Who Takes the Blame?

In Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper", the question arises about whether or not writing is the source of the narrator's conflicted mental state. For me, writing is meant to serve as a release; it is a way for me to formulate my own thoughts into words. As I had mentioned in a previous blog, my thoughts are pieces of information floating around in my mind, and writing is the way in which I can make some sense of these knowledgeable facts. However, I have always had the freedom to write my thoughts down and express them in a simple way. The modern world presents me with so many opportunities to express my opinions to the outside world, that having to suppress them would be indescribable.

The narrator, however, has this restriction imposed upon her in which writing is not a freedom she is entitled to practice. In her time, writing was not something that women were freely privileged to do. So, even though writing is meant to be used as an expression of thoughts and ideas, the narrator may find it to be more of a hardship than a luxury. Keeping her writing a secret takes away from the significance of it because she is only able to admit to herself how she feels.

When I write something down, I enjoy the feedback that I get from my audience, and this helps me look at my ideas in a more complex way or in a different light. The narrator, however, never gets to share her work with anyone. Her writing becomes more of a burden than a release because she is obligated to keep it from the world, even from those closest to her. Having to hide your true feelings from those around you would be hard enough, but having to hide the one way that your organize your thoughts and structured reflections would serve as an even more difficult burden to bear. So who or what is to blame for the narrator's conflicted mental state? Is it the burden of having to hide her written thoughts that drives her mad, or is it the writing that actually helps her cope with her already established conflicted state of mind?