Gender Differences

Women in the nineteenth-century where seen as weak, passive, timid, illogical, emotional, dependant, not sexual and very private. Unlike the men were seen as strong, active, brave, rational, independent, sexual beings, and very public. Each of these characteristics are complete opposites, which in the nineteenth-century made woman and men seem to be completely opposite of each other. Almost all women of this time lived in an era where females were considered unequal. Women were expected to be subservient to both their fathers and husbands. Middle and upper class women were to remain at home taking care of the house and children, so there choices of an occupation were very limited. The men of this time were considered to be the primary breadwinners of the family.

Women during this day in age were unable to completely express all of their personal. The main reason is because in the nineteenth century society was so conservative and saw that all women should be seen as pure and innocent. Could you imagine the expressions on upper class people's faces, if women walked around talking about their sex life or telling their husbands what to do? These are the same situations I saw in two of the stories I read throughout the first half of the semester, "The Other Two" by Edith Wharton and "The Storm" by Kate Chopin.

Edith Wharton characters in "The Other Two" illustrate the social and political acceptance of women in that day in time especially with the topic of marital responsibilities and duties. Alice Waythorn has been divorced twice and had recently just married a very successful business man. The two's honey moon ended very short due to her daughter Lily, father Mr. Haskett, being diagnosed with typhoid. Throughout the rest of the story disagreements about Mr. Haskett coming to see Lily emerge and he brings to the attention of Mr. Waythorn that he has a biological right in Lily's upbringing. "You can remind Mrs. Waythorn that, by the decree of the courts, I am entitled to have a voice in Lily's bringing up... I am not the kind to talk about enforcing my rights, Mr. Waythorn..." (The Other Two)

In "The Other Two" the concept of divorce and remarriage influences the overall character Alice Waythorn. She used/uses marriage as a means of advancing herself on the social and economic level. With her marrying Waythorn, Alice reaches the top of the social ladder. After the honeymoon and the newness of being in love Waythorn learn that the women he married isn't who he thinks she is. Alice goes through certain transformation in Waythorns eyes. In the beginning Waythorn believe that both of her marriages that ended in divorce she was the one treated or done wrongly. It takes him awhile to learn to accept the women he thought he married. He understands that Alice is a product of the surrounding social world and she ultimately goes to the highest bidder.

"The Other Two" betrays the gender roles of women through the eyes of Mr. Waythorn. The stories reveal that women are something to be desired or owned even sometimes seen as an object. Men of that age depend upon women to make social interaction more soothing and less of a burden. Through Alice's past we see how women who are not a loud access to public careers see marring a man of a higher status as the only means of advancing there social and financial standing. All the things Alice did throughout her life were to improve status in society because in the nineteenth-century the only way women could make something of their lives was to marry into the highest economic class possible.

"The Storm" actually begins with a storm trapping a father (Bobinot) and son (Bibi) at a convenient store while walking home. Meanwhile his wife, Calixta, sits at the house sewing not noticing the thunderstorm rolling in. We she realizes she shuts the windows and goes to retrieve her husbands, Bobinot, clothes off the line outside. One of her former lovers Alcee rides up to help her and when finished she offers him inside to ride out the storm. He is hesitant at first but comes in when the storm doesn't subside. Calixta begins to worry about her husband and son, so Alcee comes up behind to comfort her by doing so he rekindles the passion they used to have between each other. As the storm intensifies so does their passion and love begin to intensify. As soon as the sexual encounter ends so does the storm.

Alcee leaves and