A FEMINIST ANALYSIS OF VIRGINIA

MORENO’S THE ORDER FOR

MASKS, CHARLOTTE PERKINS
GILMAN’S THE YELLOW
WALLPAPER AND NINOTCHKA
ROSCA’S GENERATIONS

Submitted by:
Lester Jay V. Ollero
2015-14450
 A FEMINIST ANALYSIS OF VIRGINIA MORENO’S THE ORDER FOR

MASKS, CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S THE YELLOW WALLPAPER AND

NINOTCHKA ROSCA’S GENERATIONS

I. Gender Stereotypes

II. Breaking Down Gender Roles: The Importance of Feminism

III. ORDER FOR MASKS by Virginia Moreno

Different Faces: Different Roles

IV. THE YELLOW WALLPAPER by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The Woman Behind Bars

V. GENERATIONS by Ninotchka Rosca

Dethroning Males in the Pedestal

VI. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Theme

Symbolism

VII. References

2|Page
Gender Stereotypes

A gender stereotype is a generalised view or preconception about attributes or

characteristics, or the roles that are or ought to be possessed by, or performed by women and

men according to Office of the High Commissioner of United Nations Human Rights.

Gender Roles determine how men and women should dress, think, act, speak and interact

within the context of society. Every society has gender role expectations. One may vary from

another group. It can also change in a particular ethnic group or culture throughout time.

Our society set the standards about how and what we expect of men and women to dress,

groom, act, speaks, and present themselves to the people surrounding them. For examples, men

are generally expected to be dominant, strong, bold and aggressive while women on the other

hand are generally expected to groom themselves in feminine ways and act in modest way.

Stereotypes about one‟s gender may results to unfair and unjust treatment. In terms of

physical appearance, for example, men are expected to be tall and muscular having short

hairstyles. Women are expected to be thin and modest wearing make-up. In domestic behaviors,

it is expected that men should take care of the financial responsibilities of the family while

women are expected to take care of the kids, clean the house, cook and do other household

chores. Men and women differ in personal traits. Men are expected to be brave and have self-

confidence while women are often expected to be emotional in many ways. In the work force,

women are much likely to be discriminated against. The work like nurses, teachers, social

workers are for women only while engineers, pilots, and other works that requires a great manual

skill are only suited for men.

3|Page
Breaking Down Gender Roles: The Importance of Feminism

Numerous socializing agents such as parents, teachers, media, books and religion

emphasize and teach these gender roles. On young ages, the greatest influence was at home.

Parents probably inculcated these gender roles throughout the upbringing of their child.

Gender is constructed in a way that intentionally demoralizes or undermines the status of

females in the society. The word „feminism‟ connotes different interpretations. One may say that

feminism means hating men in the society and hence, wanting women to rule the world.

Feminism is “the belief that men and women should have the equal rights and opportunities”. It

further suggests that neither of the two genders is better than the other, every individual should

be equal on all aspects. Feminism is not a gender issue but a humanity issue. Then, if feminism is

about gaining equalities for every individual, why does it called „feminism‟ and not „humanism‟?

This is due to the fact that women are facing inequalities with respect to men.

Feminism plays an important role in breaking down gender roles. Feminism is a positive

movement that brings positive social change to the society. Feminism was born because of the

urgent need of equality. One‟s gender should not be grounds for determining or defining their

ability to work.

Feminism is not just about women seeking equality. Feminism incorporates battling for

the elimination of social standards as well as expectations about what men are supposed to be.

Feminism believes each individual should be viewed and treated based on their own capabilities

as human entity and not with their capabilities assumed of their respective gender. It works to

nurture a society that does not associate actions and distinctions with any gender, race, and

religion.

4|Page
ORDER FOR MASKS by Virginia Moreno

Different Faces: Different Roles

A mask is an ancient form of disguise, hiding facial expressions. In modern day, the mask

is generally known to be a symbol of ego concealment. Masks cover the face in order to hide the

true emotions and personality of the wearer. Its main purpose is to perform acts that are totally

different from their real identity.

