... that obstacle. In the end, the narrator is able to tear the paper off, symbolically regaining control of her life. She is on her way to the same equality that men possess. The house that contains it is surrounded by hedges and "gates that lock" (Gilman 329). At the top of the stairs is a gate that keeps the narrator from leaving the top floor. The windows of the room itself are barred. The narrator is kept in ... this room without possibility for escape, much as women of American society at the time were kept in "their ... ...

• Word Count: 1336
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography

... truly love their husbands despite their disgust for the domestic life required of them. Still, there is something else in the wallpaper that I find needs a connecting explanation, the smell. The narrator describes the smell that comes from the wallpaper in her bedroom as hovering in the dining-room skulking in the parlor, hiding in the hall, lying in wait for me on the stairs Even when I go to ride, if I turn my ... head suddenly and surprise it-there is that smell! Such a peculiar odor, too! It is not bad-at first, and very gentle, but quite the ... compares a woman to a cow or horse,...

• Word Count: 1862
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School