Question

In "The Yellow Wallpaper," what clues does the narrator's repeated lament "what can one do?" give us about her personality? What other aspects of her personality are revealed in the opening of the story?

Answer 1

Answer:

The narrator of this short story "The Yellow Paper" is a woman who is helpless because of her situation and health issues. Her disapproval to his husband handling of her situation and still obeying her is a reflection of her submissive personality.

Explanation:

the narrator is a patient of depression and anxiety and her husband is a physician. She wanted to go out and meet with people to recover from her distress but is bound to suffering by her husband who did not let her mingle socially. He seems to believe that rest and remaining in house all day will prevent her wife from social anxiety. The narrator does not agree to her husband's way of treating her but says submissively that "what is one to do". She emphasizes on her helplessness and does not try to change her situation.