The Yellow Wallpaper

What is that "smooch" on the wall?

At one point, the narrator describes "a streak that runs around the room [...] as if it had been rubbed over and over." What is this and where does it come from?

I have one theory that the narrator has been making this herself, by creeping around the room, but she has forgotten it.

Asked by
Last updated by jill d #170087
Answers 1
Add Yours

Yes, the "smooch" is made by the narrator, as she crawls around the room on all fours. It is widely agreed that the narrator in marking her territory in order to ward off patriarchal oppression.... and that it represents sexual repression.

Source(s)

American Literary Realism Vol. 40, No. 1 (Fall, 2007), pp. 16-31

GradeSaver will pay $15 for your literature essays
GradeSaver will pay $25 for your college application essays
GradeSaver will pay $50 for your graduate school essays – Law, Business, or Medical
GradeSaver will pay $10 for your Community Note contributions
GradeSaver will pay $500 for your Textbook Answer contributions