Voluntary solitude is presented in a different light by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman in her A New England Nun than in most other contemporary works. Being single is often treated as a failure to secure a partner rather than a personal choice. This negative attitude towards romantic independence has been perpetuating the general social idea that all people must find a suitable partner. Freeman’s story, about a young woman who, after her fiance moves for a business opportunity and her family members pass away, finds herself living alone for several years, denounces this notion that romantic love is the key to happiness. In Freeman’s work, A New England Nun, the author shows that being single can act as a gateway for contentment and prosperity by having
