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.