Written: March 27, 2019
Area of Study: English Comparative Research Paper
The Deadly Constructs of Sexism in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Margaret Atwood’s “Happy Endings”
An individual’s happiness and satisfaction in life is inextricably bound to the relationships and those involved. Of all the relationship types, marriage is the most iconic, and is arguably the ultimate end goal for many people. As Casad et al., from the Psychology of Women Quarterly journal, states, “heterosexual marriage is a rite of passage [, however, it is] often associated with unrealistic expectations and fairy-tale fantasies” (par. 1). The imaginings of what a marriage should be prevent couples from seeing the harm caused by said illusions, where the impact takes its greatest toll on heterosexual couples. Charlotte Perkin Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Margaret Atwood’s “Happy Endings” delves into the sources of harm endured by people involved in heterosexual relationships and the unequal power dynamics between men and women. Power dynamics dictate who has what say in the relationship, and this is especially the case for marriage. Gilman’s and Atwood’s stories exposes that the breakdowns in communication in relationships is sexism, where it occurs overtly and covertly.
Hostile sexism is explicit, deliberate, and is what most refer to as sexism in general.
Sexism is most commonly identified from its most overt expressions, where this form of sexism can also be referred to as hostile sexism. Hammond and Overall state that “hostile sexism devalues women’s competence, excuses violence toward women, and intimidates women from pursuing independent success” (120). Hostile sexism is explicit, deliberate, and is what most refer to as sexism in general. For example, in “Happy Endings” ending B, “John doesn’t fall in love with Mary. He merely uses her body for selfish pleasure” (154), there is no argument that John’s treatment of Mary is clearly sexist. Historically, the treatment of women as objects intended only for sex and the pleasure of men is prevalent and is well understood to be distinctly harmful (Berberick; Chaudhury). Objectification is a perpetuation of hostile sexism, where it denies women access to communication. Mary doesn’t like the sex she has with John “but she wants John to think she does because if they do it often enough…they will get married” (Atwood 154), which is the assumed ultimate goal for women. And yet, “John goes out the door with hardly so much as a goodnight” (Atwood 154). John is not interested in Mary as a person, and therefore he has no interest in her wants or needs. Objectification does not merely stop communication, it prevents it entirely.
It is important to note that objectification is not limited to just that of a sexual nature but includes the removal of a woman’s agency as a person, especially regarding her reproductive rights. Alison Reiheld describes this as “when we view pregnant women as secondary to their fetuses” (par. 18), where women are treated as “fetal containers” (par. 2). This treatment objectifies women on the basis that they can give birth and ignores them as people who can think for themselves. The main character of “The Yellow Wallpaper” finds herself in exactly this situation – she is a woman who just gave birth and is suffering from post-partum depression, or as her husband John tells her, is suffering from a “temporary nervous depression – a slight hysterical tendency” (Gilman 29). She is believed to be unfit to take care of herself, so her husband makes executive decisions for her, which includes locking her up as a part of her rest cure (see: “Rest Cure”). In this situation, the men in her life deny that she has free will and agency and choose how she is to live her life. Even in legal terms, “the husband’s power over wives and daughters [is] ubiquitous and unquestioned. Both [are] considered his property and the husband [has] both the right and the obligation to protect it, regardless of what the women [want]” (Swartz 94). As long as women are treated as just baby-makers, there is no consideration for their needs, wants, or thoughts. Even if the woman in “The Yellow Wallpaper” tries to have a “real earnest reasonable talk with” (Gilman 34) her husband, she is unheard because her husband has decided he knows best. Despite his good intentions and seeming love for her (Gilman 30), he perpetuates overt sexism through his objectification of his wife.
While seemingly benign, a man who is compassionately caring for a woman is negating her free will and agency.
It is important to understand that not all sexism is overt and explicit but also occurs covertly as well. This less obvious form of sexism is also be called benevolent sexism, where it “romanticizes a paternalistic version of intimate relationships between men and women, which includes the idea that men are fulfilled by cherishing and protecting women” (Hammond and Overall 120). While seemingly benign, a man who is compassionately caring for a woman is negating her free will and agency. She is perceived as being incapable of knowing what is best for herself. In “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the husband decides his wife is “absolutely forbidden to ‘work’ until [she is] well again” (Gilman 29). It appears as though he cares for her wellbeing, but ignores her wants and needs, she does not always agree with what is decided for her (Gilman 29). Furthermore, John is not even willing to listen to what his wife has to say, instead, he only makes fun of her (Gilman 28, 38). She is not seen as a person, but is merely the object of John’s affections. The perpetuation of benevolent sexism where women are infantilized serves only to undermine and invalidate them as people. Women who lack free will and identity due to illusory compassion have their whole worlds bound to the men in their lives and lose their voices.
