Gender roles are growing less and less defined as today's society is becoming more tolerant of different sexualities and different family structures. The two short stories "Odour of Chrysanthemums" and "The Blooding" portray gender assumptions relative to the time of when they are set, being the mid 20th century. Both "Odour of Chrysanthemums", by D. H. Lawrence, and "The Blooding", by Peter Goldsworthy, use characterisation and setting to convey the gender assumptions of their time. "Odour of Chrysanthemums" is set in the highly class based society of Underwood in England.
             England was and still is a very class based society. The upper-class marry the upper-class and the lower-class marry the lower-class. That's why it seems strange that in the storey Walt of a low, working class background is married to Elizabeth of a relatively higher class. The gender roles are representations of the setting though. Walt is the stereotypical father/husband figure of the time and society. He worked hard at the coalmine, working a double shift the night he died, being the breadwinner of the family while Elizabeth stayed at home with the children. Like many men of Walt's class, he enjoyed having a few drinks after work, which infuriated Elizabeth because she expected him at a reasonable hour, in a sober state, which he rarely was after a night at the pub.
             "It is a scandalous thing as a man cant even come home to his dinner!"
             This shows Elizabeth's anger at Walt going out to the pub after a day at the mines. As Walt worked long hours and was often a public house he had little role in his children's lives. In that society children where the mother's domain. Elizabeth has the role of housewife, and as the mother to the children. The children were scared of confrontation between their parents as stated:
             "The Children dread of fathers homecoming"
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