not to "neglect proper self control".
             So she is not allowed to express herself in speech nor in her writing,
             which I think she used as a release. I believe it is this inner-battle
             with doing what is considered proper and what she wants to do that slowly
             drives her crazy. The wallpaper and the figure behind it is symbolic of
             women's suffrage. She says the figure is "like a woman stooping down and
             creeping about." and "shakes the pattern as if she wanted to get out." (p.
             806) The figure could also symbolize herself. She refers to a front
             pattern and a back pattern which is less visible. Maybe the front pattern
             is what is proper and what the world is seen to be, while the back pattern
             ...