Only relatively recently has paid nursing come to be viewed as a respectable profession for women. Early-nineteenth-century literature described hired nurses as low-class, slovenly women who smoked, drank, and abused their patients. The left half of the picture above depicts Sarah Gamp, the infamous nurse character from Charles Dickens' novel Martin Chuzzelwit (1843), who quickly became the symbol of all that was bad about hired nursing and needed to be reformed. The crossed unbrella and gin bottle in the upper left corner references Gamp's disheveled appearance and propensity to drink - both common stereotypes of hired nurses at the time. Additionally, middle-class British society feared that hired nurses were low-class, ignorant, unsympathetic, unfeminine, and too independent from men. Contrary to nurse Gamp, the image in the top right depicts the ideal reformed "new-style" nurse. She is young, physically attractive, and looks directly at the viewer with an expression that conveys interest and sympathy. Her crisp white uniform denotes her professionalism, even while she rests her head against her hand in a delicate, feminine pose, assuring the viewer that her professionalism does not outweigh her femininity.

 

Beyond Nightingale traces the transformation of the representation of nurses in literature and image from the early nineteenth century through the early twentieth century as it moved from a despised source of income to a respected profession for women. The images above succinctly convey this transformation, yet they simplify a complex evolution entangled with issues of class, gender, and politics. Traditional histories also simplify this social change by identifying Florence Nightingale as the initiator and sole reformer of British nursing. This project looks beyond Nightingale to chart a comprehensive literary history of nursing through the nineteenth century and up through World War I. I argue that nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century literature contributed to and, in some cases, precipitated the transformation of the nursing profession by systematically addressing and alleviating society’s fears about women working as public, paid caregivers: fears that hired nurses were low-class, ignorant, unfeminine, and too independent from men. Moreover, many authors suggested that nursing ability was not dependent upon natural femininity or personal character, but relied on training and experience. By altering the public’s perception of paid nursing, literary portrayals of nursing facilitated its transformation from an extension of the feminine, domestic sphere into an efficient medical profession for women.

 

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