The Yellow Wallpaper

The Yellow Wallpaper- A Poem

Living in a colonial mansion
The four walls speak to me
Or do I hear the voices of my shattered self?
John warns me to save myself from my own curse
But I know that he means: save yourself from me

When I tell him that writing gifts me pleasure
He smiles but his eyes convey full of pity
O, my little Girl!
He assumes I can’t read his subtle face
How foolish of him, of course!
So I write, to rebel or to let him know of his errors.
Or maybe, I write to preach my power.

So like always, it begins with
Cold air coming from the window that
That invites me to go outside
But the yellow wallpaper hinders me.
How can I leave the room?
When the yellow wallpaper lures me
Yellow color:
Vibrant, full of life and charisma.

She calls me from the inside
Begs for freedom from the chains
Yet I do not see any chains
Or perhaps
I do not want to see it.

I laugh, she begs, and I say
O, my little Girl! bless your little heart for asking more than what you already have
So, I let her suffer just as John lets me suffer
I watch her suffer every day and every night
Until she dies and

a shadow appears
Where she used to breathe or tried to breathe
And looking at the shadow,
I am unable to decide
Is it me?
Or is it John?

The short story, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman has inspired the above poem.