“Slender firm strokes of the pen”: The Unspoken Words of Women Writers in Edith Wharton’s Fiction

Throughout Edith Wharton’s writing, many of her female protagonists are avid readers and letter writers. Edith Wharton herself emerged as a “woman novelist” during a time when society dictated that a woman’s role was confined to the home. Wharton and others challenged the status quo as agents of change and power.