"The Yellow Wallpaper"--Close Analysis: John (edited)

The narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper” goes insane in spite of the fact that she has a caring husband to take care of her. Throughout the novel John tries everything in his power to make his ill wife better; “he is very careful and loving, and hardly lets [the narrator] stir without special direction” (12). Although not lettering her stir actually worsened her mental state, John was acting under the direction of some of the finest doctors of the time. He cannot be blamed for his wife’s mental illness solely because he couldn’t cure it. Before much deterioration of her mental state the narrator notes that “John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess that it always makes me feel bad” (10). This statement proves that John did have some idea what was making his wife feel so terrible, and thus it provides proof that John must have been more intuitive to his wife’s needs than expected. Some argue that John is patronizing and unloving to his wife, but as her mental state deteriorates he has no choice but to simplify his statements so that she may understand. Even on the verge of her insanity the narrator notes that John is “so wise, and…he loves me so” (23). Later in the book the narrator attempts to convince the reader that John is attempting to steal her secrets and states that she fears him, but her only support for this is that she has “caught him several times looking at the paper” (27)! John’s failed attempts to heal his wife don’t make him less of a husband. He was obviously deeply unsettled by his wife’s deterioration and did everything in his power to slow her sickness.