Virginia Moreno‟s Order for Masks is a depiction of a woman as someone who does her

best to satisfy and fulfill the unending needs and wants of men surrounding her. The dramatic

situation of the poem is that the woman is asking for a mask, not just one but three. These three

masks are vital in her since she needs it to portray three different roles. The roles are as follows:

being a sister, a daughter and a lover or wife.

The first mask is a woman towards her brother, which means a sister. This mask signifies

her actions towards his brother. She tries to differentiate herself from her brother. This is

supported by lines 8 and 9 of the poem “When my Brother comes” and “make me one opposite”.

She wants to be unlike his brother in all possible ways. The following lines of the poem suggest

a further explanation of the comparison and contrast between her and his brother:

10 If he is a devil, a saint

11 With a staff to his fork

12 And for his horns, a crown

13 I hope for my contrast

14 To make nil

5|Page
The 10th line of the poem stresses that if her brother is a devil, she is a saint, this is due to the fact

that most of brothers are seen as a carbon copy of their dads‟, hence, a strict parent. The sisters

usually become the witness of their rude attitude and manipulative behaviour when the parents

are out of the house. And sometimes, if a brother commits an accident in home like breaking of

plates or windows, the parents will never believe what the sister told them to since the brother

acts like “all-too-perfect” in front of the parents. He is an angel with hidden huge horns on his

head. The woman wearing the mask as a sister wants to be different from his brother that‟s why

she does things that are totally different from her brother. She wants to make sure that she is not

masculine enough unlike his brother, because that is what men like, to make them feel secure

with their masculinity.

The next mask is a woman towards her father, a daughter. Most of the time, a father want

his baby to be a boy since the boy is like a carbon copy of him. If your child is a male and he

might become the next President or billionaire, who knows, with a lot of women to choose from.

To some women, it is more attractive to them if a man is from a high social status. A father

would prefer having sons than daughters. Hence, she wants to portray the role of being a

daughter. A daughter that makes her father becomes proud of her. She wants to show to her

father that she is type of a woman who is pure, innocent and chaste, meeting the expectations set

by his father, making him believe that she is perfect or an ideal daughter to him. The third stanza

of the poem presents the two allusions “Philomela before she was raped” and “blind Lear”. This

refers to Philomela, who is a mythological figure, an Athenian princess who was accompanied

by Tereus. Then, she was raped on the voyage to Thrace. The term “before she was raped”

further explains the woman‟s chastity and innocence. The second allusion “blind Lear” pertains

to King Lear on Shakespeare‟s novel. King Lear underestimated his daughters which then led

6|Page
him to his fall. The term “blind” explains that the woman is hiding something to his father that

would not let him notice, and this is by pretending that she is a daughter of his knowledge and

expectations.

The last mask is a woman towards her lover, a wife. She acts in accordance to his

partner‟s will and needs. She projects herself as someone who does her best to satisfy his

partner‟s lustful needs. Line 34 “Under his grasping hands” explains that the woman wants to

make her lover believe that he is dominant who has in control of her. She desires her lover to

think that he is still manipulating her and that she is nothing without him. But the truth is, she is

the one who is in control of the situation. She controls her lover by wearing that mask that makes

him believe that she is the woman he wanted her to be. In the next few lines of the poem, the

appearance of the word “it” gives a different meaning to the poem. The word “it” conceivably

pertains to the face hiding behind that mask. Line 39 “Make it stone to his suave touch” clarifies

that the woman is still deceiving the lover without even knowing it. Line 40 “This magician will

walk me out” and line 41 “Newly loved” describes that the real face is uncompromising to the

lover‟s imprudence. The used of allusion to the lover which referred to us as magician gives a

different interpretation to the poem. We all knew that a magician is the one who entertains

people by using his magic tricks. In other words, the magician deceives people. The phrase

“walk me out” suggests that the lover or seducer will accompany his wife. The term newly loved

means that the lover will be on the side of the woman neglecting her identity from the past. The

last line of the poem “make me three masks” offers the impression that the woman is really

desperate in having those masks in order to save her dignity and reputation.

