How Would You? by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
HOW WOULD YOU? by Charlotte Perkins Gilman: A wife is confined to a room by her husband for observation and treatment after experiencing what he believes is a nervous breakdown. The story explores themes of gender roles, isolation, and the effects of societal expectations on mental health.
By Charlotte Perkins Gilman · First published 1892 · Genre: Feminist Literature, Fiction, Social Commentary · 966 words
First lines
Half of our misery, half our pain, / Half the dark background of our self-reproach, / Is thought of how the world has sinned before. / We, being one, one with all life, we feel / The misdemeanors of uncounted time; / We suffer in the foolishness and sins / Of races just behind us,-burn with shame / At their gross ignorance and murderous deeds; / We suffer back of them in the long years / Of squalid struggling savagery of beasts,- / Beasts human and subhuman; back of them / In helpless creatures eaten, hunted, torn; / In submerged forests dying in the slime; / And even back of that in endless years / Of hot convulsions of dismembered lands, / And slow constricting centuries of cold. / So in our own lives, even to this day, / We carry in the chambers of the mind / The tale of errors, failures, and misdeeds / That we call sins, of all our early lives. / And the recurrent consciousness of this / We call remorse. The unrelenting gauge, / Now measuring past error,-this is shame. / And in our feverish overconsciousness, / A retroactive and preactive sense,- / Fired with our self-made theories of sin,- / We suffer, suffer, suffer-half alive, / And half with the dead scars of suffering.
Similar titles
- Resolve by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Seeking by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Desire by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- The Prophets by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Finding by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Out Of The Gate by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Genres
- Feminist Literature — The author, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, is well-known for her contributions to feminist literature. Throughout 'HOW WOULD YOU?', she explores themes related to gender equality and the role of women in society.
- Fiction — This book uses imaginary events and characters to explore and express its themes.
- Social Commentary — 'HOW WOULD YOU?' delves into social issues and criticizes societal norms and structures, which is typical in social commentary.
- American Literature — Being an important American author, Gilman's work contributes significantly to the body of American Literature.
Tags
feminism · gender roles · society · identity · self-discovery · empowerment · psychology · social critique · women's rights · independence · mental health · narrative
What this Textopian page supports
How Would You? is listed on Textopian as a short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, dated 1892 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Date: 1892 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Feminist Literature, Fiction, Social Commentary, American Literature
- Length: 966 words
- Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for How Would You? by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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