The article covers the author's treatment of the issue of power, which is central to “The Sweet Dove Died”, from the point of view of gender. In the analysis comparative, intertextual methods as well as gender approach are applied. Pym's love story with original gender conflict is related to Bronte`s “Jane Eyre” in the form of numerous allusions including images, plot, motives (in particular, that of imprisonment of the beloved), and problems tackled. In her mock paraphrase of relations between Rochester and Jane the author applies the technique of gender roles exchange. The image of Leonora, an uncharacteristic type of femaleness for Pym, undercuts traditional gender stereotypes in her inability to love, narcissism, appropriation of models of masculine behavior. The object of her chase, young James also differs from normative canon of masculinity. In the early 1970s Pym addresses the topic of unconventional sexual orientation. In her version homosexual relationships are portrayed as unhappy, pervaded by the pursuit of power. The artistic peculiarity of Pym`s creation consists in the duality of its images and symbols, its association with both female and male essence.