There are many ways to define the words "sex" and "gender". Some would argue that the two words are synonyms; others would argue that they describe different aspects of male and female characteristics. According to the views of the latter a person's sex would designate a place in the biological makeup and their gender would assign a role based on the norms of masculinity and femininity (Dean 60). However, In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Herland there is no concept of sex or gender. The woman in the novel world revolves on the idea that all females contribute equally to the society, the women don't assign roles based on gender, and overall it creates a higher sense of equality among the women.
The women of Herland are diverse from the stereotypical generalization of women in western society (Peyser 193). The women seem to take on roles that are imposed and also expected of them, as well as the roles that are usually assigned to men.
English: Charlotte Perkins Gilman
English: Signature of American writer Charlotte Pe...
English: American feminist poet and writer Charlot...The women contribute to the growth of the community, which includes all forms of physical labor. In the novel when Jeff was explaining the roles of women in his society, he said that women didn't work because "because she is [considered] weaker." While the women of Herland were listening to him, pointed out that the women in their land "working in the fields, moving stones to build the new wall, the rows of houses and the roads they traveled upon-all built by women" (Herland 79). The women found working normal because to them no one else will do the work; however, the men had never seen such independent women. Thomas Peyser from Utopia & Cosmpolis feels, "the scientific advancements made by the Herlanders as compared by those made by predominantly male scientists in western society, which...