The Shattered Dream : A Southern Bride at the Turn of the Century

While providing an insider's view of middle-class manners and customs in turn-of-the century America, Margaret Sloan's diary, "The Shattered Dream" is a compelling account of a young woman's fated quest for fulfillment in the dream of the perfect marriage.

In a plain and straightforward style, she recounted the simple yet dramatic narrative of the busy weeks before her wedding and the first happy, then troubled months of marriage.

The wedding was Margaret's dream come true, but the marriage would not sustain for long her unrealistic ideal of the perfect union of man and wife.

Soon she began to chronicle her bouts of loneliness and moments of anxiety as she became increasingly disturbed by her husband's growing indifference to her.

The significance of her story lies in the image of the woman caught in the grip of a strong cultural imperative over which she had little control. "The Shattered Dream" is a revealing chapter in the history of the American woman's search for identity, long before she has successfully challenged her role in marriage.