THE CAUSES OF NARRATOR’S SCHIZOPHRENIA IN
CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S “THE YELLOW WALLPAPER”
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By ERLITA
Student Number: 084214059
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
i
THE CAUSES OF NARRATOR’S SCHIZOPHRENIA IN
CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S “THE YELLOW WALLPAPER”
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By ERLITA
Student Number: 084214059
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
ii
A Sarjana Sastra Undergraduate Thesis
THE CAUSES OF NARRATOR’S SCHIZOPHRENIA IN
CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S “THE YELLOW WALLPAPER”
By ERLITA
Student Number: 084214059
Approved by
Linda Valentina Budiman S.S., M.Hum. August 8, 2012. Advisor
iii
A Sarjana Sastra Undergraduate Thesis
THE CAUSES OF NARRATOR’S SCHIZOPHRENIA IN
CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S “THE YELLOW WALLPAPER”
By ERLITA
Student Number: 084214059
Defended before the Board of Examiners On 31 August
and Declared Acceptable
BOARD OF EXAMINERS
Name Signature
Chairperson : Dr. FX. Siswadi M.A ____________
Secretary : Dra. Agatha Bernadetha Sri Mulyani, M.A.,Ph.D. ____________ Member : Dra. Agatha Bernadetha Sri Mulyani, M.A.,Ph.D ____________ Member : Linda Valentina Budiman S.S., M.Hum. ____________ Member : Drs. Hirmawan Wijanarka M.Hum. ____________
Yogyakarta, August 31, 2012 Faculty of Letters Sanata Dharma University
Dean
iv
I can do all things in Christ
who strengthens me
(Philippians 4:13)
Success seems to be connected with action.
Successful people keep moving.
They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.
Hilton-v
T HIS UNDERGRA DUA T E T HESIS IS DEDICA T ED T O
My A ll in A ll, Jesu s Ch rist
My Belov ed Pa ren ts
vi
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswi Universitas Sanata Dharma:
Nama : Erlita
Nomor Mahasiswa : 084214059
Demi kepentingan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:
The Causes of Narrator’s Schizophrenia in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”
Beserta perangkat yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di Internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis. Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.
Dibuat di Yogyakarta.
Pada tanggal: 10 September 2012
Yang menyatakan,
vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would really like to express my greatest gratitude to my Savior, Jesus Christ, for His wisdom, blessings and strength for making this thesis finished in His beautiful time. Also, praise to Him because I can always walk with Him through any storm. I could not have finished this thesis without Him.
My gratitude also goes to my beloved parents and my little brother for their supports and motivations to me. I thank them for being my spirit. It is a great blessing to have them in my life. I love them all.
My special thank goes to Linda Valentina Budiman S.S., M.Hum. as my great major advisor for her time, guidance, understanding and patience in the process of making this undergraduate thesis, so I was able to finish this. My special thank also goes to Drs. Hirmawan Wijanarka M.Hum. as my co-advisor for his time and guidance so that I can know and correct my mistakes in this thesis. My thankfulness goes to my examiner Dra. Agatha Bernadetha Sri Mulyani, M.A.,Ph.D for the useful suggestions in order to make the thesis more perfect. I would also like to express my great gratitude to all of the lecturers who have taught and given me useful knowledge during my study in Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta.
viii
thank cie Venna, kak Tony, ko Ady, cie Defvi, Gloria, Candra, and Indah for their support and prayers in finishing my thesis. My special thank also goes to Daniel Andrianto for his love, patience, time and support that always reminds me to finish my thesis and cheers me up after my long day. He is always with me in the ups and downs even though we are separated by the long distances.
I would like thank all people who I cannot mention one by one for all of their supports in making my undergraduate thesis. I love them. I thank them so much.
ix
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY
I honestly declared that the thesis which I wrote does not contain the work of other people, except those cited in this quotations and bibliography, as a scientific paper should.
Yogyakarta, 10 September 2012
x
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW ... 7
A.Review of Related Studies ... 7
A.The Descriptions of the Narrator ... 21
B.The Symptoms of the Narrator’s Schizophrenia ... 34
C.The Factors Causing the Narrator’s Schizophrenia ... 45
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION ... 55
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 59
xi ABSTRACT
ERLITA (2012). The Causes of the Narrator’s Schizophrenia in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” is an American short story written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The short story tells about a woman known as the Narrator who is described as a person suffering mental illness, schizophrenia. Through this thesis, the writer tries to find a deeper understanding about schizophrenia.
This thesis writing has some purposes. First, to describe the Narrator’s characterization. Second, to explain the symptoms of schizophrenia suffered by the Narrator through the characterization. Third, to find out the factors that cause the Narrator’s schizophrenia.
To accomplish this study, the writer applies library research method and psychological approach. The writer takes the primary data from “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story. Whilst, the secondary data are taken from some theories related to the topic of the study, such as theory of characterization, theory of narrator, and theory of schizophrenia.
xii ABSTRAK
ERLITA (2012). The Causes of the Narrator’s Schizophrenia in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” adalah sebuah cerita pendek dari Amerika yang ditulis oleh Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Cerita pendek ini menceritakan seorang wanita yang diketahui sebagai Narator yang digambarkan menderita sebuah penyakit mental, schizophrenia. Melalui tesis ini, penulis mempelajari lebih dalam mengenai schizophrenia.
Tujuan dari studi ini adalah, pertama, mendeskripsikan karakter dari Narator; kedua, menjelaskan gejala-gejala schizophrenia yang diderita oleh Narator melalui pendeskripsian karakter; dan ketiga adalah menemukan faktor-faktor yang menjadi penyebab dari schizophrenia yang diderita oleh Narator.
Untuk menyelesaikan studi ini, penulis melakukan studi pustaka dan meggunakan pendekatan psikologis. Penulis mengambil data pokok dari cerita pendek, “The Yellow Wallpaper”, dan dari beberapa teori yang bersangkutan dengan topik studi ini, seperti teori penokohan, teori narator, dan teori
schizophrenia.
