The novel's style is highly descriptive. Van's descriptions regularly reference the "real" world of the early 20th century. For example, in Chapter 2, he compares himself and his companions to "Suffragettes" when the Herlandians close in on them with chloroform:
Then we found ourselves much in the position of the Suffragette trying to get to the Parliament buildings through a triple cordon of London police.
While there is a rise and fall to the plot of the novel, the plot is quite simple and is largely secondary to Gilman's portrayal of a utopian society run by women. As out-of-this world as Herland might seem, Gilman's frequent use of allusions and similes comparing Herland to her own world reveals that the novel is more about her world than it may look at first. Around the time Gilman wrote Herland, the women's suffrage movement was heating up in both England and the United States. Women organized demonstrations and rallies to agitate for women's right to vote, in part because laboring conditions for women were absolutely horrifying. Women wanted the right to vote so that they could advocate for workplace protections, among other things. The rallies sometimes grew violent, especially as police tried to shut them down through force. Here, Van compares himself, Terry, and Jeff to Suffragettes trying to get into London Parliament and being kept out by a police force united against them.
It is no accident that this comparison involves a role reversal for the men and women. Van, Terry, and Jeff are experiencing, for the first time, what it is like to be silenced and ganged up on because of their gender. Gilman is inviting the reader to imagine what it would be like for men to be powerless in the face of a woman-led government. Allusions and similes frequently play into Gilman's descriptions in this way, emphasizing how Herland reverses power dynamics that were very much part of daily life during her time.
