The Awakening by Kate Chopin, set in the coastal region of Louisiana, was written and published during this time. ... The idea was that a woman had to stay dependent on a man, first as a daughter, later as a wife. ... A woman's own expectations were meek because neither her family nor society expected her to prepare for a future other than that of marriage and motherhood. ... The first women's rights convention took place in July 1848. ... A marriage without passion guarded a Victorian woman from the pain of a relationship that fell short of her expectations. ...

• Word Count: 3206
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In 1984, Sandra Cisneros published a collection of forty four vignettes titled The House on Mango Street. ... Through sublimation, Cisneros fulfills her desire to free herself from the limitations of traditional gender roles, which allows her to give a voice to all the women who cannot speak up for themselves. ... In the first vignette, "The House on Mango Street," Esperanza states, "throughout her childhood, she moved frequently from one Chicago barrio apartment to the next because the residence had become too small for her growing family of six or inadequate for living"...

• Word Count: 2834
• Approx Pages: 11
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate