Need proofreading and a bit of creative touch to the writing. Also ensure the grammer, punctuation is proper and sentences flow.
Instructions Your essay should have three parts: an introductory paragraph, a body containing fully developed paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph. Following is a general guide for what to include in each section of your essay. In your introductory paragraph: · Introduce your chosen stories (with their full titles) and their authors. · Identify clearly your essay topic—the subject of your comparison/contrast. · Include a strong thesis statement on the comparison and contrast topic that indicates what a reader ultimately can learn from the comparison/contrast. · Forecast the categories of the comparison and contrast that your essay will analyze in detail. In your analysis in the body of your essay: · Make effective use of topic sentences to identify the categories of comparison or contrast in your analysis. · Support your comments with evidence (paraphrase and direct quotations) from your chosen stories. · Explain the significance of each piece of evidence you present as it relates to your thesis. · Contribute to your reader’ understanding of the two stories as a whole. In your concluding paragraph: · Summarize how your analysis of the categories of comparison/contrast supports your thesis. · Restate in different words the purpose of your comparison/contrast. My Written Essay The stories I have chosen are "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and "To Room Nineteen" by Doris Lessing. In this essay, I would like to carry out a comparison of the protagonists’ isolation from the world and the people around them. Both Jane and Susan–the female protagonists–exist in a union bound by “perfect” marriages yet a sense of isolation pervades within them disturbing their mental well-being. The essay will analyze the environment of the characters and their oppression isolating them from the world and the people around them. The central theme shared between both characters is their struggle with depression. Though depression has always existed, it has not always been openly accepted or discussed and sometimes it is even looked down upon. Someone struggling with depression in such an environment is doomed to feeling isolated and even further depressed. Recently giving birth, Jane experiences what is known as postpartum depression caused by a drop in hormones. Being confined in one room with nothing to do, Jane spends her time examining the yellow wallpaper which she initially finds unappealing. The lack of interactions with others and mental activity deepens her isolation and depression. Susan, on the other hand, is also deeply depressed for other reasons. Quitting her job and forgoing her financial independence for the sake of taking care of her children, she feels a loss of self-identity and a growing sense of irritability, restlessness and feelings of worthlessness. Susan is stuck at home all day surrounded by responsibilities of her children who constantly disturb her from having her own freedom. In both stories, the protagonists did not have a supportive environment. Both characters were hesitant to express their thoughts and feelings to their husbands, fearing that they wouldn't understand. So they let it build up until it was unmanageable. The stories show the importance of being able to speak about their mental illness and seek outside help. Gender norms set out by the male dominated society has often oppressed women in ways that have isolated them from the world of self-identity and self-expression. In addition, social patriarchy, in both Jane and Susna’s case, has led to their mental deterioration and later death. The Yellow Wallpaper was set in New England in the late 1800s, an era in which women were considered second class citizens. The narrator, Jane, suffering from a “nervous depression” is moved to a new home in which she is confined to a room with nothing but isolation. To Room nineteen, on the other hand, was set in the suburbs of London in the mid 1900’s. Though women certainly had more rights and liberties, strong gender norms dictate how a woman is to carry herself in a marriage. Quitting her promising job, Susan was isolated from the world causing her depression. Though set in different time periods, both husbands, John and Matthew, symbolize the male dominated society which led to their isolation. Both Jane and Susan were very intelligent and capable. Jane was exceptional at writing while Susan was talented at commercial drawing. Despite their potential, their husbands, assuming superiority, tamed them. John, knowing just how talented Jane was, imprisons her and limits her from writing at all, all for the sake of her “well-being”. “So I take phosphates or phosphites, whichever it is, and tonics, and journeys, and air, and exercise, and am absolutely forbidden to "work" until I am well again. Personally, I disagree with their ideas.”. In room nineteen, it is evident that Matthew expects Susan to quit her promising job to take care of their four children, taking away her financial independence along with her self-identity. As he is the only breadwinner, Susan must request for money and report her spending, leaving very little room for any form of independence. Although set in different time periods, both protagonists experience severe depression and isolation which leads to their tragic death. First, the society compassing Jane and Susan was simply not adept to help those with depression, rather they push them further into isolation exacerbating their depression. Both feared to openly share their mental state with their husbands. Second, both female protagonists were oppressed by their husbands to an extent in which their mental illness got worse. In both cases, if their husbands were more understanding, less oppressive and provided the support their wives needed, the tragic ending could have been avoided. References Gilman, C. (2015). The Yellow Wallpaper. In The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction (8th ed., pp. 580-591) Lessing, D. (2015). To Room Nineteen. In The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction (8th ed., pp. 863-886)