Utopian Society In Herland
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s Herland (1915) paints the idea of a perfect life in the form of a utopian society. A utopian society is a group of people attempting to live together in a perfect way to form a perfect society. In this society every person has food, a job, a house, is physically healthy and the crime rate is low. Other characteristics of a utopian society are that a figureheads bring the individuals of the society together, the natural world is embraced, and informed thought are promoted. Moreover, in a utopian society citizens embrace social and moral ideals and there is no fear of the outside world. Furthermore, the society evolves with the change to make a perfect utopian world. People are drawn to this society because they
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Personal independence is the ability to make decisions that may or may not comply with societal rules. The women cannot make decisions on their own as simple as what to wear. Everyone in Herland wears the same garment decided by the leaders of the society. Van describes the clothing as a comfortable quilted dress with many pockets arranged to not inconvenient the body (Gilman 62). For this utopian society to function, the citizens have to believe that everyone is equal. Unfortunately, this is not true because the leaders that picked the clothing have the power to make choices making them unequal to the other citizens. By wearing the same clothes it creates this idea that everyone is equal so no one ever questions the leaders. This also takes away the possibility for creativity expression. As Deci, Ryan, and Harlow's research suggest, “expressing creativity is closely tied to the universal human need for exploration to make sense of one's environment” (qtd. in Levine 265). These women have come to learn that they have to act in a certain way. Not only is their right to choose their own clothing limited but also other major life events. This includes raising their children the way they think is best. Women that are deemed unfit are not allowed to raise their children past two years of age (Gilman 71). These women that are deemed unfit do that fuss over the fact that their children are being taken from her. However, in reality, that is one of the most crushing things for any mother, the loss of their child, which can be seen by divorcing mothers fight to have custody of their children or the grief a mother experiences when their child dies in an
Personal independence is the ability to make decisions that may or may not comply with societal rules. The women cannot make decisions on their own as simple as what to wear. Everyone in Herland wears the same garment decided by the leaders of the society. Van describes the clothing as a comfortable quilted dress with many pockets arranged to not inconvenient the body (Gilman 62). For this utopian society to function, the citizens have to believe that everyone is equal. Unfortunately, this is not true because the leaders that picked the clothing have the power to make choices making them unequal to the other citizens. By wearing the same clothes it creates this idea that everyone is equal so no one ever questions the leaders. This also takes away the possibility for creativity expression. As Deci, Ryan, and Harlow's research suggest, “expressing creativity is closely tied to the universal human need for exploration to make sense of one's environment” (qtd. in Levine 265). These women have come to learn that they have to act in a certain way. Not only is their right to choose their own clothing limited but also other major life events. This includes raising their children the way they think is best. Women that are deemed unfit are not allowed to raise their children past two years of age (Gilman 71). These women that are deemed unfit do that fuss over the fact that their children are being taken from her. However, in reality, that is one of the most crushing things for any mother, the loss of their child, which can be seen by divorcing mothers fight to have custody of their children or the grief a mother experiences when their child dies in an