In the stories Hell-Heaven by Jhumpa Lahiri and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman both stories convey similar themes. Gilman's short story, The Yellow Wallpaper, tells the story of a mentally unstable wife, while Lahiri's short story, Hell-Heaven, informs us about the story of a mother and daughters from her daughter's point of view. The characters in both stories come from different cultures but one thing they both have in common is their roles. They marry for the purpose of doing household chores such as cooking, cleaning, laundry, and taking care of children, if they have any. Also, let's not forget about another job they have: keeping their husband satisfied and happy! In both stories the marriages are somewhat similar to each other because they are not at all satisfied with the situation they find themselves in because of their husbands. In The Yellow Book the wife is in a cramped room with "barred windows and there are rings and things in the walls", in what appears to be an asylum where she is being held due to the control of her husband John, who is a doctor and her counselor . In this story the unknown wife is prevented from going out or doing what she wants, which is writing, her only desire is to do one thing, which is to make her husband happy. "I wanted to be of great help to John, of true rest and comfort, and here I am already a comparative burden!" She has a husband who says he has "a slight hysterical tendency", which she believes otherwise, but as her husband is a high-ranking doctor all she can do is nod and agree. Even if he thinks he's wrong, nothing he says can change his mind Hell-Heaven Boudi, the mother, is involved in an arranged marriage... half of the paper. if you were unstable you had to keep your man happy and do all the housework to keep him, the husband, “satisfied”. No culture could swap the roles of a man or a woman because no matter where you come from, they all look the same. Works Cited Abcarian, Richard, Marvin Klotz, and Samuel Cohen. Literature The human experience Reading and writing. 11th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin, 2013. 551-63. Print.Abcarian, Richard, Marvin Klotz, and Samuel Cohen. Literature The human experience Reading and writing. 11th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin, 2013. 622-36. Print.Mhatre, Lee. "Unusual land." Comparison 102/103 (2008): 202-205. Premier of academic research. Web. April 17, 2014. Suess, Barbara A. "The Writing on the Wall" Symbolic Orders in 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Women's Studies 32.1 (2003): 79. Academic Search Premier. Web. April 17. 2014.