Respond to the following essay prompt. In her essay "Writing Short Stories" Flannery O'Connor says this about characterization: "You can't cut characters off from their society and say much about them as individuals." "You can't say anything meaningful about the mystery of personality unless you put that personality in a believable and significant social context." Consider the quotations above. Then pick a story from Semester A and evaluate how the social context and the characters work together not only to provide a vivid setting, but also to help explain and develop the characters' thoughts, words, and actions.
In Flannery O'Connor's essay "Writing Short Stories," she emphasizes the inseparable relationship between characters and their social context in portraying meaningful depictions of personality. O'Connor argues that a character's thoughts, words, and actions are all influenced by the society in which they reside. This essay prompt urges us to contemplate this idea in relation to a story from Semester A, analyzing how the social context and characters interconnect to not only establish a vivid setting but also to elucidate and advance the characters' thoughts, words, and actions.
One story from Semester A that exemplifies this dynamic interplay between characters and their social context is "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Set in the late 19th century, the narrative explores the experience of a woman suffering from postpartum depression, highlighting the restrictive societal norms imposed upon women during this period. These societal constraints significantly shape the protagonist's thoughts, words, and actions.
The patriarchal society that the protagonist inhabits is characterized by strict gender roles and expectations. Women are deemed as inferior to men and are primarily confined to domestic roles. This social context effectively stifles the protagonist, exacerbating her feelings of helplessness and entrapment. The narrator's thoughts are heavily influenced by societal expectations of womanhood, causing her to question her own sanity and suppress her desires for self-expression. Her words and actions, likewise, are rooted in the paradoxical double-bind she faces, where open expression of her emotions and desires is forbidden. Her repressive environment severely impacts her mental health, leading to her obsession with the yellow wallpaper and eventual descent into madness.
The vivid setting of this story further reinforces the connection between the characters and their social context. The isolated, decaying mansion in which the protagonist is confined, along with its ominously oppressive yellow wallpaper, serves as a tangible representation of the confined state of the narrator's mind. The crumbling mansion symbolizes the decaying social norms that contribute to the protagonist's mental deterioration. The prominence of the yellow wallpaper, a color traditionally associated with sickness and decay, underscores the toxic influence of societal expectations on the protagonist's psyche.
Furthermore, the oppressive social context depicted in "The Yellow Wallpaper" illuminates and develops the characters in profound ways. The protagonist's confinement and alienation within society drive her to develop a secret inner world in the form of her fixation on the wallpaper. This fixation becomes a conduit for her desperation and struggle for identity and agency within a society that denies her autonomy. The interaction between the character's thoughts, words, and actions reveals not just her deteriorating mental state but also the resilient spirit underneath, as she gradually unravels the oppressive norms surrounding her. The story's conclusion, with the protagonist crawling and creeping around the room, signifies her liberation from societal constraints.
In conclusion, "The Yellow Wallpaper" masterfully illustrates the idea that characters cannot be severed from their social context without losing something vital. The story's vivid setting and oppressive social context work together to provide a rich backdrop that not only intensifies the narrative but also shapes and explains the protagonist's thoughts, words, and actions. Charlotte Perkins Gilman weaves a tale that serves as a stark reminder of the profound influence societal expectations can exert on one's psyche, functioning as a cautionary tale against the repression of individual personalities within a powerful social framework.