wide sargasso sea

The major problem in the novel is the effects of the decline of Imperialism on Antoinette's family. Antoinette's previous life.... a life of happiness and innocence, has been altered by the end of Imperialism, and as a result, she is torn between two cultures while being accepted by neither. She marries for her own protection and moves from the safety of her patriarchal home to the tyranny of a patriarchal marriage in which she was only desired for the money she brought in her dowry.