Charlotte Perkins Gilman was born on July 3, 1860 in Hartford, Connecticut. She grew up without a father in the home and with a mother who was not emotionally supportive. As a result, she developed a number of independent views. During her career, she was a novelist, writer of short stories, poetry, and nonfiction, and a lecturer for social reform. She wrote her most famous work, Yellow Wallpaper after a bout with postpartem depression following the birth of her only child.
Having learned that she had incurable breast cancer, she committed suicide on August 17, 1935 by taking an overdose of chloroform. It was a deliberate act, consistent with her support of euthanasia.