7|Page
THE YELLOW WALLPAPER by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The Woman Behind Bars

In 1887, Charlotte Perkins Gilman suffers from depression and fatigue. She went to see a

notable physician Silas Weir Mitchell. Mitchell diagnosed her with “neurasthenia”. She was then

prescribed to have a “rest cure” which worsens her condition. Gilman moved to California and

wrote “The Yellow Wallpaper” which is a version of her own experiences when she was

diagnosed.

The Yellow Wallpaper is a story about an anonymous woman who is married to a man

named John. It is clearly presented that the male character has a name given while the female

don‟t have. This is due to the fact that within their marriage or within the society in general, the

woman‟s name is unimportant telling that her existence is insignificant. The woman is suffering

from “postpartum depression”, a mental disorder associated with childbirth. Her doctors believe

that she has a “slightly hysterical tendency” which means that she has no control over of her

emotions and may act differently. John does not take her illness seriously and prescribes her to

undergo a “rest cure” wherein she was not allowed to do anything, literally nothing.

The Narrator feels that there is something strange about their house. She once attempts to

express her feelings to her husband but John refuses to acknowledge her emotions regarding the

choice he made. In this case, the gender oppression was ruling the woman‟s life. It is now a

critique of how things worked among genders and the way things worked for women who were

restricted.

The woman finds something peculiar on a moonlit evening . Night is regarded as some

sort of an escape from the sensible order of the daytime. Furthermore, the moon symbolizes the

8|Page
female compassion or sensitivity. During daytime, the sun is dominant over the moon. The rays

of the sun or sunshine dominate during the day. Hence, the sun can be regarded as the masculine

oppression. This domination is similar to John‟s situation as he dominates the decision over her

wife by giving her a “schedule prescription for each our in the day”. In addition to that, sunshine

is also associated with the yellow wallpaper. The yellow paper as describe by the narrator as

“faded by the slow-turning sunlight” and “sickly sulphur tint” gives us an impression associated

with sickness.

What irritates more the narrator is the presence of the yellow wallpaper. She already

attempts to tell to his husband to remove the wallpaper but John dismisses her right away. The

woman is grateful that their nanny named Mary is able to replace her in taking care of their child.

Because of her illness, she can‟t fulfil her duty as a wife and a mother. Mary is an allusion to the

Virgin Mary, who is an ideal mother. John seems doesn‟t act as a husband to his wife. Instead he

is like a strict father dictating one‟s decision. John continues to infantilize his wife and this is

supported by the phrase “blessed little goose”. The narrator is treated like a child, full of

innocence; hence, she‟s not allowed to make decisions on her own as she doesn‟t have the

enough capability to think right.

The narrator then becomes preoccupied with the yellow wallpaper, by its color and

pattern. Details of the wallpaper are growing clearer each day. The narrator describes the bars as

windows of the nursery protecting the children from falling out. The bars that appear in the

wallpaper are a representation of the connection between the narrator‟s life and the society. That

she was trapped inside. The woman behind the wallpaper is imprisoned in bars. And in the same

way, the narrator is imprisoned as well. The woman behind bars symbolizes the “oppression of

9|Page
female domestication”. On the late 19-th century, women were expected only to perform

housework and restricted from going out freely as what John does all the time.

The narrator then believe that there is a woman “stooping down and creeping around” in

the wallpaper. She is possessed with the swirling pattern. She once said “there are things in that

paper that nobody knows but me”. The narrator calls it as “paper” and not “wallpaper”. It further

suggests that the yellow wallpaper has purposes similar to the paper, the paper on which she

writes her feelings secretly. The wallpaper is somewhat becoming her new form of literary text

in which she can explore and grow deep meaning.