1
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
Nowadays, mental illnesses become very common in the world, even in
Indonesia. In fact, they are more common than cancer, diabetes, or heart disease.
According to the U.S. Surgeon General, about 23% of American adults (ages 18 and
older), 44 million people, and about 20% of American children suffer from a mental
disorder during a given year. Further, about 5 million American adults, and more than
5 million children and adolescents suffer from a serious mental condition. Moreover,
the main of the mental condition cases are depression, bipolar disorder, and
schizophrenia.
Mental illness does not discriminate. It can affect people of any age and any
life background. Although mental illness affects both males and females, in the
certain conditions, such as eating disorders, it tends to occur more often in females.
Many people cannot distinguish between schizophrenia and the other mental illnesses
like depression and bipolar disorder.
A blood test or an x-ray, can detect some illness but it is more complicated
when it comes to diagnose schizophrenia. To decide if the patient’s symptoms fit with
a diagnosis of schizophrenia or the other psychiatric disorder, the doctors should
some information from the patient and also people who are close to the patient should
diagnosis to know the symptoms of the schizophrenia sufferers. There are some
different types of schizophrenia disorders and after knowing what types the patient
get then the doctors can plan the treatment for the patient. (Miller and Susan Mason,
2011:55)
The term schizophrenia has only been in use since 1911. Soon before that, it
was deemed a separate mental illness in 1887 by Emil Kraepelin. Despite that
relatively recent history, it has been described throughout written history. Ancient
Egyptian, Hindu, Chinese, Greek, and Roman writings described symptoms similar to
the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. During medieval times, schizophrenia, like
other illnesses, was often viewed as evidence of the sufferer being possessed by
spirits or evil powers.
A number of accomplished individuals suffer from schizophrenia. The film A
Beautiful Mind depicts the life of John Nash, a noted scientist, and his struggles with
paranoid schizophrenia. The film The Soloist explores the challenges faced by
Juilliard-trained musician Nathaniel Ayers as a result of schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia which is also called split personality disorder is a chronic
mental illness that affects about 1% of the population, more than 2 million people in a
country. (medicinenet.com, 2011). Most psychiatrists recognize five general subtypes
of the disorder. A subtype diagnosis is assigned based on a patient’s most recent
clinical evaluation. In other words, the symptoms a patient displays when she sees a
Due to the fact that schizophrenia is an illness related to the mental condition,
which is one of the psychological problems, the writer uses psychological approach.
It is because literature also covers psychological cases which study the change our
thinking toward human’s life through literary works. Moreover, the psychological
problem is referred to by the writer related to the “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story
written by an American woman, Charlotte Perkins Gilman. She is the main character
in her short story. The writer’s focus of this work is related to the narrator’s way in
expressing her fear and desires, and her behavior reflecting her mental disorder
because this short story reflects her mental illness, schizophrenia.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story can be
regarded as one of the short stories that is worth reading, especially, for those who are
interested in a psychological story because the story presents an interesting complex
psychological problem, which is schizophrenia. Nearly one-third of people who are
diagnosed with schizophrenia will attempt suicide and about ten percent of those with
the diagnosis will commit suicide within twenty years of the beginning of the
disorder (psychcentral.com, 2012). Thus, schizophrenia is regarded as a chronic and
devastating disease which more people should know and learn further about this
illness.
In addition, the writer focuses on the main character, the narrator. Her mental
illness that is described implicitly might be a little confusing the readers about her
truly condition, whether she is really sick mentally or not, and this makes the writer
by the series of the identifying and analyzing the characters that the writer does, the
writer makes all things explicitly that she suffers from schizophrenia by describing
the narrator in the short story, identifying the narrator’s schizophrenia through the
character description, and identifying the factors that cause the narrator’s
schizophrenia.
B. Problem Formulation
After describing the background, the writer formulates the problems as
follows:
1. How is the Narrator described in the short story?
2. How can the Narrator’s schizophrenia be identified through the Narrator’s
description?
3. What are the factors that cause the Narrator’s schizophrenia in theshort story?
C. Objectives of the Study
The writer formulates three objectives here. The writer wants to describe the
narrator’s characteristic and personality to understand deeply about the narrator.
Then, the writer finds out how the narrator’s schizophrenia can be identified after
knowing the narrator’s characteristics. Finally, the writer explains the factors that
cause the narrator’s schizophrenia after identifying the narrator’s characteristics and
D. Definition of Terms
The writer mentions two words which become the key terms in the research.
The two words are schizophrenia and narrator.
1. Schizophrenia:
Gill, Barret, and also Waelhens and Wilfried Ver Eecke have almost the same
definitions about schizophrenia. In their opinion, schizophrenia is a psychotic
illness and when it is in active phase; delusions, hallucinations, and disruption of
thinking, feeling, and many other mental functions will happen to people. It is also
a multitude of experiences that people will get such as confusing, unusual, often
devastating, but also tempting and sometimes quite routine. Some patients cannot
even define and consider those experiences as an illness at all. This disease hit the
brain so that it is clinically mentioned as a disease of the mind. Patients have a
variety of symptoms and impairments in cognition. Behind this diversity, however,
is a final common pathway that defines the illness. (Gill, 2007:41); (Barrett,
1996:3); (Waelhens and Wilfried Ver Eecke, 2001:102)
2. Narrator:
A person who is assumed telling the story in a given narrative. According to
the modern analysis of fictional narratives, the narrator is the imagined ‘voice’
transmitting the story, and is distinguished both from the real author (who have
does not recount the story, but is inferred as the authority responsible for selecting
it and inventing a narrator for it). Narrators differ according to their extent of
participation in the story: in first‐person narratives they are involved either as
7
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
The writer has some of reviews of the other studies related to this research
topic. By presenting these review related studies, people can know the differences
between the studies with the other studies.
A.1. “Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper: A Poetics of the Inside” by Dr. Beth Snyder-Rheingold (1999).
In finding the topic related to this research, the writer has found the related
studies by Dr. Beth Snyder-Rheingold (1999). Her study entitled “Charlotte Perkins
Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper": A Poetics of the Inside”. The writer thinks that its
thesis reveals the inside of the house condition in “The Yellow Wallpaper” short
story.
