We know that Ichiyo would write stories having to do with the real situations the women of her time would go through. However, I think that the female character in her story can also represent her relationship with writing. Ichiyo always struggled with wanting to produced work that was perfect in her own way or publishing what she could for money. As head of her household, she usually felt like she had to think about how her decisions would affect her family, just like Oseki had to do when she contemplated about leaving her husband. If she only published her writing when she found it to be perfect, she and her family would be at risk of poverty. She would have had to find a husband, become a rich man’s mistress, or resort to prostitution. Because women had little to no power and usually very minimal education as well, these were the things they normally would have to resort to in order to support themselves and their families.