Out of fear, the narrator feels that as if everyone is trying to figure out the meaning

behind the wallpaper especially when she saw Jennie touching the yellow wallpaper. The

narrator‟s sense of reality has become completely distorted. She asserts that there is something to

be found out in that wallpaper. Trying to peel off the wallpaper is just like uncovering the deeper

meaning behind the yellow wallpaper. She strongly believes that the woman on the wallpaper

should be free and so as she. The symbolic meaning lies here, that the narrator and the woman

should free themselves from the masculine oppression by tearing out completely that

domesticated prison of the wallpaper. Jennie, the representation of what ideal domesticity is and

John being her husband has contributed to her imprisonment. She realizes that she was wrong

when she allowed John, Jennie and the social expectations as well to dominate her. The

multitudes of women creeping out have now broken free. The narrator describes the removal of

the yellow wallpaper as “work”, a job that needs to be done. In order to tear out completely the

wallpaper, the narrator uses a masculine movement into the dominion of domestic domain. She

uses this job to fully destroy the oppressive wallpaper. Gilman leaves the impression that the

10 | P a g e
only way for women to overcome the domination of a paternalistic society is by assuming the

roles of men in the domestic sphere.

In the end, John‟s fainting is a symbol of being feminine, stereotypically showing an act

of weakness. The narrator finally conquers the domination and authoritative position. Her

continuous “creeping” still suggests that even if the yellow wallpaper has already destroyed, the

mental illness is still there.

GENERATIONS by Ninotchka Rosca

Dethroning Males in the Pedestal

Ninotchka Rosca‟s Generations is a story that is very tragic and dark. Rosca focused on

the theme of abusive side of the Government, the togetherness of a typical Filipino family and

the empowerment of the women in the society.

The mentioning of the “harvest” suggests that the setting of the story took place in a

farmland. In provinces, farmland exists, hence, may be the story is situated in provinces. The

“bird claw hands” signifies hard work, hardwork from farming. The mumbling of Old Selo

shows that the family is in the state of poorness. The father was a drunkard and he constantly

abuses her wife. The grandfather was always left mumbling. The kids endure the misery of their

lives. The girl is described as a beautiful being that could have been an actress if only she was

able to apply well her God-given resources.

The author seems write the story in order to describe of how families lived in martial law.

And this was supported by the clear identification of the character of Old Selo. Old Selo was

derived from the Rizal‟s work “El Filibusterismo”. Tandang Selo is the father of Kabesang Tales

who manages their own farm and her granddaughter was Juli who was soon sacrificed herself to

11 | P a g e
free her father. In the political context of the story, the elderly during the days of the Martial Law

are somehow not considered as threat to the government. Old Selo was described as mumbling in

the corner. Mumbling is a peculiar act that is usually used in order to calm oneself to the misery

of one‟s life.

Rosca presents the conflict between the peasants and those with the authority. Those with

the authority are the ones who have the resources to be there in a pedestal position while

peasants refers to the lower rank class individuals who is unprivileged of everything. In the scene

where the landlord declares to the kids that their father still owes 10 more sacks of rice shows the

harsh reality. Another scene is that when the drunkard father is arrested for the grounds of

violating the curfew hours. The father just want to leave a message that he is right, that getting

drunk anytime you want is okay because every individual has freedom. But he fails at this point.

This is simply because not all human rights are acceptable to every individual at any time.

The scene where the grandmother find a way to save his husband represents the theme of

women empowerment. The mother was the submissive type of women. She even don‟t know

how to defend herself against her abusive husband. This battered wife scene shows the status quo

in the society. Women are just born to be “stress machines”. They are the one who suffers the

consequences of the frustrations of men. In short, women are the “punching bag” of men. To

prevent her husband from being arrested by the guards, she dictated her children to catch their

father up. Rather than allowing her husband to get arrested, she still shows compassion. This is

the sad reality that most of women these days couldn‟t bear to leave their husband for some

reason. The mother is afraid to fight back his drunkard husband because of fear. She is afraid of

the fact that her husband will become more violent if she tries to leave him, fear that they will

12 | P a g e
lose their children, fear that she cannot make it on her own. She believes that the abuse is her

fault; she always thinks that she can stop the abuse if she just acts differently.