In her study, she tries to analyze the house which is described by Charlotte
Perkins Gilman. It is nearly all interior and emphasizing the interior and exterior
dichotomy. She analyzes how the position of the bedroom is, the pattern of the
wallpaper is, and everything in the house described on the text. Also, she describes
the atmosphere given by the house and the narrator and her husband’s feeling about
the atmosphere there, especially the situation and condition in the bedroom. She also
powerful narrative that engages the symbolic significance of the wallpaper.
The writer here also tries to analyze the absence in the page and the narrator's silence,
John's physical absence from the house, and she explains that although the narrator's
margins seem to suggest, they are not entirely passive. (Snyder-Rheingold, 1999)
A.2. “But One Expects That”: Charlotte Perkins Gilman's “The Yellow Wallpaper” and the Shifting Light of Scholarship” by Julie Bates Dock with Daphne Ryan Allen, Jennifer Palais, and Kristen Tragc.
The other related study that the writer finds is the study entitled “But One
Expects That”: Charlotte Perkins Gilman's “The Yellow Wallpaper” and the
Shifting Light of Scholarship” by Julie Bates Dock with Daphne Ryan Allen,
Jennifer Palais, and Kristen Tragc, which is published by Modern Language
Association. It is more likely an article or a critical work.
The authors begin by introducing the two decades since the Feminist Press
issued a slim volume containing a text of “The Yellow Wallpaper” with an after-word
by Elaine R. Hedges, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's remarkable work has found a secure
place in contemporary literary studies. “The Yellow Wallpaper” has been analyzed by
literary historians, although most of the feminist critics still lead the way in
championing Gilman's achievement. According to the author, at that time scholars
have accumulated a wealth of information about Gilman's life in general and about
They write about the modern misidentification of texts, textual variants and
diary entries, ghosts and male murderers, and also the critical watchfulness, that is
related to the textual history of “The Yellow Wallpaper” which since 1973 illustrates
changing critical priorities in the academy and it has been connected with the feminist
that is from the Feminist Press. (Dock, Daphne Ryan Allen, Jennifer Palais and
Kristen Tragc, 1996: 52)
Both reviews of related studies above use the same short story, which is
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The first study discusses the
interior design of the house there and the second one focuses on the feminism. It
sufficiently represent that this research is different from the other studies because this
topic focuses on the psychological problems that the narrator has, schizophrenia. The
writer identifies this mental disorder by analyzing the narrator’s characteristics.
B. Review of Related Theories
In this research, the writer is going to use theory of characterization, narrator
and theory of schizophrenia because they are related to each other.
B.1. Theory of Characterization
In a work of literature, authors use characterization to create the characters.
Characterization provides a distinct description and depiction of each character’s
appearance, personality, and impact within the story. There are some ways in which
character, the words or the dialogue, the character’s actions, the character’s thoughts,
and the ways in which he or she interacts with other characters in the story.
The theory of characterization is also described by M. H. Abrams and
Geoffrey Galt Harpham. They explain the two ways of presenting characterization.
First, in showing or “the dramatic method,” the author simply presents the characters
talking and acting, and leaves it entirely up to the reader to infer the motives and
dispositions that lie behind what they say and do. Second, in telling, the author
intervenes authoritatively in order to describe, and often to evaluate, the motives and
dispositional qualities of the characters. (Abrams and Harpham, 2005: 47)
Chris Baldick also gives the definition of term characterization in The Oxford
Dictionary of Literary Terms as the following:
The representation of persons in *narrative and dramatic works. This may include direct methods like the attribution of qualities in description or commentary, and indirect (or ‘dramatic’) methods inviting readers to infer qualities from character’s actions, speech, or appearance. (Baldick, 2008: 52)
B.2. Theory of Narrator
Narrator is actually the person telling the story who may or may not be a
character in the story. In “The Anthem Dictionary of Literary Terms and Theory” by
Peter Auger and Robert Douglas-Fairhurst, written that narrator is the figure who is
distinct from the author. Some authors switch between narrators, and studying
narrative structure is a separate field of its own. It is worth being able to identify the
This book also explains about the narrator’s relation to the action as the
following:
A first-person narrator is involved in the story, and describes events from his/her viewpoint, as he/she experienced it. A third-person narrator has no involvement in the action, though he/she may have a particular viewpoint on it. An omniscient narrator knows all the details, and seems to look down at the action, he/she sometimes supplies information before the characters know it, and knows their unspoken thoughts. An unreliable narrator will make discoveries as the reader does, and may make mistakes. … Intrusive narrators posses personalities of their own, whereas unintrusive narrators are neutral, allowing the audience to concentrate on the narrative.
It is also explained there about what the narrator is thinking about.
‘Self-conscious narrator’ is a term used for narrators who are aware that they are telling a
story, and are careful to present in a correct manner. The writer then conclude that
relating to this research, the writer has found that the short story using the first-person
narrator as she experienced that by herself.
B.3. Theory of Schizophrenia
The focus of this topic is narrator’s schizophrenia, and because schizophrenia
is one of the mental illnesses related to the psychology, the writer uses psychological
theory. Moreover, the writer uses theory of schizophrenia here. Symptoms of
schizophrenia include auditory hallucinations, experiences of control, delusions,
disorders of thinking and emotional and volitional changes below:
1. Hallucination is a condition when the patient often has false perception of
patient will comment on his or her thoughts of the pictures, noises or voices. It is
like these sounds disturb her mind so she comments on them.
2. Experiences of control are the condition when the patient often feels under the
control of a power or is restrained by someone or his or her thought. Then the
patient experiences the feeling that can penetrate his or her mind or body. It is
like a trance happens to the patient because it is interpreted as the presence of
spirit. Or it can often be interpreted as the implanted radio transmitters or X-rays.
3. Delusions are the condition when the patient can have false personal beliefs
about the world that can take many different forms like delusions of reference,
persecutory, grandiose, etc. Reference delusion is when the patient has strongly
held belief to the random events, objects, behaviors of others, and so on. and it
has a particular and unusual significance to oneself. Persecutory is when the
patient has false beliefs that others have a plan to harm his or her. Grandiose is
when the patient may think that he or she is a highly important person or in other
words, he or she has a big ego.
