Sweat and The Yellow Paper - Comparison and Contrast

Thesis Statement

A comparative character analysis of Sweat and The Yellow Wallpaper reveals that both the stories revolve around the central theme of feminist liberalism, which was an important characteristic of the progressive era.

The novel Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston was published in 1926 and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman was published in 1892. Both the pieces of literature belong to the progressive era, and evolve around the theme of feminism, which was a prominent trait of that era. Both the novels are propagating the idea that the then prevalent social image of women as being submissive and having no authority in the family affects their self-esteem and actions. Both the authors have displayed a notable affect from the expected societal image of married women, which they also challenge in their writings for the purpose of surviving and rising above the adversities in their lives.

The character Delia was portrayed as a washwoman in Sweat. She was the breadwinner and had to provide for her family. Majority of the women belonging to the progressive era used to either stay back home or assist their husbands in earning. But Delia was the only provider for her family, and to top that, her husband carelessly used to spend his wife's earning. She had a hard job that consumed most of her energy and time. To ease her work load, after returning from church on Sunday she soaked the soiled clothes that she had picked up the previous day. Delia went against the social norms, according to which, the Sabbath do not work on a Sunday. Her husband Sykes criticized her for this. He shouted on to her that “criticized her for this. He shouted on to her that “You ain't nothing but a hypocrite. One ...