How can you consider so long a letter a modern novel, giving examples from the novel?

So Long a Letter can be considered a modern novel in regard to its themes and characters. Women are finding their voices, asserting their independence, and following their dreams. Women are also attaining an education and working outside the home.... Ramatoulaye and Aissatou are examples of this, and they are the women who moved into the educational roles that afforded all children; girls and boys, as well as the poor to have an education. Over the course of the novel, we see a blend of generational differences and the subtlety of changing traditions..... the ability to attain an education, independence, and freedom from a bad marriage.