Oppression Of Mrs. Sommers In The 1800's

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Recommended: Treatment of women in literature

How society perceives a person is often dictated by their gender. Mrs. Sommers, an 1890’s housewife shrouded by her husband’s name, is often seen as nothing more than a little, insignificant, poor woman. Unlike her male counterparts, she, like many women in this era, is believed to be weak, passive, and familial while men are to be strong, dominant, and independent. Men often attempted to control their wives, and even fashion was constricting in that time period, with corsets tightly clinging to their chests, and crinolines caging their lower bodies. Mrs. Sommers faced this same oppression, especially when she took on her husband’s name and gave birth to children, giving up her own desires and her own self. “The neighbors sometimes talked

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