4. Disorders of thinking are the condition when the patient often has a feeling that
his or her thoughts are broadcasted. The patient also let other people can hear
them, often over long distances. It means that the patient has a disturbance of
thought, such as confusion and hallucinations which affecting possession.
5. Emotional and volitional changes are the conditions when the patient’s emotions
initiative. This symptom is sometimes referred to as negative symptom.
(Birchwood and Jackson, 2001: 8)
According to the book entitled Hughes' Outline of Modern Psychiatry 4th Edition (1996: 36-38) by Jennifer Barraclough and David Gill, the causation of schizophrenia are genetics, neurochemistry, macroscopic brain disease, and
psychodynamic and social theories.
1. Genetics means that schizophrenia is inheritance. Lifetime expectation of
developing schizophrenia among relatives of patient with the condition is parent
6%, sibling 10%, child (one parent affected) 14%, and child (both parents
affected) 46%. It may also happen to twins and the studies show the concordance
to be monozygotic 35-58% and dizygotic 9-26%.
2. Neurochemistry means that schizophrenia can be caused by drugs. Symptoms of
schizophrenia can be precipitated by drugs, such as amphetamines.
Amphetamines can increase dopaminergic activity that is usually affected by
dopamine—a drug that supports fine motor activity, blood pressure, focus,
inspiration, intuition, enthusiasm, and joy.
3. Macroscopic brain disease is a kind of organic brain lesion. The patient will be
found that he or she has an abnormal brain or a brain damage development in
early life. It can happen when his or her mother get birth complications or
maternal infection when she pregnant.
4. Psychodynamic and social theories are the causes that come from the patient’s
social isolation and eccentricity. Also, the studies show that children who show
these features have an increased risk of schizophrenia in his or her later life. It
can also come from family dynamics which the parents have a big role in causing
her children’s schizophrenia, like the over-involved parents who always show
high levels of expressed emotion. The patients who also often live with critical
from his or her relatives can increase the risk of schizophrenia. Life events can
also become a cause because the patient’s life event experience can trigger an
acute episode.
Additionally, the book entitled Abnormal Psychology: Integrating
Perspectives also states the factors of schizophrenia. There are some important biological factors in the schizophrenia’s development according to G. Terence
Wilson, K. Daniel O’Leary, Maureen A Sullivan in this book. They are genetic
factors, central nervous dysfunction, viral infections and birth trauma.
To diagnose schizophrenia, the patient must have experienced specific
symptoms over a defined period of time. The patient also must have a complete
physical examination, including blood and urine analyses for the presence of
commonly abused drugs. Also, there are five types of schizophrenia according to
Diagnosis SchizophreniaSecond Edition by Rachel Miller and Susan Mason:
1. Paranoid schizophrenia. It is the condition when the patients are preoccupied with one or more delusions. The patient can also have many auditory
hallucinations. However, they do not have symptoms of disorganized
2. Disorganized schizophrenia. It is a condition when the patient speaks inconsequently. Also, the patient can have a disorganized behavior. However, the
patient does not have enough symptoms to be characterized as catatonic
schizophrenic.
3. Catatonic schizophrenia. It is the condition when the patient makes the body movements that cannot be controlled. It is a physical posture problem. The
patient also can have difficulty moving, resistance to moving, and/or repeating
what others say or do.
4. Undifferentiatedschizophrenia. It is type of schizophrenia which met criteria for the general category of schizophrenia and characterized by episodes of the
symptoms. The symptoms which are meant are delusions, hallucinations,
disorganized speech or behavior, catatonic behavior or negative symptoms.
However, the individual does not fall into any of other types for a diagnosis of
paranoid, disorganized, or catatonic type of schizophrenia.
5. Residual schizophrenia. It is the condition when the patient withdraws him/herself from the environment, disinterest to all things, and do not speak at
all. It can also be called as decreasing in function. These are included in negative
types. (Miller and Mason, 2011:59-60)
C. Theoretical Framework
The writer decided to use those theories in analyzing the causes of the
those theories because this analysis needed the theory of characterization which is the
way how each character’s appearance, personality, and impact within the story were
described. Characterization is also the way to identify the characters through physical
description of the character, the dialogue, the character’s actions, the character’s
thoughts, and the ways in which he or she interacts with other characters in the story.
Then, the character who is going to be characterized here is the narrator and the
theory of narrator is used to know exactly what kind of narrator presented in the short
story. Because there are many definitions of narrator and also each person has
different perception about narrator, hence, without knowing type of narrator in the
short story that the writer analyzed, it can make confusion to people who read this
thesis. Theory of schizophrenia is also needed because in the story it is told that the
narrator has schizophrenia, and by seeing that theory we can know and identify what
exactly the factors or causes of the narrator’s schizophrenia which is taken from
17
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
A. Object of the Study
“The Yellow Wallpaper” short story is written by an American
writer, Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935). It was first published in January 1892
in The New England Magazine. It was considered as an important early work of American feminist literature, and also illustrating attitudes in the nineteenth century
toward women's physical and mental health. It is also the best known for Gilman’s
short story and known as the controversial work because when the first story came
out, in the New England Magazine about 1891, a Boston physician made protest in
The Transcript that the story ought not to be written; it was enough to drive anyone mad to read. This story is also considered horror fiction.
Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” had also ever been adapted to a short film
produced by Marie Ashton in 1977. In 1989, John Clive also directed the BBC
mini-series of this short story, and directed the movie in 2008 by altering and lengthening
the storyline. Margaret Wooster had also narrated “The Yellow Wallpaper” to the
audio book. (Dock, 1998:4, shmoop.com, 2011)
The story tells about the effect of internment of the narrator's mental
condition. The yellow wallpaper pattern in her room is obsessed by the Narrator
because there is nothing to stimulate her. By obsessing the pattern, then she can see
also believes that she is one of them. In the end of the story, she locks herself in the
room and she is tearing the yellow wallpaper, trying to get the women out of the
wallpaper. When John succeeds to enter the room, he is shocked by the Narrator’s
action toward the wallpaper and he faints. Lastly, the Narrator is creeping on John
who is fainted on the floor.
