1. Charlotte Perkins Gilman
“The glory of our race is its power of communication. We share our strength and knowledge and rise as one; we share our failure and weakness and help each other bear it”.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman,
"Our Place Today," 1891

2. Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935)
Famous American family
Aunt Harriet Beecher Stowe: Wrote 30 books (Uncle Tom’s Cabin)
Aunt Isabella: Women's suffrage
Henry Ward Beecher: Abolitionist
Catharine Beecher: Founded schools for young women & a prolific author

3. Marriage and Motherhood
Born in 1860
Committed suicide in 1935 when cancer prevented her from working
Father abandoned her & her mother
Financial strain on them
Educated herself
Married Charles Walter Stetson, a painter
They had a daughter

4. Marriage and Motherhood
Post-partum depression
Stay at home cure
Wrote The Yellow Wallpaper
Friendly divorce in 1894
Daughter lived with father
Married G. Houghton Gilman in 1900

5. Other Relationships & Influences
Jane Addams:
Both supported democracy & education for social improvement
Both rejected conflict & revolution
Gillman disagreed with Addams’ focus on underprivileged & pathology
Gillman’s focus was on all people

6. Other Influences: George Bernard Shaw
British Fabian Socialist
Upper middle-class intellectual group
Social improvement through:
Educating a few powerful British government officials
Did not support revolution
Lead reforms from within government
Work within social structure rather than build a new one

7. ***Sidney & Beatrice Webb
Influenced by Webbs’ writings on the economy
Their views on non-revolutionary change
They were also Fabian Socialists

8. Gilman’s Ideas Social reforms: Democracy & education for social reform
Supported cooperative socialism
Emphasized education for all
Social reforms:
Child-rearing professionals
Meal preparation professionals

9. Gilman’s Ideas Views on Gender: Three Themes
1) Excellence of women’s values & abilities
2) Belief in biological & evolutionary origin of women’s superior attributes
3) Socialist’s vision of political & social equality between men & women

10. Gilman’s Views on Gender
Men & women born equal
Difference is socially created
Overemphasize women as:
Maternal
Sex objects

11. Gilman’s Views on Gender
Society does not benefit from women’s other talents & qualities such as:
Cooperation
Peacefulness

12. Gilman’s Ideas Social Darwinism combined: Reform Darwinism emphasized:
Survival of the fittest with support for status quo, individualism, & capitalism
Reform Darwinism emphasized:
Evolution of cooperation and caring
Cooperation is good for all society & produces progress
Progress includes gender cooperation

13. Cultural Feminism Five stage theory of society evolution
Historically women equal or superior to men.
Five stage theory of society evolution
1. Asexuality to sexuality (appearance of males)
2. Males become superior in size & strength
3. Society changes from matriarchy to patriarchy
4. Monogamous mating
5. Eventually, women become free economically & socially

14. Gilman’s Ideas Socialism: Gillman agreed with Marx-work is basic
Women need economic independence
Critic of capitalism
Professionals should parent rather than amateurs (i.e. parents)
Food produced in cooperative kitchens
Focus always on collective & cooperative activity

15. Gilman’s Ideas Functionalism Society is made of individual parts
Interrelated
Specialized functions
Society is based on cooperation

16. Gilman’s Ideas
Wanted world where men & women could experience fulfillment
Believed it was possible to make society good
Believed society cooperative, evolutionary, & could be reformed
Supported women’s right to vote
Writings promoted change