Gothic writing and social commentary

I found it interesting that women in the 19^th century used gothic writing to convey women’s issues. The first time I read “The Yellow Wallpaper” I thought it was really creepy and provided commentary on mental illness, but I overlooked the undertones of women’s rights and roles in society. The metaphor of a woman’s place in society to the way one perceives either the china cabinet in “The Little Room” came across as more obvious. It seemed that women who were more liberated, like Rita, or young girls saw possibility in life and the little room while women who had accepted their domestic role saw only a shallow cabinet. “The Little Room” didn’t seem like much of a ghost story to me, but the aunts were definitely a little creepy. I appreciate that the authors represented their upset with women’s rights by writing in a genre meant to inspire fear and anxiety in the reader.