Women and Economics · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in Women and Economics by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.
Skim names here — open a free preview to see character cards and Character Web beside the page as you read.
Unknown Narrator
major
Also known as ourselves, us, our
This narrator speaks as 'we' — a reasoning, reform-minded consciousness that treats society itself as the subject under examination. Its distinctive tension lies in diagnosing women's economic dependence without blaming individual men or women, insisting the fault is structural and therefore changeable. That voice matters because it converts intimate domestic arrangements into evidence for a larger argument, inviting the reader to see marriage, labor, and progress as linked questions rather than separate ones.
Desdemona
minor
A character referenced as a focal point, likely from Shakespeare's Othello, used as an example.
Jean Ingelow
minor
A poet and novelist quoted or referenced in the text.
A Servant
minor
Also known as servant
A generic servant figure used as an example in economic discussions.
Pain
minor
An abstract concept personified briefly in the narrative.
Mr. Grant Allen
minor
A contemporary writer and thinker referenced in the text.
