Since ancient times, women have always been considered inferior to men as they are "female(s) by virtue of a certain lack of qualities". However, though scarce in number, there were also some women trying to defy and mock the norm of women characterization. This book studies the struggles and the female identity exploration of these brave women in their patriarchal societies, especially by focusing on the Victorian and Ottoman societies in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It examines the precedent novels of Virginia Woolf, the outcast writer of British literature and Halide Edip-Ad var, the Jeanne D'Arc of Turkish literature. The novels, 'The Voyage Out' and 'Handan', are analyzed by putting the feminist approach, the psychoanalytic theories concerning gender roles construction and identity acquisition process, and the mental attitudes appropriate to the historical contexts of the mentioned periods in the centre. This book, therefore, provides valuable information about the social transformations in Victorian England and Ottoman Empire concerning the new women identity and shows the existential struggles and self-identity exploration of women in their patriarchal societies.