Seneca Falls. This topic in my opinion is closely linked to The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte. In 1848, around the same time this novel was published, the Seneca Falls Women's Rights Convention was held in the United States. They fought for women's right to vote and for general equality. It was as if men and women lived in different worlds and had to obey different rules and standards. Men basically had little power, while women were very oppressed. They could not make decisions and own property. Bronte has certainly flipped the script with this novel which shows the emancipated woman through its protagonist Helen Graham. Helen Graham is a young woman who changes identity when she runs away from her alcoholic husband who leads a life of corruption. Enter this nosy city that finds its new face quite interesting. Her new neighbor, Gilbert Markham, is terribly fascinated by Helen. At one point I felt he could be considered a stalker because she wouldn't give him the time of day and he still persisted. Helen eventually gives him her diary in which she confesses her previously disastrous life and gives way to hope for a new future and helps both Gilbert and the reader understand the pain of this tormented woman. Helen passionately challenges ideas such as the extreme refuge of girls and the extreme exposure of boys to the harshness of the world. We see this especially when Gilbert Markham argues with Helen about the difference in treatment between boys and girls and the implied outcomes. Helen's protective treatment of her son Arthur triggers Gilbert's reaction. Gilbert's response to this is to say that “…and by such means…you will never make him virtuous.” His view is that, according to society, preparing boys to be men requires that they be exposed to the dangers of the world as a means of developing strong moral character. It is a double standard for women as girls and women need to be protected from the harsh realities of the world to protect them from moral distress or contamination. It is this contradiction that Helen addresses, challenging the importance of exposure as strengthening moral character and the value of keeping girls in complete ignorance of the vices of the world to prevent its corruption..