The action of the novel is set primarily in Herland, an imagined world the main characters encounter while they are on an expedition somewhere in the wilderness. Notably, the narrator (Vandyck Jennings) never discloses where the expedition is located. Context clues suggest that it is somewhere in South America and that Herland is located among the Andean mountains. For one thing, Van describes some of the Herlandian architecture as similar to Incan architecture. This comparison implies that Van is familiar with the Incan architecture that can be found in the Andean mountain region.
In addition to describing buildings that would be at home there, Van also describes the locals outside Herland using stereotypes associated with Indigenous peoples in the Americas. For instance, he calls them "poison-arrow natives," referring to the problematic and stereotypical association between American Indians and not only archery, but also duplicity and dishonor. Furthermore, the Herlandians seem to be inspired by the mythical Amazon warrior women. These women of Greek mythology were not originally from South America. Still, following Spanish explorers' naming of the Amazon River in the 16th century, people began to imagine that there could be a race of powerful warrior women hidden somewhere in South America.
Gilman's vagueness about the location of Herland allows her to take some liberties in her story. If she does not say exactly where this strange land is located, no one can ever prove that it does not exist. At the same time, using the backdrop of South America allows Gilman to play with the idea of the "exotic." Everything can be different in Herland because it is so far removed from what her readers might think of as the "real" world—and yet, it still supposedly exists somewhere on the globe.
