The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman - Lettered Edition

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Limit 1 Copy Per Person. Refer to our Order Limits policy.

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“The Yellow Wall-Paper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a short story as chilling and relevant today as it was upon its initial publication in 1892. The story is regarded as an important early work of American feminist literature for its depiction of the attitudes towards the mental and physical health of women in the 19th century. It is also lauded as an excellent work of gothic and horror fiction.

Diagnosed by her physician husband with a “temporary nervous depression—a slight hysterical tendency” after the birth of their child, a woman is urged to rest for the Summer in an old colonial mansion. Forbidden from doing work of any kind, she spends her days in the house’s former nursery, with its barred windows, scratched floor, and peeling yellow wall-paper.

New England Magazine published “The Yellow Wall-Paper” in January 1892, after it had been rejected by nearly all leading magazines of the day. Gilman’s view of a woman’s place in traditional marriage, along with the spotlight she placed on society’s attitude towards the mental and physical health of women in the 19th century, were considered radical at the time of its publication. Gilman herself was an intellectual voice and staunch supporter of women’s rights, who frequently used her writing to explore the role of women in America. Today, “The Yellow Wall-Paper” is one of the most famous and most analyzed short stories of all time. Through her work, Gilman paved the way for writers such as Sylvia Plath and Virginia Woolf.

Included in this edition of “The Yellow Wall-Paper” is a new, exclusive afterword by Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker (The Color Purple) on the importance of Gilman’s story. Also included in the edition is the essay “Why I Wrote ‘The Yellow Wall-Paper’” wherein the author reveals the semi-autobiographical nature of the story and how it came to be.

A condemnation of the patriarchy, “The Yellow Wall-Paper” explores with haunting accuracy the oppression, grave misunderstanding, and willful dismissal of women in late nineteenth-century society. With a profound relevancy as terrifying as the tale itself, Gilman’s 6,000 words beg us to ask of ourselves how much in over a hundred years has changed.

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The fine press limited edition of The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is presented in two states: Lettered and Numbered.

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LETTERED EDITION

• 6¼” x 9¼” trim size.
• 64 Pages.
• Limited to 26 copies.
• Signed by Alice Walker and Chris Daunt.
• Hand sewn with linen thread, rounded and backed and made on a hollow before being full bound in J. Hewit & Sons yellow Pentland goatskin with black embossed leather onlays in terracotta and leaf green.
• Two raised bands on the spine with terracotta leather title label embossed in gold.
• Endpapers are Canson Mi-Teintes with leather onlays at the front.
• New exclusive afterword by Alice Walker.
  
• Bonus essay "Why I Wrote The Yellow Wall-Paper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
• Three wood engravings by Chris Daunt which are printed from the original blocks.
  
• Printed letterpress from metal type on handmade Twinrocker paper.
  
• Text pages are set in Monotype Baskerville.
  
• Housed in a clamshell enclosure covered in Dubletta cloth with velour lined floors.
• Bookmark with all pre-orders.

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Published editions may differ slightly from mockups and prototype designs.
Photography by Yegor Malinovskii.
Illustrations © 2022 by Chris Daunt.