The Odd Women

Odd Women, The,
a novel by George Gissing , published in 1893 . To escape the drudgery of her life in a draper's, Monica Madden, impoverished by the sudden death of her father, marries Edmund Widdowson, who proves to be a jealous tyrant. Wrongly suspected by him of adultery, she dies giving birth to his daughter. Monica's sisters become respectively an alcoholic and foolishly religious. While containing a portrayal of an establishment that promotes women's independence, the novel is a grim look at the possible fates of England's half a million more women than men, the ‘Odd Women’ of the title.