Women and Economics

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) was a prominent and prolific American feminist writer most well known today for her first book, The Yellow Wallpaper (1892), and her seminal work Women and Economics (1898). Gilman founded, edited, and wrote for the journal Forerunner, in which she serialized her novel Herland in 1915. She also co-founded the Womens Peace Party. In her time, Gilman did not receive due recognition for her work, but many modern feminist writers have since reflected Gilmans ideologies, and acknowledged her influence. Herland is a fascinating work depicting a feminist utopia, a society formed solely of women. The Yellow Wallpaper is a short horror story based on her own bout with mental illness and misguided medical treatment.