Kate Chopin's The Awakening (1899) is a novel that highlights the heroine's struggle to establish an identity distinct from her father, husband, and son. Themes of choice, free will, and suicide are central to this narrative.

Tillie Olson's short story, "I Stand Here Ironing" (1961), focuses on the relationship between a mother and her daughter. Olson narrates events familiar to many women, exploring how these events can entrap mothers and daughters in relationships not of their own making.

Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart (1982) portrays a mother and her three daughters grappling with the challenge of forming identities not overshadowed by their mother's suicide. Henley's play delves into the aftermath of suicide, particularly the child's experience of guilt and unresolved questions when a parent decides to take her own life.

"To Room Nineteen," Doris Lessing's 1963 short story, presents a woman who sacrifices her identity to meet the needs of her husband and children. Her decision to leave her family through suicide opens up a profound discussion about free will, often with a focus on gender dynamics.

Carolyn Heilbrun's book, Writing A Woman's Life (1988), explores how women's lives are documented, including the events, decisions, and relationships that define them. This text offers readers insight into the challenges writers face in creating narratives. The individual chapters provide fascinating perspectives on some of the most renowned women writers of the past century, potentially inspiring advanced students to appreciate the craft of writing and perhaps even pursue it themselves.