During the Victorian Era, women were considered unnecessary. Many women were not valued and thought of in a negative way. This concept is depicted in William Greg’s article “Why are Women Redundant?” At one point he states, “there is an enormous and increasing number of single women in the nation, a number quite disproportionate and quite abnormal” (158) and “[women] who remain unmarried constitute the problem to be solved, the evil and anomaly to be cured” (159). These ideas reflect the overall ideas of Victorian societies. Many believed married women were responsible for domestic duties, and had no real responsibilities other than these. Unmarried women, on the other hand, were viewed as burdens, as people who did nothing other than get in the way and cause harm.
Many of these ideas were portrayed through Victorian art and literature. Eugene Gaujean depicts the notion that certain women can be nuisances in the print “The Two Friends”. In the print there is a cat sitting on a chair next to reading glasses, knitting materials, and a crumpled newspaper. Cats are often considered feminine pets and associated with females, much like the concepts of knitting and reading. These all are reflective of feminine, domestic activities. If the cat represents the common Victorian women at the time, it shows how women were restricted to common household activities, many of which were scoffed at. However, if the cat were to represent unmarried Victorian women, it shows how they were often times in the way of others. The cat is sitting directly in the middle of the chair where typically a woman would be sitting. Not only does the cat replace the woman in this sense, but is also shown prohibiting work from being accomplished. Woman, often times, were considered inconvenient, much like the cat in the print.