The position of women in marriage

Feeds:: Posts; Comments

The position of women in marriage

January 30, 2008 by 19thcentury

Two stories written by women that might illustrate the position of women in the Victorian marriage a little:
The first one is Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” (Read it here online). “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a 6,000-word short story by American writer Charlotte Perkins Gilman, first published in 1891 in New England Magazine. It is regarded as an important early work of American feminist literature, and illustrates attitudes in the 19th century toward women’s physical and mental health, and their (in)ability to make their own life choices.

The second story is Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour.” It was originally published in the December 6, 1894 issue of Vogue magazine under its original title, “The Dream of an Hour”. It describes a woman’s reaction to the news of her husband’s sudden death and to the subsequent news that he is, in fact, alive. The story exemplifies Chopin’s beliefs regarding women’s roles in marriage and feminine identity. You can read it online here

Despite what it might seem like, I found both these stories very interesting and enjoyable to read!

And while we’re on the subject of female writers, check out this very interesting post about Lady Murasaki of Japan!

Posted in 19th century, history, literature, victorian | Tagged 19th century, chopin, gender roles, gilman, history, victorian, victorian marriage | 9 Comments

9 Responses

on January 30, 2008 at 2:56 pm | Reply Leslie Dicken

“The Story of an Hour” is one of my favorite short stories. It left a huge impact on me when I first read and studied it in college. I still think about it sometimes and the emotions the woman in the story went through: from grief to freedom to despair. Quite powerful!
on January 30, 2008 at 3:00 pm | Reply 19thcentury

It really is! The best thing about it I think is that you can read it from a feminist / society criticism point of view, or just read it as a silly story without much further implications. I think that’s what makes it really great.
on January 30, 2008 at 9:19 pm | Reply Sweet Pea

You can also listen to The Yellow Wallpaper on http://www.librivox.org :) Lots of Dickens and Austen too.
on January 30, 2008 at 10:04 pm | Reply 19thcentury

Oh, you’re right, that’s great! Thank you :)
on January 31, 2008 at 4:15 am | Reply Sincerae

Hi Basje!

Kate Chopin is one of my favorite authors. I had to study her writings when I took Southern Literature (southern US) in graduate.

A very nice and classy post here as always, and thanks for providing a link here to my post on Lady Murasaki:))
on October 14, 2008 at 11:50 pm | Reply sierra12345rae

I am in the 9th grade and we recently read Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour. It is a phenomenal story that gives great examples of the way of life in the Victorian era. This was an exquisite story and it has greatly captured my interest.
on October 20, 2009 at 10:32 pm | Reply Alice

Thanks for posting those! I once read The Story of an Hour, but it would have stayed buried in the back of my brain if I hadn’t just re-read it!
on April 7, 2011 at 4:42 am | Reply one24 facebook

I like what you guys are up to. Such intelligent work and reporting! Keep up the excellent works guys. I have incorporated you guys to my blogroll. I think it’ll improve the value of my website. :)
on April 9, 2015 at 6:20 pm | Reply Monica Aguayo

Well, I am currently writing a research paper on The Yellow Wallpaper and comparing medical misdiagnosis on hysteria then and now. I find that the story in The Yellow Wallpaper could be attributed to what we know now to be Post-Partum depression also.