From Isolation to Insanity

The role of women has been greatly discussed and debated over the past century. From the early twentieth century to present day, a woman's role in society has radically changed. Women in the early twentieth century were seen as insignificant and worthless by society, and were often forced into isolation by their husbands. As stated by Quawas "In the nineteenth century, women, as agents of moral influence, were expected to maintain the domestic sphere as a cheerful, pure haven for their husbands to return to each evening" (36). This constant pressure to be a perfect wife and dreadful isolation could have easily been a cause of mental illness. In "The Yellow Wallpaper" and "A Jury of Her Peers," the two main characters are forced into seclusion by their husbands; in each circumstance the two women reach a point of insanity, turning their houses from prisons to asylums. Minnie Wright in "A Jury of Her Peers," and the narrator in "The Yellow Wallpaper" seek to show the reader the effect isolation and cruel neglect can have on one's own mental state.

The word "lonesome" is used six different times in "A Jury of Her Peers," three of which are used to describe the physical appearance of the house. "It looked very lonesome this cold March morning. It had always been a lonesome-looking place. It was down in a hollow, and the poplar trees around it were lonesome-looking trees" (Glaspell, 535). The word "lonesome" in the story is used frequently to emphasize the severe isolation Minnie was experiencing and also to make the reader have sympathy for her and the situation she's in. The description of the room also adds to the setting because of the eeriness it brings to the story, "the stark coldness of that shut-up room was not a thing to linger in" (Glaspell, 539).

The description of the home in "The Yellow Wallpaper" gives the story a sense of mystery, which gives the reader a glimpse of the story's atmosphere. "It is quite alone standing well back from the road, quite three miles from the village. It makes me think of English places that you read about, for there are hedges and walls and gates that lock, and lots of separate little houses for the gardeners and people" (Gilman, 364). This description of the house shows the reader that the main character is isolated from society and makes the reader curious as to how the story will unfold. The narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" also describes the house as being haunted, which gives the reader insight of the house's disturbing atmosphere. In both stories the authors describe the homes of the main characters to highlight the fact that both of the characters are in a sense cut off from society, which is one aspect of isolation that drove each of the character to insanity.

Other than being isolated far off from society, another way the characters were isolated, was the reality that no one was able to come and visit either of the characters. Since Minnie was imprisoned by her own home and husband, she was not able to go out and visit anybody; since all of her female friends were busy with their own lives they didn't want to waste their time by going to visit her. Mrs. Hale throughout the story begins to feel guilty about not coming to visit her and reaches a breaking point. '"Oh, I wish I'd come over here once in a while!' she cried. 'That was a crime! Who's going to punish that? ... I might 'a' known she needed help! I tell you, it's queer, Mrs. Peters. We live close together, and we live far apart. We all go through the same things-- it's all just a different kind of the same thing! If it weren't--why do you and I understand? Why do we know--what we know this minute?'" (Glaspell, 543). Mrs. Hale has experienced, in her own life, the feeling of isolation and repression, but was too busy attending to her own house to find the time to go and visit the lonely Mrs. Wright. Bendel-Simso explains the women's guilt by stating that "they recognize that the crime Minnie Wright is accused of is not the only crime involved. Mrs. Hale accepts her part of the communal guilt in Minnie's death" (296). The reality that no one ever came to visit Minnie and the fact that she was persistently placed in isolation, shows a key cause of Minnie's insanity.

Just like Minnie, the narrator of "The Yellow Wallpaper" is trapped by the home she is living in and by her husband John. Unlike Minnie,