The daughter was a bit gutsier than her mother. And disregarding the order of birth as

grounds of leadership, the mother taught her daughter more of the responsibility. The mother

sees her daughter as more capable and relatively qualified to perform tasks as compared to the

boys. The issue of gender inequalities lies. Generations is literally showing that women can do

what men can do, that women should be given equal opportunities. Women should be treated

equally as to men. Passing the responsibility to the daughter means that women can carry the

responsibilities. They can fulfil their tasks equal or better than men. Women can accomplish

responsibilities with more reliability. Even if the daughter was seen as a bit stronger than her

mother, we can‟t hide the fact that she still ended up being a victim to lascivious men. She

sacrifices herself just to fulfil her duty, her responsibility of bringing her father home. After the

father was freed from the guards, he probably knew that his daughter sacrificed herself for the

sake of him. In fact, she saw a bruise on her left thigh which means that the girl was raped or

maybe an untoward incident happened to his daughter. Rather than be furious with what he saw,

he pretended not to notice the bruise. The father wasn‟t a good father after all. He doesn‟t even

show a little bit of concern.

There is some sort of role reversal as the story continues. From the start of the story, it

was seen that the power was held by males, that they are the one who‟s in control of the

situation. As the story puts to its end, the power transfers to the females. The daughter had the

final decision in the end and killed his father. Given the things the daughter had gone through; no

wonder that she had the guts to do such an act. She decided to put an end to things which

demonstrates the winning future of the women in the society, dethroning males in the pedestal.

13 | P a g e
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Theme

One thing that is similar to the three texts is that the main focus of the story is about the

female character, on how women act in accordance to the men surrounding them as well as the

social expectations that warped them. In the “Order of Masks”, the woman basically acts in

accordance with what men in her life want her to be. She shapes her behaviour in such a way that

she fulfils the needs and wants of the different man in her life. In this case, it degrades or lowers

the societal status of the woman since it diminishes or reduces her whole being. The woman

compared herself to a harlequinade which symbolizes the speaker‟s pretentious act. She merely

becomes a mere instrument of men as if the world was only made for men and not for women.

“Yellow Wallpaper” tackles the urge of a woman to become free. Free from societal

expectations, gender oppression, and to free from domestic imprisonment. In the “Order of

Masks” , the woman is trying to please and manipulate the men surrounding her, while in the

“Yellow Wallpaper”, the woman is trying to overcome her illness and trying to win freedom.

“Yellow Wallpaper” is a story to critique the ways in which things worked among gender

differences and which the lives of the women were restricted. It gives us the impression that

sometimes marriage and domestic life doesn‟t seem so fulfilling and satisfying for women.

Lastly, the concept of women empowerment was portrayed on “Generations”. There is a scene

wherein the massacre took place because of the possession of the tattoos of the peasants. Tattoos

are supposed to be the medium for the sentiments and thoughts of the person wearing it. The

grandmother was the one who finds a way to save his husband from killing. It shows the theme

of empowerment of the women in the society. The act of the daughter towards her father at the

end of story is an act of overthrowing the males in the society.

14 | P a g e
 Symbolism

Masks hide one‟s true identity since the real face is covered. Mask symbolizes protection.

Protection of one‟s identity, dignity and reputation. In the Order for Masks, the woman uses

different masks in order to satisfy or comply with the needs and wants of the men surrounding

her. Masks are also used to conceal her true feelings in a discriminatory society. In a prejudiced

society, one must act in accordance to the societal expectations so that he/she might not be

embarrassed and judged her reputation as a human being. This is the reason why the persona of

the poem chooses to wear mask. Billiken was a charm doll made by Florence Pretz of Kansas

City, Missouri, an American art teacher and illustrator. Billiken according to Pretz brings luck. It

was like some sort of “good-luck figure” or maybe a charm doll. The persona compares her life

to a Harlequinade and she is the Harlequin. Harlequin symbolizes the speaker‟s pretentious act.

