Insanity in The Yellow Wallpaper Literature Essay Example

The Yellow Wallpaper is a short tale written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. This short story portrays the narrator's descent into insanity. She began by explaining the home in which they must remain for the three months of summer and she defined herself as someone who suffers from depression while referring to her husband, John as a physician who does not believe in non-physical explanations. When the narrator gets deeply depressed after the birth of her kid, she is given rigorous instructions to follow in order to "make her well." For the novella, I read Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness was initially published in 1899 in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine and then in Conrad's Youth: and Two Other Stories (1902). Heart of Darkness investigates the tragedies of Western colonialism, portraying it as a phenomenon that tarnishes not only the nations and peoples it abuses but also the Westerners who push it.

The yellow wallpaper and The Heart of Darkness both depict a similar theme which is mental illness. In Gilman's 'The Yellow Wallpaper,' the narrator, a married lady, is diagnosed with a mental illness. However, as time passes, her condition worsens, and obviously suffering from depression. The narrator's worsening mental state is caused by both internal and external factors. However, the inactivity and isolation that are meant to treat her for this disease rather serve to exacerbate it. Her insanity has both internal and exterior consequences. Her mind, as portrayed in her diary, becomes more consumed with ideas about the wallpaper pattern, hallucinations, and her growing anxiety about the other occupants of the home.  Next, one of the themes that The Heart of Darkness novel highlights is also mental illness. The issue is introduced in the scene in which Marlowe is examined by the company doctor. When Marlowe meets the company doctor in chapter one, the doctor expresses an interest in the psychological changes that a person might experience while in the wilderness. He inquires of Marlowe about their family's history of craziness. Marlowe is advised by the doctor to keep his senses about him before going into the jungle. In this part of the book, the doctor definitely discusses mental disease. Following that, the narrator also mentions that Kurtz's "nerves went wrong," which suggests that he had lost his mental health at some point. Kurtz's mental illness is brought up in this context.

The similarities between The Yellow Wallpaper and The Heart of Darkness novel is getting isolation led people to become more insane and it is not a cure to treat mental illness. In the Yellow Wallpaper story, the narrator’s isolation drives her to insanity,  the narrator recalls changing into an inanimate item and freeing herself from her prison. She loses her mental stability as she obeys his husband’s directions to isolate herself from everyone and everything she loves. The narrator undergoes a "rest cure," or seclusion from society, which has an adverse effect on her mental health, leading her to become secretive, distant, and mad or insane. Plus, nobody could notice how unstable she is since she has isolated herself from everyone as a result of her despair.  While in the Heart of Darkness novel, the narrator indicates that Kurtz had lost his mental health. Additionally, the Russian is claimed to have nursed Kurtz through several illnesses. The problem of mental illness is brought up again when Marlow has a hypothesis about how Kurtz became more insane. As the result, he was damaged by isolation too. Mr. Kurtz's isolation proves to be his downfall (Conrad, 2018). Being isolated from all civilized civilizations in the Company's Inner Station, Mr. Kurtz gradually surrenders to the savage's influence until he becomes one of them. Kurtz's corruption occurred as a result of his "vast loneliness." Kurtz was able to be fully alone with his own thoughts away from the distractions of society, and it was this isolation that drove him to lose his mind. 

Next, the difference between The Yellow Wallpaper and The Heart of Darkness is their very severe obsession. The Yellow Wallpaper is recounted from the viewpoint of a mentally ill female narrator. She spends the summer at a rented property in the hope that she may recover from a persistent illness. The house where she is taken is very old, which makes her obsessed with the yellow-colored wallpaper. She is slowly becoming addicted to the wallpaper. She thinks it's hiding a secret message that only she can read. This means that instead of telling John, she keeps it to herself. She later said that she does not get enough sleep at night. Clearly, the yellow wallpaper is swallowing her mind, leaving little room for anything else. In The Heart of Darkness, it is certain that Kurtz is obsessed with the success that he has achieved as a result of his use of ivory. Despite the fact that he obtains it by force and violence, he does not disguise this fact. Using phrases like "suppression" to characterize his treatment of the locals, he even goes so far as to call them "extermination." Kurtz has elevated himself to the status of a deity as a result of his exploration and strong-arm techniques used to gather ivory. He considers Africans to be nothing more than simple things, and he treats them with a great deal of hate. The Ivory in Conrad’s tale has practically taken on a life of its own. The source of Kurtz's insanity is his insatiable need for money. 

The theme in both short story and novella is mental illness. Mental illnesses are ailments that affect one's mood, thinking, or conduct (Parekh, 2021). Mental illness is a real thing and it is still happening even though there are a lot of awareness campaigns about mental illness right now. The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 300 million individuals worldwide suffer from mental illness. One of the causes of mental illness is stress and conflict. Significant life events whether generally favorable events such as marriage or pregnancy or bad ones such as job loss or divorce all contribute to stress. Cortisol levels increase when we are stressed. One notion is that higher cortisol levels (particularly those that are persistently raised) may have an effect on serotonin levels (Dotdash Meredith, 2021). Other than that, nowadays people need to undergo physical distancing due to the Covid-19. Individuals are distancing from others to support the prevention of the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Isolation, on the other hand, has a considerable negative influence on health, leading to the development of mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, and dementia. With physical separation protocols in place around the globe, it is recommended that those in need get assistance during the COVID-19 epidemic. Contacting individuals in the community who may be concerned about isolation, loneliness, or health difficulties is a smart idea (Cohut, 2020).

In conclusion, The Yellow Wallpaper, a short tale by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, portrays a married woman's journey into insanity. The plot parallels Joseph Conrad's book Heart of Darkness, which also deals with mental illness. The Yellow Wallpaper narrative depicts the narrator's descent into insanity as a result of her seclusion as well as The Heart of Darkness's narrator reveals that Kurtz's mental state had deteriorated due to isolation. Next, The Yellow Wallpaper is told from the perspective of a female narrator who is terribly obsessed with the yellow wallpaper while Kurtz from The Heart of Darkness novel is obsessed with power, ivory, and exalted himself to the level of a god. As a result, mental illness has grown more concerning in the modern-day, as individuals are stressed out as a result of the Covid-19 and experiencing personal difficulties.