Society continually imposes restrictive standards on the female gender, not only fifty years ago, but also in today's society. While many women overcame much unfair prejudice and oppression over the past fifty years, they were forced to confront a less understanding culture in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In its various formulations, patriarchy views the characteristics and/or intentions of men as the cause of women's oppression. This way of thinking shifts the focus away from theorizing about social relationships that place women at a disadvantage in all areas of life and channels it toward men as the cause of women's oppression (Gimenez). Different people had many ways to express their opinions regarding gender inequality among women, including expressing their voices and opinions through their literature. By writing stories such as Daisy Miller and The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Henry James allow readers to understand and develop their own ideas about such a serious subject that had a major impact on American history. In this essay, I will compare Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" to James' "Daisy Miller" as portraits of American women in peril and also of men who had great influence. In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's story, "The Yellow Wallpaper", the main character is used as a symbol to express the feeling of all the oppressed women of her time. Most women had no voice and were slaves to "masculine" ideas and a cult of domesticity (Gilman 685), which would explain why the main character's name was never mentioned in the story, alluding to the fact that women of her time simply did not have their own personal identity. Her husband and brother, who were both doctors, treated ...... middle of paper ...... at Daisy's age. She was a very rebellious young woman who thought she could conquer the world. She broke free from cultural norms and lived her life the way she wanted. Even though Gilman's character was stuck in a world of illusions, it is easy to say that Daisy was also stuck in this fantasy world ignoring the repressive attitudes of everyone around her. Today, women are still fighting for full equality, but I would say that since then we have come a long way in terms of improvements. Works Cited Perkins, Geroge and Barbara Perkins. The American literary tradition. 12th ed. Flight. 2. New York: McGraw Hill, 2009. PrintGimenez, Martha E. “Capitalism and the Oppression of Women: Marx Revisited.” Science and Society 69.1 (2005): 11-32. ProQuest Central. Internet. April 29. 2014. .