Changing Who You Are...

In A Journey of Her Peers, I found that there were a variety of interesting characters, but I found the most interesting of all them to be Minnie. Minnie was the character that audience wanted to support, but there was an ethical dilemma. She in fact did kill her husband. Essentially, Minnie was trapped by marriage. She was restricted by the life that was socially imposed on her. Unlike men, women during the time (and even some today) are expected to completely change their lives in favor of becoming first and foremost the "wife". There are so many little things even today that woman must go through socially in getting married. One of the biggest aspects is changing their last names. Obviously today, it is acceptable for a woman to not change her name, but it would be considered weird if a man were to change his name. There is still that standard that women should change their lives. Modern psychology completely disproves this. In research, it is important for both spouses to maintain autonomy and be secure in their sense of self. Going back to Minnie, she did not have this. Minnie was restricted by many things imposed by her  husband and society itself. This was evident in the  beginning when Mrs. Hale comments that she should have visited Minnie, but both Mrs. Hale had her obligation as a wife and so did Minnie to keep their lives centered on their families. Minnie had desires and dreams, but they were certainly over shadowed. Change in you should never be done unless for yourself.