Herland

by

Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Jeff is one of the three American explorers who discover Herland. Jeff is a doctor by trade, but Van describes him as having the heart of a poet: he is romantic, idealizes women, and is brimming with chivalry. For Jeff, Herland is clearly a utopia full of beauty, love, and wholesomeness. Jeff stands in stark contrast with Terry, who is a womanizer and full of lust, and Van, who is coldly scientific. Jeff looks forward to discovering a nation full of women because he believes it will be an ideal, gentle, peaceful society, free from the violence and cold ambition that characterized America in the early 20th century. While the men are imprisoned in Herland, Jeff is assigned Zava as a tutor and the two of them genuinely enjoy each other’s company. In conversations about American culture, Jeff is frequently the one who highlights the most negative aspects of it, such as the high prevalence of poverty and the mistreatment of women. Jeff courts and eventually marries Celis, one of the first young Herlandian women he met. Jeff and Celis are the only one of the three couples (the others being Van and Ellador, and Terry and Alima) to consummate their marriage, thus making Celis the first Herlandian woman to become pregnant by a man in over 2,000 years. In the end, Jeff decides to stay in Herland while Terry, Ellador, and Van go back to America after Terry is expelled from the country. Jeff embodies the early 20th century view of women as helpless, weak creatures who needed to be protected and even worshipped by men—Jeff himself is often described a “born worshipper.”

Jeff Margrave Quotes in Herland

The Herland quotes below are all either spoken by Jeff Margrave or refer to Jeff Margrave. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Womanhood and Femininity Theme Icon
).
Chapter 1: A Not Unnatural Enterprise Quotes

Jeff idealized women in the best Southern style. He was full of chivalry and sentiment, and all that. And he was a good boy; he lived up to his ideals.

You might say Terry did, too, if you can call his views about women anything so polite as ideals. I always liked Terry. He was a man’s man, very much so, generous and brave and clever; but I don’t think any of us in college days was quite pleased to have him with our sisters. We weren’t very stringent, heavens no! But Terry was “the limit.”

[…]

I held a middle ground, highly scientific, of course, and used to argue learnedly about the physiological limitations of the sex.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 12
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 2: Rash Advances Quotes

We seemed to think that if there were men we could fight them, and if there were only women—why, they would be no obstacles at all.

Jeff, with his gentle romantic old-fashioned notions of women as clinging vines; Terry, with his clear decided practical theories that there were two kinds of women—those he wanted and those he didn’t; Desirable and Undesirable was his demarcation. The last was a large class, but negligible—he had never thought about them at all.

And now here they were, in great numbers, evidently indifferent to what he might think, evidently determined on some purpose of their own regarding him, and apparently well able to enforce their purpose.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson, The Colonels
Page Number: 24-25
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5: A Unique History Quotes

“They are a protection,” Terry insisted. “They bark if burglars try to get in.”

Then she made notes of “burglars” and went on: “because of the love which people bear to this animal.”

Zava interrupted here. “Is it the men or the women who love this animal so much?”

“Both!” insisted Terry.

“Equally?” she inquired.

And Jeff said, “Nonsense, Terry—you know men like dogs better than women do—as a whole.”

“Because they love it so much—especially men. This animal is kept shut up, or chained.”

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave (speaker), Terry O. Nicholson (speaker), Zava (speaker), Moadine
Page Number: 58
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7: Our Growing Modesty Quotes

At home we had measured him with other men, and, though we knew his failings, he was by no means an unusual type. We knew his virtues too, and they had always seemed more prominent than the faults. Measured among women—our women at home, I mean—he had always stood high. He was visibly popular. Even where his habits were known, there was no discrimination against him; in some cases his reputation for what was felicitously termed “gaiety” seemed a special charm.

But here, against the calm wisdom and quiet restrained humor of these women, with only that blessed Jeff and my inconspicuous self to compare with, Terry did stand out rather strong.

As “a man among men,” he didn’t; as a man among—I shall have to say, “females,” he didn’t; his intense masculinity seemed only fit complement to their intense femininity. But here he was all out of drawing.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Page Number: 81
Explanation and Analysis:

We had expected them to be given over to what we called “feminine vanity”—“frills and furbelows,” and we found they had evolved a costume more perfect than the Chinese dress, richly beautiful when so desired, always useful, of unfailing dignity and good taste.

We had expected a dull submissive monotony, and found a daring social inventiveness far beyond our own, and a mechanical and scientific development fully equal to ours.

We had expected pettiness, and found a social consciousness besides which our nations looked like quarrelling children—feeble-minded ones at that.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Related Symbols: Herlandian Clothes
Page Number: 88
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8: The Girls of Herland Quotes

“We like you the best,” Somel told me, “because you seem more like us.”

“More like a lot of women!” I thought to myself disgustedly, and then remembered how little like “women,” in our derogatory sense, they were. She was smiling at me, reading my thought.

“We can quite see that we do not seem like—women—to you. Of course, in a bi-sexual race the distinctive feature of each sex must be intensified. But surely there are characteristics enough which belong to People, aren’t there? That’s what I mean about you being more like us—more like People. We feel at ease with you.”

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Somel (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Page Number: 97
Explanation and Analysis:

What left us even more at sea in our approach was the lack of any sex-tradition. There was no accepted standard of what was “manly” and what was “womanly.”

