Sadie and Maud tells the story of two women who live very different lives that reflect their choices. Sadie bore two babies out of wedlock and scraped a meager life with her hands, going against social norms. Meanwhile, Maud lived a cautious life praised by society as the ideal woman. The poet uses literary devices like assonance, alliteration, and metaphor to explore how society expects women to conform but advocates living freely for one's own happiness, even if it brings shame.