B. Approach of the Study
In analyzing this work, the writer uses psychological approach because it is
well dealing with mental health found in “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story.
According to the S. M. Mohsin, in his book entitled Elementary Psychology:
Psychology is a study about the man and his environment because man should deal
with his environment which is present to him and also with his life, either something
happened in the past or which has yet to happen in future. It is also a study about the
various activities of man, both bodily and mental which he performs while he is
dealing with the environment of objects and persons. Glossary of Psychological
Terms, psychology is the scientific study of the behavior of individuals and their mental processes (Mohsin, 1988: 1,3).
However, psychological approach cannot only learn about the mental process
of individuals and their environment but this approach can also be a study of the other
elements which are related to any literary works. The psychological study of the
psychological study on the effects of literature upon its readers can also be implied by
psychological approach as stated by Rene Wellek in the book entitled Theory of Literature (1956: 81).
According to the book entitled Critical Approaches to Literature written by David Daiches, the description of the characters in any literary work can be looked at
through modern psychological knowledge. What we know about the subtitles of
human mind will be confirmed by the character’s behavior described in the story;
therefore, the work can be interpreted by the readers (1956: 348). This approach is
really useful in helping the writer so that the details and the causes of the Narrator’s
schizophrenia can be revealed.
C. Method of the Study
The writing for the methodology should be clear and direct, concise and
straight to the point. The main point here is not to stray off into unimportance, and the
process is helped by making some basic assumptions. And the specific kinds of
information that will be collected are based on the problem statement or problem
formulation. In this research, the writer does the library research.
There were some steps taken in analyzing the story. First of all, the writer
needed to read “The Yellow Wallpaper” short story, as the primary source, several
times in order to get the complete understanding of the story, especially the parts
which became the topic of the research. After that, the writer found out all of the
Second, the writer searched for the secondary sources that were needed to
identify the Narrator’s schizophrenia. The writer had to read theory books and
sources to collect all of the information which was needed for the process of the
research. The information could be got from the references book and internet sources.
The secondary sources covered review of the related studies, theory of
characterization, theory of narrator and theory of schizophrenia.
Third, the writer formulated the problems. There are three problem
formulations to be analyzed. The writer needed to examine closely the main character
or the Narrator to get to know how she is described in the short story by using theory
of characterization and theory of narrator. After that, from the first answer of problem
formulation, the Narrator’s description, the writer identified the Narrator’s
schizophrenia using the theory of narrator and theory of schizophrenia. The
symptoms happened in the Narrator and the type of the Narrator’s schizophrenia were
answered. Then, after answering the first and second problem formulations, the writer
could identify the factors that cause the narrator’s schizophrenia that related to the
theory of schizophrenia. The last was making conclusion to restate the main points
that the writer had already analyzed in her thesis. Hence, psychological approach is
appropriate in analyzing Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”
because the symptoms and the factors of the Narrator’s schizophrenia can be revealed
21
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS
In this chapter the writer answers the problem formulations of this study.
The analysis is divided into three sections. First, the analysis is focused on the
descriptions of the main character, the unnamed narrator, as presented in the text. The
writer applies the theory of characterization and also theory of narrator here. Second,
the writer identifies the Narrator’s schizophrenia. Here the writer applies the theory of
schizophrenia. In this section, the writer proves that the narrator suffers from
schizophrenia by comparing the Narrator’s descriptions with the symptoms that are
presented in the theory of schizophrenia. Third, the writer reveals the factors that
cause the Narrator’s schizophrenia by taking the idea from the first section and the
second section. In this section, the writer applies the theory of schizophrenia.
A. The Description of the Narrator in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow
Wallpaper”
A narrator is the central character when reading a literary work as
first-person point of view. The readers must have curiosity to find out the whole story
through the characters’ action as well their characteristics. The readers must try to
find out who the narrator, what kind of person she is and what happens to her,
thoughts and her life experience can lead the writer to understand what she
thinks and suffers from.
One of the literary works which presents the story using the first-person
narration is “The Yellow Wallpaper,” with Charlotte Perkins Gilman as the author.
However, the woman who is created by Gilman is anonymous and she is just known
as the Narrator. Gilman has also cleverly taken the reader into the inner-most realms
of a woman’s mind and experiences, like a reflection of her status in society. She
creates the character of the narrator in the story as the representation of what she
wants to say to the readers. The writer applies the theory of characterization and
narrator in answering the first problem formulation. The followings are Narrator’s
descriptions in general:
1. Loves Writing
The writer applies the theory of characterization and narrator to analyze the
descriptions that the author gives and what the character does. The theory of
characterization by M. H. Abrams and Geoffrey Galt Harpham explain the two ways
of presenting characterization. The first one is the author simply presents the
characters talking and acting, and leaves it entirely up to the reader to infer the
motives and dispositions that lie behind what they say and do in showing. The second
way is the author intervenes authoritatively in order to describe, and often to evaluate,
the Narrator is described as the theory said, talking to the readers because the short
story uses a first-person narration and also intervene her authorization in describing
all she feels and sees so that the readers can enter into the story. It can be seen from
the description below when she uses “you” in some her statements.
There is a recurrent spot where the pattern lolls like a broken neck and two bulbous eyes stare at you upside down. (p. 7)
This wall-paper has a kind of sub-pattern in a different shade. A particularly irritating one, for you can only see it in certain lights, and not clearly then. (p. 9)
I lie here on this great immovable bed—it is nailed down, I believe—and follow that pattern about by the hour. It is as good as gymnastics, I assure
you. (p. 10)
… I can stand it so much easier than a baby, you see. (p. 13)
It is a very bad habit I am convinced, for you see I don’t sleep. (p. 17)
And I’ll tell you why—privately—I’ve seen her! (p. 20)
The first description of the Narrator revealed in the short story is that she
loves writing. In the story, the narrator is described as a middle-class woman and she
is working as a writer. John—the Narrator’s husband—is convinced that she is
suffering from neurasthenia—a psycho-pathological term which is used to indicate a
condition with symptoms of fatigue, headache, depressed mood, anxiety, neuralgia,
and anxiety—therefore, he rent a house or it is called as a colonial mansion based on
the text for making her wife healthy again. As a writer, the Narrator is a critical
and bad qualities of somebody or something, especially when she is entering the
house.
