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Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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The Yellow Wallpaper Paperback – January 1, 1892

4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 7,767 ratings
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The Yellow Wallpaper (original title: "The Yellow Wall-paper. A Story") is a 6,000-word short story by the American writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman, first published in January 1892 in The New England Magazine. It is regarded as an important early work of American feminist literature, illustrating attitudes in the 19th century toward women's health, both physical and mental.


Presented in the first person, the story is a collection of journal entries written by a woman whose physician husband (John) has rented an old mansion for the summer. Forgoing other rooms in the house, the couple moves into the upstairs nursery. As a form of treatment, the unnamed woman is forbidden from working, and is encouraged to eat well and get plenty of exercise and air, so she can recuperate from what he calls a "temporary nervous depression - a slight hysterical tendency", a diagnosis common to women in that period. She hides her journal from her husband and his sister the housekeeper, fearful of being reproached for overworking herself. The room's windows are barred to prevent children from climbing through them, and there is a gate across the top of the stairs, though she and her husband have access to the rest of the house and its adjoining estate.


The story depicts the effect of understimulation on the narrator's mental health and her descent into psychosis. With nothing to stimulate her, she becomes obsessed by the pattern and color of the wallpaper. "It is the strangest yellow, that wall-paper! It makes me think of all the yellow things I ever saw - not beautiful ones like buttercups, but old foul, bad yellow things. But there is something else about that paper - the smell! ... The only thing I can think of that it is like is the color of the paper! A yellow smell."


In the end, she imagines there are women creeping around behind the patterns of the wallpaper and comes to believe she is one of them. She locks herself in the room, now the only place she feels safe, refusing to leave when the summer rental is up. "For outside you have to creep on the ground, and everything is green instead of yellow. But here I can creep smoothly on the floor, and my shoulder just fits in that long smooch around the wall, so I cannot lose my way."


Source: Wikipedia

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  1. Print length
    22 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    12th Media Services
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 1892
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.05 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1680920707
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1680920703
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ 12th Media Services (January 1, 1892)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 22 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1680920707
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1680920703
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.05 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 7,767 ratings

About the author

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Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Charlotte Perkins Gilman

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Charlotte Perkins Gilman; also Charlotte Perkins Stetson, was a prominent American feminist, sociologist, novelist, writer of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction, and a lecturer for social reform.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
7,767 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Ferocious Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read
Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2020
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Even as a grad student in English I struggle with a good share of classic literature, but, of course, that's another discussion for another time. 'The Yellow Wallpaper,' on the other hand, is a rare gem that easily transcends time. Not only does this short tale entertain, it speaks of powerful and unfortunate truths.

This layered story is haunting in three ways: creepy wallpaper that moves and may very well be harboring paranormal entities; the trials and failures of medicine to treat mental illness, as well as the difficulties of being the victim of said treatments; the struggles of feminism. It is relevant, powerful, and poignant. A must read.
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lauren johnston
4.0 out of 5 stars Short but good
Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2024
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Cliffhanger ending. Good short story, maximized itself and really put you in the mindset of a depressed woman..I enjoyed it.
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Mary
5.0 out of 5 stars Such a creepy, sad story
Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2015
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The Yellow Wallpaper is the short story of a woman's descent into madness. What probably started as a post-partum depression slides into a full-on psychosis by the end. The story is told by the narrator by means of a secret journal, of sorts. We are made privy to her thoughts, which come to fixate on the yellow wallpaper in the bedroom of the house her physician husband has rented for them in an attempt to to get her away from it all so she can "rest" and get better.

But instead of getting better, the narrator falls more deeply into her illness. In just a few pages, the author says much about mental illness and the patronizing, paternalistic attitudes men often took/take with women. What makes it so sad is how believable the story is. The creepy factor comes from the horror the narrator's mind invents. In small, nearly imperceptible steps, the reader slides into the crazy along with the narrator. I am intrigued and will seek out more works by this author.
9 people found this helpful
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Bob Lewis
3.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading but not as strong as its reputation
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2019
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This short story is a fascinating look at mental health in the 19th Century, told from the perspective of a mentally ill woman resentful of the type of care she's been prescribed by her physician husband. It's been argued that it's an important work of feminist literature because it questions the efficacy of common treatments women received during that period, thought the unreliability of its narrator calls that interpretation into question. What it is, instead, is an interesting peek behind the curtain of a troubled mind with a sufficiently ambiguous ending to justify almost any interpretation the reader might wish to superimpose.

I found it an entertaining enough read to hold my interest throughout, peppered with some delightfully "creepy" descriptions of the titular wallpaper from the narrator's skewed perspective. However, its reputation as a significantly disturbing work is exaggerated. It was interesting, yes, but its emotional effect was less than one might expect after reading its glowing reviews from certain quarters of the literary community.

In regards to this particular edition, the reader should be aware that you're getting a chapbook containing only the story with no supplementary material. While I personally prefer to let literature speak for itself, some people might prefer to look for an edition that contains some critical essays or find the story in a larger collection of related works. The production quality of this edition can best be described as cheap but passable. Some formatting irregularities are occasionally frustrating but don't affect the readability of the text. As such, this would be an edition worth considering if you merely want to read the story, but perhaps not the right edition for the collector or the scholar.
4 people found this helpful
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Aurkid
5.0 out of 5 stars A Worthy Read
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2013
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This is a beautifully agonizing short story that takes about a day to read. As so many others have already recapped the story I won't so the same here. The fluency of the author's style is graceful & her use of vocabulary creative and strong as her story flows from one page to another, sans chapters or breaks of any kind. In this the writing seems to be one thought, as the narrator's innermost thoughts compel her, moving like a Mack truck steadily gaining speed and heading toward an unavoidable cliff.

The narrator takes you by the hand, and as you follow her on her journey you pass many creepy, hallucinogenic visions of her world as it warps around her.

Personally, as a woman who finds herself looking primarily to men for "doctoring" who also enjoys an artistic outlet, it is a grim reminder to remain active in your own care and to remain connected with the others around you.

By the end you feel saddened at the depths of instability her trapped lonely existence has brought her to; and you morn what was obviously a gifted mind.

A very worthy read.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Alie Sarazin
5.0 out of 5 stars It was a great small book!
Reviewed in Canada on February 25, 2024
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I love myself a short story and this one was amazing! I loved her attention to detail, and i read it in just one sitting! Would def recommend to get out of a reading slump or just if you want a quick read
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Cliente Kindle
5.0 out of 5 stars Macabro e relevante
Reviewed in Brazil on June 18, 2023
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Mais perturbador do que eu esperava. Metáforas sobre o papel da mulher no século 19, que ainda pode ser aplicado hoje.
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holita he comprado algo
5.0 out of 5 stars Libro corto e impactante
Reviewed in Spain on April 7, 2024
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Las historias son entretenidas y te dejan queriendo leer más.
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Lals
5.0 out of 5 stars my favorite classic
Reviewed in Italy on May 24, 2023
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an amazing feminist classic that made me feel a range of emotion that started from anger and sadness and finished with bittersweet satisfaction and pure joy.
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Héctor Ocampo Chapa
5.0 out of 5 stars Bueno
Reviewed in Mexico on August 26, 2020
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Muy sobrio y agradable para empezar a leer
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