This paper explains that the Victorian era was one in which massive
inequalities existed between men and women; women were
not allowed to vote, and in many cases, their right to own property was tenuous, and their place in society was limited. The author points out that "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" deals in the inequities women face and their serious consequences for the sex. "Sense and Sensibility" deals with the full spectrum of gender issues, while approaching the gendered system as posing problems for both male and female lovers, and "Wuthering Heights" seeks to transcend gender within love altogether, even though its characters, in this sense, often fail. The paper relates that each of these stories deals with the romance of a strong Victorian heroine struggling to survive in a male-dominated world, illustrating the difference in
financial power between men and women, the inconsistencies in sexual mores that exist between the genders, and the difference in status made obvious in their different approaches to marriage.