Andrew

Webb

Women in the late nineteenth century were expected to behave politely in

the presence of others. Women were expected to get married at a very young age.

Many women of the time period were very unhappy about how they were treated.

Some even turned to writing as a source of release from the hold their husbands

had on them. Women’s opinion inside the marriage did not matter very much.

After Women got married a lot was expected from them. They were expected

to have multiple children. They also had to take care of the house and have dinner

ready by the time the husband got home. They were also expected to be obedient

to her husband’s commands. Marriage at that time was more about marrying into a

wealthy family and not about love. Women were expected to stay married to their

husband until the day he died, divorce was very seldom. Women were very upset

about the way they were treated because of their gender.

Women all across the nation did not like the way they were being treated.

Some women were so miserable that they were happy to hear about their

husband’s death. That meant that they would be able to make their own decisions

and think for themselves. Women were getting so tired of being treated badly they

did something about it. In 1848, the first women’s rights convention was held in

New York. There were a lot of female authors who wrote about the treatment of

women and what it would be like to be free of their husbands.

Kate Chopin is a great example of an author who wasn’t afraid to write what

no one else would write. She wrote, “The Story of an Hour” in which Mrs. Mallard, a

married women, thought her husband was dead and was happy, but later she finds
 Andrew
Webb

out he’s alive and she commits suicide. Another great example is Marge Piercy. In

Piercy’s poem, “What’s the Smell in the Kitchen”, wives all over America burn their

husbands' dinners out of hatred for their husbands and dissatisfaction with their role as housewife.

Women desperately wanted to get out of their housewife role and make their own choices.

Women in the late nineteenth century wanted nothing more than respect. They wanted to be

able to make their own choices in life. The role women had played in the past and what society

expected from them made this goal very hard to accomplish. People like Kate Chopin and Marge

Piercy should be commended for their leadership in helping women be leaders in this country though

writing.