I would say a haunted house. (p. 1)
There is something strange about the house. (p. 3)
I don’t like our room a bit. (p. 3)
Because the rented house is a colonial mansion, she can say that it is
haunted. Also, it is like she knows about the qualities of everything even though she
finds it for the first time by stating it sarcastically. It can be seen from the description
below.
There is a DELICIOUS garden! I never saw such a garden—large and shady, full of box-bordered paths, and lined with long grape-covered arbors with seats under them. (p. 3)
There were greenhouses, too, but they are all broken now. (p. 3)
There was some legal trouble, I believe, something about the heirs and coheirs; anyhow, the place has been empty for years. (p. 3)
The house rented by the Narrator’s husband is regarded as a new home for
them. However, the Narrator can directly make a perception about what she sees in
the house. The Narrator tells the readers much about the house from what she feels
and appears sudden in her thought.
It is a big airy room, the whole floor nearly, with windows that look all ways, and air and sunshine galore. It was nursery first and then playroom and gymnasium, I should judge; for the windows are barred for little children, and there are rings and things in the walls. (p. 4)
Critical usually becomes a part of a writer’s characteristics and the Narrator
when she finds something that can make her like or does not like it. However, as
mentioned before, John—the Narrator’s husband—is convinced that she is suffering
from a nervousness so the Narrator is not allowed for writing in order to recover her
health. It can be seen from the description below.
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. (p. 2)
Actually, the Narrator does not agree with her brother and her husband about
the decisions. She really loves writing and she is so excited when she is writing. This
activity can make her feeling better than she does nothing to recover her condition
like what her husband suggests. She states as the following.
Personally, I disagree with their ideas. (p. 2)
Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good. (p. 2)
Another condition revealing her love in writing is when she said that all
people around her oppose her to do writing. The reason of “recovery” and “health”
makes John very protective to her wife. He also assumes that writing can make the
Narrator’s condition worse. Everyone around her opposes her desire to write.
Therefore, the activity of writing is more difficult to do for the Narrator. It is surely
uneasy to hold anything appearing in her mind without being able to write those
things like what she states below.
The series of description that the Narrator tells to the readers about the
house’s condition, her husband and her sister-in-law, as well as the wallpaper color
when she entered in her room for the first time are written in her notes. The note here
is a place for expressing and recording her thoughts about anything she sees in the
house. Moreover, it is not about she has no paper and pen for writing, but it is
because John is really strict for not allowing her wife to write anything. It can be seen
from what she says below.
There comes John, and I must put this way,--he hates to have me write a word. (p. 5)
When John comes, she should put her notes indicating that her husband does
not like the Narrator works even though it is just writing, so does her sister in law—
John’s sister. They believe that writing is one of the activities making the Narrator
nervous. However, the Narrator precisely does not want to give up on writing, so she
does it secretly.
We have been here two weeks, and I haven’t felt like writing before, since that first day. (p. 5)
I am sitting by the window now, up in this atrocious nursery, and there is nothing to hinder my writing as much as I please, save lack of strength. (p. 5)
I must not let her find me writing. (p. 9)
But I can write when she is out, and see her a long way off from these windows. (p. 9)
A person who likes writing and storytelling will note whatever the object is
Narrator has her own acceptable reason of writing. She thinks that writing is a good
activity for her health. It becomes something like freedom that she can get from
writing. Unfortunately, her husband does not think so. He thinks that writing is an
activity that will make the Narrator’s condition worse. He does not give any
opportunity for her wife to write because he hates her to do it. Even if Jennie, the
Narrator’s sister-in-law, always keeps in her eyes on the Narrator even though her
role in the house is as a housekeeper. She also makes sure that the Narrator does not
do anything that can make her health more severe, including writing.
Because of the restriction given by John and Jennie, the Narrator does not
have any chance for writing—the only activity making her relief. Therefore, she does
not have any medium or facility for revealing her any thought and her critical
characteristic leads her to the hallucination. This thing started from the description
that she is like she can read the things interest her while actually she does not know
anything. She tries to share her mind about everything she sees there. This situation
can be found when she states that the paint and paper look as if a boys’ school ever
used it. Also, she expresses her dislike toward the color of the wallpaper. She even
says that the children hate the yellow wallpaper.
The paint and paper look as if a boys’ school had used it. It is stripped off—the paper—in great patches all around the head of my bed, about as far as I can reach, and in a great place on the other side of the room low down. I never saw a worse paper in my life. (p. 4)
No wonder the children hated it! I should hate myself if I had to live in this room long. (p. 5)
The Narrator also says that the paper gives a vicious influence. She can also
criticize that the recurrent spot of the pattern showing a strange thing. Not only
strange but the paper is also scary for her.
But I must not think about that. This paper looks to me as if it KNEW what a vicious influence it had! (p. 7)
There is a recurrent spot where the pattern lolls like a broken neck and two bulbous eyes stare at you upside down. (p. 7)
The wall-paper, as I said before, is torn off in spots, and it ticketh closer than a brother—they must have had perseverance s well as hatred. (p. 8)
She also gives a comment about the furniture. She is like knowing that the
untidy room is all because the children action before her and John stay in that house.
It can be seen from her statement below.
I never saw such ravages as the children have made here. (p. 8)
She continues to comment on the paper which is strange for her. She says
that the paper is scary enough, and even it tortures for who look at this paper. She
states it clearly like in the following.
The color is hideous enough, and unreliable enough, and infuriating enough, but the pattern is torturing. (p. 15)
Moreover, she also gives comments when John’s sister comes. Jennie, her
sister-in-law, comes to look after her, and the Narrator comments on her appearance
and profession. It is shown as below.
