Compare and contrast the female characters in The Yellow Wallpaper and The Story of an Hour Women are traditionally known as the less dominant sex. Throughout history, women have fought for equal rights and freedom. They have been stereotyped as housewives, mothers and babysitters. Only recently, thanks to the Equal Rights Amendment, have women gained a strong hold in the workplace alongside men. Many interesting characters in literature are designed from the tension that women experience with men. This tension comes from men; society in general; and in a woman herself. Two interesting short stories, “The Yellow Wallpaper and “The Story of an Hour,” focus on the plight of a woman at the turn of the 19th century. This era is particularly interesting because it is a time in modern society where women were still treated as second-class citizens. The two main characters in these stories have similarities, but they are also remarkably different in the way they approach their problems and life in general. These two characters will be examined to note similarities and differences. Although the two characters are similar in some ways, the woman in "The Story of an Hour" will be shown to be a stronger character based on the two important criteria of rationality and freedom. In “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the unnamed protagonist is going through a difficult time in her life. (For now, this article will refer to this unnamed character as "the narrator in "Wall-paper," short for "The Yellow Wall-paper.") The narrator is confined to a room with strange wallpaper. This strange wallpaper seems to symbolize the complexity and confusion of her life. In "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin, the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard, also has to deal with conflicts as she has to deal with the death of. her spouse At first there is grief, but then there is the recognition that she will be free The institution of marriage binds the two heroines of these two stories Like typical young women of the late 19th century, they got married, and during this period during their life, they were expected to remain married Unlike today where divorce is commonplace, marriage was a very sacred bond and divorce was taboo. marriage caused tension in these two characters..