I think the world was a very different place back then. Before women's rights and equal opportunities. Marriage was a woman's job/financial means/identity/purpose/social acceptance. I was born after ERA stuff, so I do not know what it was like for those women, but it sounds horrible. Marriage as duty and all that. Yuck.
I think she wanted to maintain her marriage and he was very dominant over her. Not to mention the "charm" that many A's have.