Daughter of Fortune
What is the theme in Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende?
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The theme of gender equality is complex in this novel. In Chile and Europe, women are still considered delicate and second-class. They do not own property and their only career options are housekeeper or prostitute. Rose expresses to Eliza that being a widow is the best possible option, since it provides freedom and an income without loss of respect from others. It is notable when Pauline de Santa Cruz makes a bargain with her husband to keep a percentage of the profits he makes on a speculation that she suggested. She ends up creating a successful business alongside her husband in California.