This is the statement that the main protagonist of the short story utters as she reflects on her current situation—her illness and the methods that her husband uses in order to “cure” her. This is more of a declaration of her condition under her husband rather than a question. It shows the role of women in married life. The unnamed narrator is powerless against the will of her husband. Her husband John is the one that decides what to do with her. For instance, he chose the place where she is supposed to be cured, and he also chose the method of how she is to be cured, which turns out to have aggravated her illness rather than cure it.
“…and I determine for the thousandth time that I will follow that pointless pattern to some sort of a conclusion. ” (Gilman 4) This is what the narrator does numerous times in the short story in her attempt to figure out the pattern that she perceives to be forming in the yellow wallpaper of her room. Although on the surface it appears to be a mere line in the short story, it is actually very symbolical in relation to one of the short story’s themes, which is the ineffectiveness of restraining activity as a means for curing mental illness.
In the short story, John did not want for his wife to do the activities she liked doing, especially writing because he thought that it was not good for her. Instead, he wanted her to remain inactive and not dwell on her feelings. For the narrator, it is pointless because what John was doing is not helping her at all; in fact, his advice was making her illness worse.
Work Cited Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper. ” The College of Staten Island/CUNY. 1 Dec. 2004. 13 Apr. 2009 <http://www. library. csi. cuny. edu/dept/history/lavender/yellowwallpaper. pdf>.