Before the twentieth century, male was the dominant sex in the United States. The male premeditated what roles women should play at home. Women did not have the right to vote and did not receive the same equality like men did. Some women writers wanted to change people's perspectives, especially men, on how women should be viewed and treated. Three famous writers who did a marvelous job in this transformation were Edith Wharton, Charlotte Perkins Gillman, and Kate Chopin. Edith Wharton wrote "Roman Fever" and focused on the realistic issues in life. Unlike Edith Wharton, Charlotte Gillman, author of "The Yellow Wallpaper" and Kate Chopin, writer of "The Story of an Hour," concentrated on the oppression of two women from their husbands. The three characters from these stories faced almost the same oppression, but each dealt with the oppression differently. Charlotte from "The Yellow Wallpaper" and Mrs. Mallard in "The Story of an Hour" wanted to have the self-expression and freedom from their marriages; Mrs.
Kate Chopin in 1894
The Yellow Wallpaper, one of Gilman's most popular...
English: Photograph of writer Edith Wharton, taken...Ansley from "Roman Fever", on the other hand, wanted to show her friend, Mrs. Slade, she (Mrs. Ansley) should be the one who should be envied. All these three writers wanted to show the realism of society in an objective way.
Women were always thought to be weaker than men in every issue in the past. They were unable to think for themselves and their opinions were useless. As for Charlotte and Mrs. Mallard, they were unhappy in their marriages and were imprisoned by their husbands. Charlotte, who had "a schedule prescription for each hour in the day" from her physician husband, was incapable of doing anything that she wished (Charlotte, 2002, p. 1279). For instance, she could not able to enjoy nature or do any housework that a wife should do.