Early Stream of Consciousness and Feminism in Fiction — Quiz
Question 8 • Language Arts 11
Read the excerpt from "The Yellow Wallpaper." If a physician of high standing, and one’s own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression—a slight hysterical tendency—what is one to do? My brother is also a physician, and also of high standing, and he says the same thing. 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. What does the narrator’s description reveal about the social context of the story?
Answer
A
Wives were considered to be less fragile than husbands.
B
Women were able to make their own decisions about working.
C
Husbands were reluctant to take doctors’ advice.
D
Doctors were believed to be unquestionably all-knowing.
Explanation
The narrator emphasizes that both her husband and brother are physicians of “high standing,” and their opinions determine how others view her condition. This suggests that doctors were treated as unquestionable authorities. The passage also shows that the narrator is forbidden to work, so it does not suggest women had full control over that decision.
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