In "The Yellow Wallpaper," the narrator suffers from a nervous condition, and her husband, who was a doctor, recommends that she recuperate in solitude. He has forbidden her to write, because he insists it is too taxing, so she writes her journal in secret. She sleeps in a large room she believes was once a nursery. The room contains a bed, barred windows and ugly yellow wallpaper. The woman slowly becomes obsessed with the hideous wallpaper. She stares at the pattern and eventually decides that it depicts a woman trapped behind bars. Ultimately, she locks herself in the room and starts to peel the paper off the walls. She begins to think that she is a part of the wallpaper pattern and crawls along the floor following the pattern. Her husband returns home to find her crawling along the floor. He faints across her path, and she continues to crawl over him.
Objectives & Strategies
For instructor use, the study of Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" is presented within two major contexts which are then divided into subsections as outlined below:
I. The Narrator and Female Voice
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Historical context
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Charlotte Perkins Gilman biography
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Gilman's essay "Why I Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper"
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Realism
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II. Gothic Genre
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Defining gothic and female gothic genre
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The theme of madness
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Each background section should be used to lead class discussion. Some sections can also be provided as additional reading handouts for students, especially those on history, Gilman's life and gothic genre. The sections are intended to inspire students to complete a general literary interpretation of the text, using biography, history, genre and the concept of literary voice as a basis for analysis. The most in-depth and more complex analysis of voice and realism should be the final lessons of the unit and should take place after the students achieve more than a basic understanding of the story.
Sample classroom lessons require students to research, analyze, connect to background knowledge, connect to current issues and write personal responses. To frame the unit, students will also be guided through pre-reading, reading and post-reading exercises.
The unit provides both full lessons, which are numbered (Lesson I, II, etc.) and mini-lessons. Full lessons are aimed to take one block of 90 minutes or two 45-minute class periods. Full lessons might include reading, an activity and some class discussion in the time allotted. Typically, mini-lessons should be scheduled for 20-30 minutes of class time. Mini-lessons are designed as single activities that do not include reading or class discussion in the time allotted.
The lessons provided include creative and practical approaches to synthesizing information rather than tests or quizzes. A sample writing task assessment has been provided in attachment three. The pedagogical advantage of creative and practical approaches as well as the use of task assessments is that each approach requires students apply instead of simply report their knowledge of "The Yellow Wallpaper." As a result, students achieve a better understanding of the literature and experience greater retention.
Mini-Lesson: Pre-Reading/Brainstorming
This assignment allows students to look at what they already know about the issues that will be raised in the story. For a pre-reading exercise, allow students to freewrite about insanity or mental illness. Ask them to respond to stereotypes about mental illness; refer to movies or books that talk about mental illness; or give a description of someone with a mental illness. Students should have 20-30 minutes to complete this activity. The estimated length of the writing sample is one to two pages. Students might be asked to save these responses for reference after reading and analyzing the story as a class.
Lesson I: During-Reading/Note taking
The main objective of a during-reading exercise is to provide students with a framework for taking notes on the reading. In this exercise, students will be asked to trace any examples of the narrator's deteriorating mind as they read. Students will be asked to list any examples of the following:
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(a) first, the narrator's loss of control over her thoughts
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(b) the narrator's hallucinations
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(c) the narrator's growing paranoia
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(d) the narrator's obsessions with various ideas/things
Instructors may utilize Attachment 1, Analyzing the Narrator's Symptoms, for this lesson. The lesson should take two full 45-minute class sessions. For classes where the story might be too complex for silent reading, allow students to read aloud and guide them through finding examples.