a yellowing (my tribute to charlotte perkins gilman)

do you hear the echoes of bliss'd past betwixt the beats of this hysterical heart?

the shadow of self that reflects in this mirror, yellow now, always yellow!

this room, this cell, this well kempt prison, the pattern'd walls that now start

 

to close in, that morph into me, my shape, my suppos'd form!  i, once more mellow;

my physician husband lov'd, loves more than the current self become?

i can see it now, clearer than once before, each day, hour, minute, with e'ery second

 

pass'd i pass into, o'er, across, transform'd more into this yellow'd color. some-

times i feel the textur'd grip of it upon my own skin.  i reckon

i am this peeling paper tearing from these walls, this yellow shell

 

being ripp'd away at, e'ery day becoming something else, something more

than what my self was before, before being confin'd unto this yellow hell.

the woman once lov'd by my husband  is no more, only me now, yellow'd to the core!

Author's Note

written for "from an image born group"
thought the walls inside looked yellow and claustrophobic, so went for "the yellow wallpaper" theme :) if you haven't read the story, it's a great and short read (6000 words or so), here's a link: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1952/1952-h/1952-h.htm

Reviews

[Chloe..Across the Unive..]

Wonderful poem j.r. and fitting well with this image.
I have read the story also..
This is a nice look into your mind .. I never liked the color yellow so much but your poem i love.

Chloe

[Sara]

ooh, awesome write! though i read the story AGES ago for a psych class, i remember liking it very much (but, then again, how could i hate feminist literature lol)... anyways, this is a very cool retelling! ... this may be because i'm already somewhat familiar with the plot, but i think the transition from story to poetry was very natural here... overall, i think this poem works really well -- i think you've captured the thrust of the story, the twilight-zone horror of it really vividly and really *quickly* as a poem -- like you've cut straight to the good part, giving the climax the attention it deserves... (and i think even from an outsider's point-of-view -- from somebody who's never read the story before -- this poem would still contain a lot of its power. even though they might be somewhat confused as to what you're talking about, they could probably still sense the growing hysteria and emotion behind your words)... and as for the language of the poem itself, it's definitely written with your usual finesse and elegance -- hey, you make this poor woman's madness sound good! that's no easy task... :D

[Ruth]

Wow, yep, that hit the spot love! lol
Awesome poem for the image!
Your scanning and structure are perfection here!
Excellent j.r. :)
xx