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Emma White
Mrs. Kirschner
English II
13 December 2015
Madness You Say?
The theme of madness can be found throughout American literature. This compelling
theme is exhibited in the dark romantic piece "The Birthmark" by Nathanial Hawthorne and the
realistic piece "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Although these two periods
of American literature differ in their styles of writing, they manage to weave similar themes and
ideas into stories that were produced from each period. Madness can be interpreted in countless
different ways in American literature, specifically from the dark romantic period to the realistic
period. In The Birthmark, the main character drives himself to the point of insanity, and in
The Yellow Wallpaper narrator develops a nervous condition and becomes a prisoner in her
own house and as a result, becomes mad. While these two short stories share a common theme,
they also remain true to the period in which they were written, allowing other ideas and themes
that are specific to the period to stand out.
Madness is an obvious theme in both The Birthmark and The Yellow Wallpaper; both
share a similar plot line of beginning the story with a semi-normal character that morphs into a
completely mad character by the end of the story. Nathanial Hawthorne conveys madness in
The Birthmark through the thoughts and actions of the main character, Aylmer. He begins the
story as a normal man and husband to his wife, Georgiana, who bears a small birthmark on her
cheek. As the story progresses, Aylmer begins to grow exceedingly passionate about the

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birthmark, but in a negative way, He found this one defect grow more and more intolerable with
every moment of their united lives (Hawthorne 1). The birthmark quickly drives him and
Georgiana into insanity. They recognize that this imperfection must go away if they want to
restore their sanity, Remove it, remove it, whatever be the cost, or we shall both go mad!
(Hawthorne 4), the irony in this statement made by Georgiana is that they have already gone
mad. Charlotte Perkins Gilman portrays madness in The Yellow Wallpaper in a format that is
similar to what Hawthorne uses. Gilman begins the story by introducing the narrator, who is also
the main character, a married woman who has a nervous condition, and describing the house that
the couple is renting. The narrator describes the house, and says, I am afraid, but I dont care
there is something strange about the houseI can feel it (Gilman 1). Her condition soon
worsens due to her husbands refusal to let her leave the house, and she becomes obsessed with
the dull yellow wallpaper in he bedroom, There are things in that paper that nobody knows but
me, or will ever. (Gilman 5). She becomes so obsessed that she begins imagining the walls
moving, and claims that there is a woman trapped in the wallpaper. By the end of this story, the
woman completely loses herself to the madness that has taken over her mind. These two stories
exemplify the same theme of madness in two different interpretations due to the time period that
they were written in.
Dark romanticism was a period where literature embodied creepy symbols, horrific
themes, and explored the physiological effects of guilt and sin, or in simpler terms just being
insane. The literature from this period in America was unlike anything Americans had seen
before. Authors introduced these eerie symbols and horrific themes in creative and unique stories
that fascinated readers. The Birthmark is one of these unique stories that represents the ideas
and themes of Dark Romanticism. Hawthorne uses Georgianas birthmark as a creepy symbol

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that the whole story is centered around, the symbol of his wifes liability to sin, sorrow, decay
and death (Hawthorne 1). This symbol leads to the development of the theme of madness,
this madness that grows throughout the story leads to morbid actions and thoughts, Believe me
Georgiana, I even rejoice in this single imperfection, since it will be such rapture to remove it.
(Hawthorne 2). Dark Romanticism was a period filled with imagination and madness, which is
what The Birthmark perfectly expresses.
The Realistic period of literature in America was a style of writing where authors sought
to describe things as they truly were. This period was a major shift in literature considering that
the period before was Dark Romanticism. Realism focuses on believable characters, authentic
settings, and relatable plot lines from the time period, unlike Dark Romanticism where writers
took a shadowy approach to the fantastical. Charlotte Perkins Gilman uses all of these elements
of realism in The Yellow Wallpaper she creates interesting yet believable characters, crafted an
authentic country setting in the 1890s, and developed a plot that was primarily relatable to
women during this time period. Throughout the story, the woman who is narrating becomes
progressively mad and delusional. This transformation is due to her disease, but is also due to her
husbands lack of communication and understanding; the woman says, I wish John would take
me away from here! (Gilman 6). These two characters relate to the typical relationship between
a husband and wife during this time period, of course, not all couples were like this, but the
majority was believed to model the idea that the man is continually right and the woman does
what the man says. Realism was a period of time in literature where authors would take an
everyday idea or event and make it into a fascinating episode, as shown in The Yellow
Wallpaper.

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These differing periods of literature produced remarkable stories, books, and poems that
expressed the unique ideas of each period. Dark Romanticism shaped an eerie and fantastical
period in literature while Realism created a more relatable and everyday feel for readers. In both
the Dark Romantic piece The Birthmark and Realistic piece The Yellow Wallpaper,
characteristics are exhibited that solely relate to the time period from which they were written,
but the idea of madness shines through each story in its own unique way.