The Ladies’ Paradise

Using The Ladies’ Paradise write a 4-5 page, well-argued paper in which you consider the social and economic transformations in women’s social lives during the 19th century. How did women come to question patriarchal structures in 19th century European society and why? In writing your response, you might want to consider the following questions: How do women interact with one another? With men? In what sorts of activities did they partake? How are these activities perceived by the male characters in the novel? How does Zola (a white European man) write women? In what ways was the department store a gendered space?