She is a perfect and enthusiastic housekeeper, and hopes for no better profession. (p. 9)
Just because John and also Jennie—her sister in law—also sometimes look
at the paper, she thinks and feels that both of them are queer. She thinks like that
because John often assumes that the wallpaper is just a usual wallpaper, nothing
special or strange of it, but he also sometimes looks at the paper. It is shown through
her statement below.
He seems very queer sometimes, and even Jennie has an inexplicable look. (p. 17)
Whatever interests her, she comments it directly. Giving judge or comment
is one of the ways to state what a person feels and thinks, so does the Narrator.
However, her way in giving comments to the color and even the pattern of the
wallpaper are not as usual as other people do. She only thinks that she can relieve her
mind by writing the yellow wallpaper pattern after John does not allow her to write
anything. Actually, the Narrator cannot even know the reason why she should write
those things in her notes and it can be seen from the description below.
I think sometimes that if I were only enough to write a little it would relieve the press of ideas and rest me. (p. 7)
I don’t know why I should write this. (p. 11)
Therefore, the writer concludes that the Narrator really loves writing because
of her desire for writing her critical thought. However, John hates and does not allow
Narrator feels isolated with doing nothing in her room until she has hallucination
about the wallpaper, especially towards the pattern.
2. Lonely
Here the writer also finds out the other descriptions of the Narrator, she is
lonely. There are only her, John, and Jennie in the rented house. She needs to spend
more time with John, her husband, even though she does not say it clearly. This
situation can be seen in the following statement.
John is away all day, and even some nights when his cases are serious. (p. 5)
Due to the fact that John is a physician, the Narrator is often left alone by her
husband. John is outside all day because of his job and it indirectly makes the
Narrator alone and lonely. It can be seen from the other statements below.
I cry at nothing, and cry most of the time.
Of course I don’t when John is here, or anybody else, but when I am alone. (p. 10)
And I am alone a good deal just now. John is kept in town very often by serious cases, and Jennie is good and lets me alone when I want her to. (p. 10)
So I walk a little in the garden or down that lovely lane, sit on the porch under the roses, and lie down up here a good deal. (p. 10)
Actually, she needs a friend who can understand her feelings about the
recovery. In this case, the writer sees that the Narrator really needs her husband to be
John really loves her by doing those things. However, she still needs more attention
from John. Even when John is home, they cannot talk to each other as often as the
couple in the marriage should be. Besides, she also needs to meet her relatives, but
John insists her to stay at home until she gets better. It is shown by the description in
the following.
Dear John! He loves me very dearly, and hates to have me sick. I tried to have a real earnest reasonable to talk with him the other day, and tell him how I wish he would let me go and make a visit to Cousin Henry and Julia. (p. 12)
But he said I wasn’t able to go, nor able to stand it after I got there; and I did not make out a very good case for myself, for I was crying before I had finished. (p. 12)
She needs to be understood by John. She feels lonely because there is no one
who can understand what she needs and wants at that time. Through a lot of affection
given by John to her, this does not mean John understands the Narrator’s feelings. It
is hard for talking to John about her case—her feelings and conditions after staying at
this home—because according to the Narrator, John is too wise and he loves her. It
can be seen from the statement below.
It is so hard to talk with John about my case, because he is so wise, and he loves me so. (p. 13)
She needs a person to understand her, and it should be her husband, John.
This should be John because he is the Narrator’s husband who should spend more
time to talk to her wife and look after her as often as possible. Because of the lack of
time for the Narrator and her husband can communicate each other, added by she is
husband, she has nothing to do in the house. As mentioned before in the previous
description that the Narrator is also not allowed for writing, which is her favorite
activity making her mind relief. Those things make the Narrator can only stay at
home without any activities can be done, and the only thing she can do is just staying
at home, especially in her room with the wallpaper.
Due to the fact that she can do nothing under her husband’s and her
sister-in-law’s monitoring over her, all of her attention is to the wallpaper’s pattern in her
room. Here the writer can see that the Narrator becomes a curious woman as well.
She likes all about the yellow wallpaper in her room even though she ever says that
she hates it. The writer finds that fact because she really wants to know more about
the paper and only the paper, as she states in the following.
But I don’t mind it a bit—only the paper. (p. 8)
She also states that she is getting fond of the room and again, she says that it
is because the wallpaper which makes her curious. Her focus is to find out about the
paper. It can be seen from the statement below.
I’m getting really fond of the room in spite of the wall-paper. Perhaps BECAUSE of the wall-paper. (p. 10)
Her curiosity is getting bigger and it is also showed when she decides to
follow the pattern of the paper. She tries to reveal it because she believes that the
wallpaper has something that can change, something is like delusions. The paper is
interest her a lot, so she does not want to miss the paper. It is shown through the
I start, we’ll say, at the bottom, down in the corner over there where it has not been touched, and I determine for the thousandth time that I WILL follow that pointless pattern to some sort of a conclusion. (p. 10)
The Narrator is curious with the wallpaper and she follows its pattern until
she is tired. When she has a full energy, she focuses on the paper every day, even
every time. She really follows the pattern’s development. It can be seen from the
statement below.
It makes me tired to follow it. I will take a nap I guess. (p. 11)
Behind that outside pattern the dim shapes get clearer every day. (p. 13)
When it is night and John is asleep while the Narrator is not, she decides to
follow the pattern again. If she does not have a big curiosity and if she knows that the
pattern makes her tired, so she must decide to sleep, too. However, she still wants to
know more about the paper as shown in the following statement.
He thought I was asleep first, but I wasn’t, and lay there for hours trying to decide whether that front pattern and the back pattern really did move together or separately. (p. 15)
Her curiosity continues and she never gives up in following the wallpaper,
especially to its pattern. When she realizes that it is just a week more she stays there,
she is more excited toward the paper. She states it like in the following.
