A feminist reading of the yellow wallpaper At the end of the 19th century, after the American social and economic change commonly referred to as the "Industrial Revolution" had changed the very fabric of American society, greater attention it was lent to the psychological disorders that had apparently accumulated in urban populations from new smokestacks and skyscrapers (Bauer, 131). These disorders were assumed to arise from the exhaustion and “wear and tear” of industrial society (Bauer, 131-132). One obvious effect of these new disorders was a large number of doctors and psychiatrists advocating one type of cure or another, although the "rest cure" popularized by physician S. Weir Mitchell was the most widely accepted (Bauer, 131; Saur , 151-152). ). However, while the “rest cure” for men involved physical exercise and recreational activities, the cure for women was a suffocating slice of isolation, bed rest, and no intellectual activity (Bauer, 131). Charlotte Perkins Gilman, a famous feminist and author, was one of the women suffering from "...a severe and continuous nervous breakdown tending towards melancholy...", commonly called "neurasthenia" (Gilman, 348-349). However, instead of curing her, Mitchell's "rest cure" nearly drove her mad. As a result of his exasperating experience away from writing and almost any intellectual thought, he wrote his short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper" not "... to make people crazy", but instead to "... save people from be driven crazy" (Gilman, 349). While her purpose in writing the story is clear, one cannot help but wonder whether she was motivated solely by her protest against nineteenth-century medical practice or her protest against law and society...... middle of paper... ... Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 130-132. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "The yellow background." The yellow background. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 41-58. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "Why did I write the yellow background?" The yellow background. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 348-349.Mitchell, S. Weir. "From wear and tear, or suggestions for those who are overworked." The yellow background. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 134-141.Saur, Prudence B. "From Motherhood; A Book for Every Wife and Mother." The yellow background. Ed. Dale M. Bauer. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 1998. 151-155.Williams, William C. "Old Doc Rivers." The doctor's stories. Ed. Roberto Coles. New York: New Directions Publishing Company, 1984. 13-41.