Without access to the same success men hold in this dynamic, women lose rights and the say in their own lives.
Benevolent sexism is insidious in that it is not only ignored as a harmful force, but it is also wholly accepted by society. The embrace and enforcement of benevolent sexism determines the lives women should be leading. Atwood illustrates this in “Happy Endings” ending C and the unorthodox relationship John and Mary have. Mary knows that “freedom isn’t the same for girls” (155), that she cannot make decisions in her own life the way men can. It is society that informs Mary of her role, and it is benevolent sexism that defines and enforces that role. Gender roles are a part of benevolent sexism, which “functions to maintain gender inequality via encouraging women’s investment in their relationships at the expense of independent success” (Hammond and Overall 123). Hammond and Overall state that “benevolent sexism promotes the adoption of gender-differentiated behaviors and roles: Men are providers and protectors for women, who are supportive caregivers” (123). These gender roles may bear some positive features, but it is women who ultimately pay the price. Mary’s role is to only be a part of relationships, to be a caregiver, which costs her any possibility of a future and success of her own. Without access to the same success men hold in this dynamic, women lose rights and the say in their own lives.
The costs of benevolent and hostile sexism are often not only dangerous, but deadly.
Neither overt nor covert sexism function on their own, “indeed, hostile sexism and benevolent sexism work together to sustain gender inequality” (Hammond and Overall 120). Studies show that benevolent sexism serves to promote, endorse, excuse, or uphold hostile sexism (Casad; Hammond and Overall). For example, because John loves his wife and because he is her protector, it is seen as acceptable to lock his wife up. Even his wife endorses the inequality in their relationship: “It is hard to talk with John about my case, because he is so wise, and because he loves me so” (Gilman 35). Benevolent and hostile sexism feature together to widen the inequality between husband and wife so that the wife not only feels as though she cannot communicate with her husband, but so that she also accepts this as normal. She feels that because he loves her, it would be unfair for her to communicate herself to him. It is her job, as the wife, to stand silently at his side and to abide his wishes. It is the construct of marriage that further enforces and perpetuates sexism and gender inequality. Omar Swartz describes that “under traditional marriage, the family [is] considered an indissoluble and homogeneous unit centered on the ideal of procreation and the hegemony of the husband/father who [is] sovereign over the members of the household” (88). The husband is, essentially, the only person in the relationship and everything the wife is, is subsumed by him. The consequences of this domination are dangerous. For in “The Yellow Wallpaper”, the only way that the wife can escape her husband, is to lose – or take absence of – her mind. To impose sexism to a point where a woman cannot speak with her husband leads to her losing her humanity, just as much as it is taken from her.
The costs of benevolent and hostile sexism are often not only dangerous, but deadly. As previously mentioned, endorsement of benevolent sexism permits hostile sexism. That is, “benevolent sexism serves to justify hostile sexism, or blatant derogation of women, which explains why an unequal distribution of power between men and women exists” (Casad par. 10). If men are held as the whole voice in a relationship, are given free will that women are not, and women are objectified, then it comes as no surprise that the result is an increase in. Men make claims of and for women, and when that claim is threatened, then hostile actions take the lead. This is demonstrated in “Happy Endings” ending C, through John’s affair with Mary. As a husband, John “can’t leave his wife because a commitment is a commitment” (Atwood 155), such is his role and responsibility. Yet when he accidentally finds his mistress with another man he is jealous. He knows “he’s hardly in any position to be jealous, considering [his wife] Madge, but nevertheless he’s overcome with despair” (Atwood 155). The object of his affections is taken from him without his permission and he feels attacked; Mary exercises her free will and John feels threatened. What does John, the husband and the protector do? He “shoots the two of them and himself” (Atwood 155). A woman exercised what little right she had to her own life and was killed for it.
Marriage has a long and withstanding history in the Western world, it is considered sacred tradition. It comes with a list of expectations and obligations that force words to go unspoken. The history of marriage sets men as the pinnacle of the relationship, where it is only his voice that is heard. This power dynamic can also be understood as the patriarchy, where men are the ones who hold the power. But as Swartz asserts, “patriarchal views of marriage have long lost their function” (95) – this must be the case for sexism to be dismantled, especially in the structures of marriage. Should the power dynamics of the patriarchy continue, more and more women will be silenced, more and more women will be lost.
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