Money Can Buy Happiness: The Question of Choice in Dreiser’s “The Second Choice”

Money Can Buy Happiness: The Question of Choice in Dreiser’s “The Second Choice” The United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was undergoing a drastic change. A war between its states had just concluded, enslaved people were granted freedom, immigrants from all over the world flocked to the country, and a bitter divide between rich and poor was beginning to form. The literature followed the same trajectory of the country and, as does most literature, became a mirror of the happenings across gender, race, and class. Many telling insights about the new construct of country post-Civil War could be found within these works. One such insight about the United States concerned the relationship between women and choice. During this new chapter of American history, women were making their voices known. Writers like Margaret Fuller, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman were some of the most prominent female writers during this time and were large contributors to this new wave of literature. They blended feminine perspective with a form of literature that became extremely popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century: Realism. Feminine realism was so marketable that even male authors produced such writings. One such male author was Theodore Dreiser with his short story “The Second Choice.” Much can be inferred from this story, but mainly that while money can buy women’s happiness and the freedom to choose, true mobility and choice is something only accessible to rich, white men. The title of the work may give many readers the implication that Shirley, the protagonist, ultimately resigns to her fate and chooses Bart, her second choice for a mate. While that is a very valid interpretation, it certainly isn’t the only one. One reading into the title could suggest that Shirley is the second choice. Consider the opening pages of the story, which is Arthur’s, Shirley’s love, letter to Shirley. While Shirley is limited to her