In the Yellow Wallpaper, the story is told through a series of diary entries. This diary is

forbidden since John forbids his wife from writing. The woman diagnosed used this diary as a

way to communicate her emotions. Forbidding the woman from writing emphasize John‟s

oppressive control over his wife, the gender oppression lies here. The diary is a symbol of the

woman‟s rebellion against his husband since she was forbidden from writing, yet she still

chooses to write down her thoughts. The barred windows that are made for nursery symbolize

her imprisonment. The yellow color is associated with illness. The yellow wallpaper symbolizes

the family structure in general and the medication in which the narrator finds herself trapped in.

Looking at the wallpaper, one can say that it is domestic. Hence, the author uses this object as a

symbol of domestic life wherein many women are trapped inside.

15 | P a g e
 Bird-claw hands in Rosca‟s Generations symbolize the hard work of the characters in the

story. Hard work from working at their farm land. The mumbling of Old Selo symbolizes the

sufferings and hardships in life since mumbling is a peculiar act that is usually used to calm

oneself. After the father died, the members of the family just took it lightly. The children‟s

taking a bath was a symbol of washing or laundry after a funeral. The death of the father also

symbolizes the women empowerment, on how women dethrone men in the pedestal,

championing the future of women in the society, gaining equality and equity.

16 | P a g e
References

1. “Billiken.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Mar. 2019,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billiken.

2. Galendez, Tiffany, and Tiffany Galendez. “GENDER STEREOTYPES IN THE

STORIES OF NINOTCHKA ROSCA Content and Technical Adviser.” Academia.edu,

www.academia.edu/31078365/GENDER_STEREOTYPES_IN_THE_STORIES_OF_NI

NOTCHKA_ROSCA_Content_and_Technical_Adviser.

3. “Gender Stereotyping.” OHCHR,

www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/WRGS/Pages/GenderStereotypes.aspx.

4. “„Generations‟ by Ninotchka Rosca.” "Generations" by Ninotchka Rosca, tifa-

lim.livejournal.com/3202.html.

5. Gothic and the Female Voice: Examining Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow

Wallpaper", teachersinstitute.yale.edu/curriculum/units/1999/1/99.01.07.x.html.

6. Leighton, Ryan. “The Yellow Wallpaper: A Women's Diagnosis.” Owlcation, Owlcation,

13 Mar. 2018, owlcation.com/humanities/The-Yellow-Wallpaper-A-Womens-Diagnosis.

7. Macaulay, Helen. “Symbolism of Masks.” Prezi.com, 17 Oct. 2014,

prezi.com/gclvyow2lpls/symbolism-of-masks/.

8. Parenthood, Planned. “Gender Identity & Roles | Feminine Traits &

Stereotypes.” Planned Parenthood, www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/sexual-

orientation-gender/gender-gender-identity/what-are-gender-roles-and-stereotypes.

9. SparkNotes, SparkNotes, www.sparknotes.com/lit/yellowwallpaper/.

17 | P a g e
 10. Suprusr. “Formalistic Approach Applied to the Poem „Order for Masks‟ Essay

Example.” Graduateway, Graduateway, 24 Jan. 2018, graduateway.com/formalistic-

approach-applied-to-the-poem-order-for-masks/.

11. Vergona, Laura. “Analysis of The Yellow Wallpaper through the Psychoanalysis and

Feminist Lens .” The Yellow Wallpaper, Weebly, 15 Mar. 2014

12. “V. Moreno's Order for Masks.” Frijasroxanne, 16 Jan. 2014,

roxannefrijas.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/v-morenos-order-for-masks/.

18 | P a g e