Womens historical responsibilities in society and in literature are often described in a position of submission. Women were commonly repressed and controlled by their husbands and other male figures. As Kathleen Wilson points out, the financial and public dependence of women on men was a common relationship during the time Gilman wrote this story. The narrator is going through a challenging time in her life, and she is seeking a method of solace. Instead, her husband proceeded by forbidding his wife from doing any work to the point of alienating her from her baby. Greg Johnson notes the narrators husband is portrayed as a powerful repressive male antagonist, and he enforces his will and power upon her. The everyday world of masculine order and domestic routine subjects the narrator to find comfort in an imaginative world. Linda Wagner-Martin cited that women who grew up in the 9th century wrestled with the status of being the family while maintaining lucidity. Eventually, the narrator chooses a life of madness
over repression, refusing a life of unhappy silence. Her performance can be seen as a manifestation derived from long-suppressed anger, an anger that ultimately leads to a mental breakdown.
A clear example of a womens role is demonstrated through the narrators sister-in-law Jennie. She is portrayed as a pure and avid housekeeper. Johnson states, during this time in history women were viewed as useful in the state of managing the house and the children. Jennie agrees with these thoughts and beliefs and followed these guidelines completely. Likewise, when the narrator is unable to care for her newborn child, Jennie without hesitation steps. Jennie is accepting of the rigid classified and imaginative pure repression of women. Similarly, Jennie agrees with the idea that mentally stimulating activities such as writing have the potential to aggravate a womens health. Therefore, the acceptance of womenΒs weakness is evident, while reinforcing the belief that men are more powerful and controlling than the opposite sex.