The strict guidelines for women's behavior in 20th century Puerto Rico determined how they both acted outwardly and how they perceived themselves intrinsically. Within Julia de Burgos' poem “A Julia de Burgos” and Rosario Ferré's When Women Love Men, there is a somewhat psychological study of the dichotomy between a woman's true identity and expected behavior. By creatively challenging the expectations placed before women, admitting identities influenced by what was perceived as the "other" side, and employing mirror voices, both authors highlight the importance of the ability to shape a true concept of self. the works exist mainly in the structure and slightly in the background. Julia de Burgos wrote her poetry in the 1930s, while Ferré wrote his short story in the 1970s. These times were very different in what determined social acceptability. In Julia de Burgos's time there was less influence on women writers and their ideas, especially those with provocative power as hers tended to be, than in Ferré's world forty years later. In the 1970s, Puerto Rico was still marked by sexism, but it went through a wave of feminist legal reforms and changes that made little progress. The identity as a strong, independent woman, separate from the male-dominated culture, was however still a growing identity, which is why connections to Julia de Burgos could still be evident. The narrative styles also differ between the two pieces. “To Julia de Burgos” is a poem written by Julia de Burgos to Julia de Burgos, and When Women Love Men shifts from one voice ambiguously connecting the two women and changes in some parts to completely third person. Although both works differ in the date of writing... in the center of the paper ...... arouses a deeper sense of solidarity among the women. By having the two share ownership of the house, which often knows about feminine duty or “place,” Ferré suggests that the constant “other” presence has finally been allowed to take over the house. Creating characters who shared a name, a lover, and social restrictions strengthens explicit solidarity. Above all, Julia de Burgos' poetry and Rosario Ferré's story show the other side of oneself that overcomes the shell approved by society. Unity against the enemy in society and misrepresentation create a common bond between the pieces. Regardless of their differences, they are similar in the tactics used to determine how empowering a changing identity can be. For Isabel Luberza, Isabel la Negra and Julia de Burgos, empowerment came from recognizing the need to explore what existed beyond restriction.