“I lie here on this great immovable bed, – it is nailed down, I believe”
This passage gives readers an additional glimpse of the setting into which the narrator is placed. She is confined to a nursery, where she is policed and controlled by her husband and doctor, John. This setting is representative of the narrator’s current predicament because of the description of a “nailed down bed” found within this passage. There is both a physical and psychological meaning to this “immovable bed.” First, physically, the bed being stuck in place represents the idea that the narrator is not able to move the furniture or rearrange her surroundings in a way that would suit her. She is completely trapped within this room and unable to change a single thing about the setting around her. Additionally, the concept of a bed nailed down to the floor can be related to a prison cell, in which the inmates’ beds are nailed so that they cannot use them to aid escape. Therefore, this renders the narrator as a prisoner, further establishing the psychological meaning within this image. The “immovable” bed illustrates the narrator’s lack of freedom and the traditional dominance placed over her by her male partner. When John removes everything from this room while in the process of moving out, the bed is the only thing that remains in the room – besides the wallpaper, of course. This serves as a consistent reminder to the narrator that she is powerless and immobilized. Therefore, she is not the one in control of her situation.