When Jeff said, taking the fruit basket from his adored one, “A woman should not carry anything,” Celis said, “Why?” with the frankest amazement. He could not look at that fleet-footed, deep-chested young forester in the face and say, “Because she is weaker.” She wasn’t. One does not call a race horse weak because it is visibly not a cart horse.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave (speaker), Celis (speaker)
Page Number: 100-101
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11: Our Difficulties Quotes

This is one thing which we did not understand—had made no allowance for. When in our pre-marital discussions one of those dear girls had said: “We understand it thus and thus,” or “We hold such and such to be true,” we men, in our own deep-seated convictions of the power of love, and our easy views about beliefs and principles, fondly imagined that we could convince them otherwise. What we imagined, before marriage, did not matter any more than what an average innocent girl imagines. We found the facts to be different.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson, Ellador, Celis, Alima
Page Number: 132
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Herland LitChart as a printable PDF.
Herland PDF

Jeff Margrave Quotes in Herland

The Herland quotes below are all either spoken by Jeff Margrave or refer to Jeff Margrave. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Womanhood and Femininity Theme Icon
).
Chapter 1: A Not Unnatural Enterprise Quotes

Jeff idealized women in the best Southern style. He was full of chivalry and sentiment, and all that. And he was a good boy; he lived up to his ideals.

You might say Terry did, too, if you can call his views about women anything so polite as ideals. I always liked Terry. He was a man’s man, very much so, generous and brave and clever; but I don’t think any of us in college days was quite pleased to have him with our sisters. We weren’t very stringent, heavens no! But Terry was “the limit.”

[…]

I held a middle ground, highly scientific, of course, and used to argue learnedly about the physiological limitations of the sex.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 12
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 2: Rash Advances Quotes

We seemed to think that if there were men we could fight them, and if there were only women—why, they would be no obstacles at all.

Jeff, with his gentle romantic old-fashioned notions of women as clinging vines; Terry, with his clear decided practical theories that there were two kinds of women—those he wanted and those he didn’t; Desirable and Undesirable was his demarcation. The last was a large class, but negligible—he had never thought about them at all.

And now here they were, in great numbers, evidently indifferent to what he might think, evidently determined on some purpose of their own regarding him, and apparently well able to enforce their purpose.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson, The Colonels
Page Number: 24-25
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5: A Unique History Quotes

“They are a protection,” Terry insisted. “They bark if burglars try to get in.”

Then she made notes of “burglars” and went on: “because of the love which people bear to this animal.”

Zava interrupted here. “Is it the men or the women who love this animal so much?”

“Both!” insisted Terry.

“Equally?” she inquired.

And Jeff said, “Nonsense, Terry—you know men like dogs better than women do—as a whole.”

“Because they love it so much—especially men. This animal is kept shut up, or chained.”

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave (speaker), Terry O. Nicholson (speaker), Zava (speaker), Moadine
Page Number: 58
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7: Our Growing Modesty Quotes

At home we had measured him with other men, and, though we knew his failings, he was by no means an unusual type. We knew his virtues too, and they had always seemed more prominent than the faults. Measured among women—our women at home, I mean—he had always stood high. He was visibly popular. Even where his habits were known, there was no discrimination against him; in some cases his reputation for what was felicitously termed “gaiety” seemed a special charm.

But here, against the calm wisdom and quiet restrained humor of these women, with only that blessed Jeff and my inconspicuous self to compare with, Terry did stand out rather strong.

As “a man among men,” he didn’t; as a man among—I shall have to say, “females,” he didn’t; his intense masculinity seemed only fit complement to their intense femininity. But here he was all out of drawing.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Page Number: 81
Explanation and Analysis:

We had expected them to be given over to what we called “feminine vanity”—“frills and furbelows,” and we found they had evolved a costume more perfect than the Chinese dress, richly beautiful when so desired, always useful, of unfailing dignity and good taste.

We had expected a dull submissive monotony, and found a daring social inventiveness far beyond our own, and a mechanical and scientific development fully equal to ours.

We had expected pettiness, and found a social consciousness besides which our nations looked like quarrelling children—feeble-minded ones at that.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Related Symbols: Herlandian Clothes
Page Number: 88
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8: The Girls of Herland Quotes

“We like you the best,” Somel told me, “because you seem more like us.”

“More like a lot of women!” I thought to myself disgustedly, and then remembered how little like “women,” in our derogatory sense, they were. She was smiling at me, reading my thought.

“We can quite see that we do not seem like—women—to you. Of course, in a bi-sexual race the distinctive feature of each sex must be intensified. But surely there are characteristics enough which belong to People, aren’t there? That’s what I mean about you being more like us—more like People. We feel at ease with you.”

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Somel (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson
Page Number: 97
Explanation and Analysis:

What left us even more at sea in our approach was the lack of any sex-tradition. There was no accepted standard of what was “manly” and what was “womanly.”

When Jeff said, taking the fruit basket from his adored one, “A woman should not carry anything,” Celis said, “Why?” with the frankest amazement. He could not look at that fleet-footed, deep-chested young forester in the face and say, “Because she is weaker.” She wasn’t. One does not call a race horse weak because it is visibly not a cart horse.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave (speaker), Celis (speaker)
Page Number: 100-101
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11: Our Difficulties Quotes

This is one thing which we did not understand—had made no allowance for. When in our pre-marital discussions one of those dear girls had said: “We understand it thus and thus,” or “We hold such and such to be true,” we men, in our own deep-seated convictions of the power of love, and our easy views about beliefs and principles, fondly imagined that we could convince them otherwise. What we imagined, before marriage, did not matter any more than what an average innocent girl imagines. We found the facts to be different.

Related Characters: Vandyck “Van” Jennings (speaker), Jeff Margrave, Terry O. Nicholson, Ellador, Celis, Alima
Page Number: 132
Explanation and Analysis: