“The Yellow Wallpaper” is a classic short story written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, first published in 1892. The story is a chilling exploration of a woman’s descent into madness and a critique of the treatment of women’s mental health during the 19th century.
Narrated through a series of journal entries, the story follows an unnamed woman suffering from what is implied to be postpartum depression. Her husband, a physician, prescribes the “rest cure,” confining her to a room in their summer home. The room is adorned with yellow wallpaper, and as the narrator spends more time isolated in the room, she becomes obsessed with the wallpaper’s pattern.