I don’t want to leave now until I have found it out. There is a week more, and I think that will be enough. (p. 18)
Therefore, from the statements and descriptions showed above, the writer is
B. The Identification of the Narrator’s Schizophrenia in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”
As explained before, in this part the writer identifies the Narrator’s
schizophrenia. Through analyzing some descriptions about the Narrator, the writer is
able to identify the Narrator’s schizophrenia. By seeing and analyzing deeply the
descriptions, the writer finds that those have close connection to the symptoms of
schizophrenia. Here are the symptoms found through the descriptions of the Narrator.
1. Hallucination
From the first part of analysis, the writer has found that the Narrator is
described as a person who loves writing and she works as a writer. In this part, the
writer matches the description of the Narrator as a person who loves writing with the
symptoms of schizophrenia because this is considered as a clue to prove that the
Narrator really suffers from schizophrenia. As explained before that the Narrator likes
writing anything interesting her and she is also critical towards anything she sees in
the rented house. Unfortunately, she is not allowed to do writing activity by her
husband, John, because he thinks that writing can make the Narrator’s condition
worse. Therefore, she can only do nothing in her room and restrain anything
appearing in her mind without being able to write them in order to relieve her mind.
Here one of the symptoms of schizophrenia, hallucination, can be detected.
According to the theory of schizophrenia from Birchwood and Chris Jackson
is one of the symptoms of schizophrenia. The hallucination is a condition when the
patient often has false perception of pictures, noises or voices that she sees or hears.
After that, the patient must give comments on her thoughts of the pictures, noises or
voices. It is like these sounds disturb her mind so she comments on them.
When the Narrator has no activity and does nothing in her room, all of her
attentions become focuses on the yellow wallpaper pattern. Her reaction and
comments towards the wallpaper pattern are different from the other common people.
Common people may give comments or they can write their opinions about good or
bad about pictures or sounds that they hear, for example “This painting is beautiful,”
“The color is nice,” or “The wallpaper is too bad.” However, for the schizophrenia
sufferers, they can be critical towards many things which are considered usual for
common people but unusual for them. Common people will comment on the outside
things which are interesting for them, different from the schizophrenia sufferers that
will comment not only on outside but also inside the things. It can be seen on the
description in the story that the Narrator is having hallucination during her recovery.
As mentioned before, the house rented by the Narrator’s husband is regarded
as a new home for them. From the beginning, the writer can find that the Narrator is
critical when she makes a perception about what she sees in the house. The Narrator
tells the readers much about the house from what she feels and appears sudden in her
thought. The following is the Narrator’s comment toward her room.
and gymnasium, I should judge; for the windows are barred for little children, and there are rings and things in the walls. (p. 4)
It is also like she can read the things interesting her while actually she does
not know anything. She tries to share everything comes up in her mind. This situation
can be found when she states that the paint and paper look as if a boys’ school ever
used it. Also, she expresses her dislike toward the color of the wallpaper. She even
says that the children hate the yellow wallpaper. She is not paranormal, she is an
ordinary woman, but she can have such thought that will not appear in other people’s
minds.
The paint and paper look as if a boys’ school had used it. It is stripped off—the paper—in great patches all around the head of my bed, about as far as I can reach, and in a great place on the other side of the room low down. I never saw a worse paper in my life. (p. 4)
The color is repellent, almost revolting; a smouldering unclean yellow, strangely faded by the slow-turning sunlight. (p. 4)
No wonder the children hated it! I should hate myself if I had to live in this room long. (p. 5)
The series of description that the Narrator tells to the readers about the
house’s condition, her husband and her sister-in-law, as well as the wallpaper color
and its progress when she entered in her room for the first time, all is written in her
notes. The note here is a place for recording her thoughts about anything she sees in
the house. She likes writing but she is not allowed to do it. It becomes a pressure for
her because she cannot relieve everything appearing in her mind and this condition
The Narrator begins to feel that the wallpaper can give a vicious influence to
her. She also criticize that the recurrent spot of the pattern showing a strange thing.
The wallpaper is not only strange but also scary for her.
But I must not think about that. This paper looks to me as if it KNEW what a vicious influence it had! (p. 7)
There is a recurrent spot where the pattern lolls like a broken neck and two bulbous eyes stare at you upside down. (p. 7)
I never saw so much expression in an animate thing before, and we all know how much expression they have! (p. 8)
The wall-paper, as I said before, is torn off in spots, and it ticketh closer than a brother—they must have had perseverance s well as hatred. (p. 8)
Up to this part, the writer can conclude that she has hallucinations, especially
when she sees the wallpaper pattern having recurrent spot shaping the broken neck
and also the bulbous eyes staring at her. When her husband is not with her, even
Jennie, her sister-in-law, she can write anything secretly. However, the writer finds
out the unacceptable reason why she should write the pattern of the yellow wallpaper
which is actually unimportant thing to write. It is only a wallpaper and it also has
pattern. Moreover, she also does not know why she should write those things. It can
be seen from the description below.
I don’t know why I should write this. (p. 11)
Her hallucination continues until she feels that the wallpaper has a torturing
effect which is strange for her. She says that the paper is scary enough, and even it
The color is hideous enough, and unreliable enough, and infuriating enough, but the pattern is torturing. (p. 15)
The Narrator uses some special dictions in criticizing and writing about the
wallpaper, especially the pattern, such as vicious, repellent, revolting, lolls, crawl,
and so on. By analyzing her dictions, the writer concludes that the Narrator always
assumes that the wallpaper pattern is alive. She also states that she can see much
expression in the wallpaper pattern which is an animate thing proving that she has
hallucinations in the wallpaper.
2. Delusions
The same theory and book as the first point explained before, Clinical Psychology: A Modular Course Schizophrenia by Birchwood and Chris Jackson, also explains another symptom of schizophrenia, delusions symptoms. Delusions is the
condition when the patient can have false personal beliefs about the world that can
take many different forms like delusions of reference, persecutory, grandiose, and so
on. Reference delusion is when the patient has strongly held belief to the random
events, objects, behaviors of others, etc. and it has a particular and unusual
significance to oneself. Persecutory is when the patient has false beliefs that others
have a plan to harm his or her. Grandiose is when the patient may think that he or she
