Known to her contemporaries as a fervent advocate of reform on
social, economic, and religious fronts, designated an "optimist
reformer" by William Dean Howells, Charlotte Perkins Gilman
(1860-1935) today is celebrated more as a writer of novels and
short stories, particularly Herland and The Yellow Wallpaper, than
as the author of the many social and political essays that
originally made her so prominent. The essayists in this spirited
volume return to Gilman's primary focus by reminding us that the
main purpose of her writing was reform.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Optimist Reformer looks at Gilman's
legacy for women at the end of the twentieth century; in doing so
its contributors reassess both her reformist ideas and our own
views on fin de siecle feminism. Gilman scholarship has indeed
moved on from the much needed recovery of her work to more critical
treatments that allow us to acknowledge elements now regarded as
unacceptable. As a result, the essayists here reappraise Gilman and
her writings in ways that directly address hithertofore overlooked
points, such as her racism, her almost willful disregard of issues
of class, and her broadly essentialist view of women.
The effect of this collection is thus twofold: Gilman and her
works are both reassessed in light of current feminist thought and
presented in the context of her own time. A constant theme is the
recognition of her unwavering belief that things could be changed
for the better; it is this persistent optimism that made her such a
forceful voice for reform. Thus the essayists demonstrate that
engagement with Gilman's reformist views is still pertinent for
feminist debate today.
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