Herland and rationalism

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's novel Herland connects to the Rationalism time period in that the set up of the book resembles a journal similar to one a scientist wold keep on an exploration, the men are doing scientific things and even though the women's village is seen as this mythical, magical place, the men are still only doing rational, scientific things.  The book is all about the men learning the women's culture and there's also sort of a message of don't mess with women because they can be just as powerful as men, and Vandyck, Jeff, and Terry all get kicked out by the women alone.

The chapter set up on Herland resembles a scientific journal in that the chapter names just list different things the men encountered and did on their journey, such as "Our Relations and Theirs" (chapter 9) and "Their Religions and Our Marriages" (chapter 10).  These are just the main ideas on which they expand in the chapter through what they figured out doing their "experiments"-- hanging out and learning from the women.

Even though the man at the beginning of the book tells the three scientists not to go to the women's village because "None of them had ever seen it. It was dangerous, deadly, they said, for any man to go there." (Gilman ch 1) which implies a mythical and sort of magical evil because they believe its bad but actually haven't gone to check it out and so the village is more of a legend and not a real place.  The men, however, take a scientific approach to much that they do and that includes learning the women's culture and picking out the food to eat in the forests, and they don't treat the women as mythical creatures.

Herland and my definition of American Literature

In my definition, I focus in part on the idea of rebellion, which is defined as the action or process of resisting authority, control, or convention.  This can be seen throughout Herland in Terry, Jeff, and Vandyck; mainly Terry.

In the beginning of the book, the men are told of the women's land, and it is described as "dangerous, deadly...for any man to go there"(Gilman ch 1) and yet the men only think of it as mere "tales of long ago" (Gilman ch 1)which suggests that they don't believe its real, let alone dangerous.  The name Vandyck, when I looked up its meaning, had the words adventurous, wise, and organized.  This and his line statingng how these stories of the land were "the stuff that savage dreams are made of"(Gilman ch 1).  Vandyck is organized.  He has his whole story written out in detail way after it happened.  He is wise, able to communicate and get along with the women of the village really well and yet not forget about why they were there, which was to see what they were all about. He always kept in mind the differences in their cultures when it came to language, relations- including courtship and marriage, and general way of life.  

When the men get to the women's village and they see all the women and girls around them, they freak out.  They don't listen to them or just go along with everything and follow them, they try and run.  Terry, his name means ruler of the people, freaks out and yells at the other men to help him try to overpower the women.  This shows rebellion and it fits with his name.  When the men sneak off and "escape" the first time, Terry leads them and is the most ardent about escaping.  In the end of chapter 11, Terry was the reason the men got sent home. He rebelled against the customs that not only the women were adhered to, but from the customs the men had set up with them during their stay.  

During the whole book, Jeff is like not unlike the voice of reason and is a calming presence for the men and women.  he gets along with his teacher, he listens, he follows orders. He is described as having a "tender soul" (Gilman ch 1) and the way he envisions Herland is written as "just blossoming with roses and babies and canaries and tidies, and all that sort of thing" (Gilman ch 1), which suggests he is kind and gentle and that fits with his name, which means divinely peaceful.  He not only keeps a sound mind through the duration of the book, but he keeps the peace between the men during their stay in Herland.

Herland and Puritanism

While the three male scientists in this book represent the more rationalistic side of literature, the women's city reflects puritanism.  It is on top of a hill, and they are trying to make sense of the world, what they don't know, which could represent God in that they see the world as something to admire, worship, and fear.
This city on a hill view of the women's community fits in with Puritanism in that it looks fancy and has many amenities that make it stand out as better.  In chapter 2, the road is described as "some sort of hard manufactured stuff, sloped slightly to shed rain, with every curve and grade and gutter as perfect as if it were Europe's best," which makes it seem as if the city is going to rival Europe's best, which is a huge deal.
Later in that chapter, evidence of the city on a hill view of the community are evident in the men's description that states: "here was evidently a people highly skilled, efficient, caring for their country as a florist cares for his costliest orchids. Under the soft brilliant blue of that clear sky, in the pleasant shade of those endless rows of trees, we walked unharmed, the placid silence broken only by the birds."  This not only makes the village seem peaceful and serene, but well groomed and magnificent.
The way Puritans viewed God, as a being they did not understand yet one whom they feared and revered, is the same way in which the women of the village viewed outside civilization.  They do not understand it yet are still fascinated by it and try to learn as much as they can about it.  Women teach the men about their culture so they can learn more about theirs.  The women respect the scientists in the same way they hope the men respect them because they want to be in their good graces.
While the men represent the more Rational side of literature, which is a stark contrast to Puritanism, they fear and revere the women and their society much as Puritans did God.