In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Gilman shows that the American principle of liberty did not apply to all Americans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries . Concretely, this shows that this principle has not been granted to women. In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Gilman shows that American society at the time was oppressive toward women and that it was dangerous for women to fight back. It establishes a narrator who is literally and symbolically oppressed by the men in her life and by the society in which she lives. This oppression causes the narrator, who suffers from what is likely postpartum depression, to sink deeper and deeper into the depths of madness. Her cries for help go unheeded by her husband and she eventually loses her mind completely. On a symbolic level, this failure of the narrator to survive in the face of societal oppression can be seen as a warning to society. Gilman warned men in society that they could not continue to deny women equal opportunities without facing consequences. Gilman's narrator, who chooses not to fight for her rights or was unable to do so, loses her sanity at the hands of her well-intentioned people. husband. Her depression is inexplicable to her and her husband, who is a doctor. In fact, neither her husband nor her brother, who is also a doctor, believe she is sick. The narrator is certain that the “rest cure” prescribed by her husband is not working. She says the men in her life are wrong to limit her activity. She thinks she could escape her depression if given the chance. "Personally, I do not agree with their ideas... I believe that pleasant work, with enthusiasm and change, would make me a little paper...... with great narrative dynamics and a shocking ending." to read it only on a superficial level is to miss the deeper meaning of this masterpiece. It is necessary to consider this story in the context of the time in which Gilman was written, a time when women were routinely oppressed by society and she represented this. in his story, both literally in the way the husband treats the narrator, and figuratively, in the pattern of the wallpaper which represents a prison for the woman or women behind it. The story, at least on one level, was meant to be a warning to society on this point. This type of treatment could only lead to disastrous results. Gilman illustrates this through the narrator's descent into madness. The story and its author: an introduction to short fiction, Ann Charters, Bedford/St Martin's, sixth edition (NOT compact) 2003, ISBN.: 0 312 39729 1