Vo 1 Quoc Vo Professor Jennifer Nestojko Due 11/22/2023 English 1A In the article “Medical Myths About Gender Roles Go Back to Ancient Greece.Women Are Still Paying the Price Today” there are a close examination of the relationship between innate medical prejudice and how it affects the narrator's condition in Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" reveals how deeply embedded historically disparities between men and women in medical exacerbate the main character's mental health issues. The materials cited highlight how artificially established distinctions between sexes have a widespread effect on medical procedures, particularly the ones that have previously assigned authority to males and reinforced inaccurate assumptions about women. This article will examine how the narrator's decline is facilitated by these prejudices, which have their roots in the antiquated principles of medical treatment, as she struggles to stay committed to a treatment plan that reinforces long-standing gender stereotypes. In "The Yellow Wallpaper," prejudicial ideas about women's physical and mental well-being created the prevalent professional opinions of the day, which have a direct relationship to the narrator's condition. The main character is kept in an area and given the "rest cure," a medication recommended by the narrator's doctor spouse, while she obviously suffers from depression following her pregnancy. The story's obvious physiological prejudice is a reflection upon the traditional belief that women were mentally ill and required restriction and restraint. An establishing statement about the effects of medical prejudice is made by the Vo 1 narrator's determination to demonstrate that she realizes which treatment is most beneficial to her and is refusing to be mistreated by anyone surrounding her. The narrator starts arguing against the recommended "rest cure" despite her worsening emotional state as she becomes increasingly more conscious of how harsh the course of action. When the narrator opposes the health-care establishment's attempt to refute her own observations and views, it is a sort of advocating for oneself. The narrator's resistance to gaslighting and her increasing self-awareness are consistent with the larger historical background described in the source material. Organizations for feminist healthcare have stood up to the healthcare profession to make sure that women are heard, respected, and acknowledged. The narrative's growing determination to escape the cruel treatment she receives evokes memories of the popular uprisings of the 1970s, when women fought to recover control over their own bodies against the mystique of medicine. highlights the widespread impact of ingrained stereotypes regarding gender and institutional bias regarding the narrator's condition in "The Yellow Wallpaper." The narrator's treatment is prejudiced and exacerbates her mental health issues because of the historical background of medicine being created by male supremacy and the primacy of the masculine form. The narrator is confined, infantilized, and has her agency restricted by the "rest cure", a symbol of 19th-century healthcare practices that reflects deeply held biases that could worsen her illness. Following the next article about “The Rest Cure Revisited” by Diana Martin M.D. The narrator's sickness is made worse by medical biases within Mitchell's treatment, which keeps her trapped in a stuffy household setting with no opportunity for intellect or creativity development. The recommended treatment, which emphasizes silence and limits cognitive function, conflicts with the narrator's natural urge for imagination and intellectual development. Her psychological Vo 1 condition eventually declines, which is represented by her spiral into insanity as she develops an obsession concerning the yellow wall painting. She feels helpless and hopeless because of the pressured relaxation and lack of fulfilling activities. The fact that Gilman was able to persuade Mitchell to alter his approach to treating the condition after hearing her account highlights the potency of human tales in countering medical prejudices. "The Yellow Wallpaper" is a moving indictment of the time's dominant medical beliefs and a defense of women's independence in terms of mental wellness by means of the protagonist's struggles and final defiance. An examination of the narrator's ability to discern which is ideal for herself and withstand gaslighting highlights the conflict between kindness and freedom. The narrator's rising opposition to the medical treatment's paternalistic character is demonstrated by her growing knowledge of the negative effects of the rest cure, which is reflected in Charlotte Perkins Gilman's individual testimony. The narrator's conflict regarding the recommended treatment contradicts the then-dominant medical beliefs and symbolizes the larger social battle for female freedom. The narrator uses the process of creating "The Yellow Wallpaper" as a means of opposition to express the negative effects of the suggested treatment including the repression of feminine innovation. Gilman's short tale "The Yellow Wallpaper" uses the characterization of the additional treatment as a powerful metaphor for the masculine aspects of 19th-century healthcare and how it restricted women's creativity. Although doctors who were putting the cure into practice were excited about it and thought they might save those who seemed hopeless, it is clear that the therapy was laced with unconscious bias. In the narrator's situation, the patient is imprisoned and manipulated under the pretense of a psychological nonprofit organization. Because the Vo 1 recommended therapy separates the narrator, limits her freedom, and increases her mental health issues, this innate medical prejudice not only blocks rather worsens her sickness.
