What Diantha Did

Book excerpt: Early feminist author Charlotte Perkins Gilman was a pioneer not only in the realm of women's fiction, but also in a remarkable array of other ventures, including publishing, journalism, sociological research, and social reform advocacy. Like many of her works, including the gripping and oft-anthologized tale "The Yellow Wallpaper," the novel What Diantha Did deals with the challenges facing women in nineteenth-century society. In this novel, the protagonist solves the conflict between women's household duties and the financial imperative to work outside the home by opening a somewhat unusual boarding house.