The Odd Women reflects the major sexual and cultural issues of the late nineteenth century. Set in a grimy, fog-ridden London, Gissing's 'odd' women range from the idealistic, financially self-sufficient Mary Barfoot to the Madden sisters who struggle to subsist in low paying jobs and little chance for joy. With narrative detachment, Gissing portrays contemporary society's blatant ambivalence towards its own period of transition.