by Serena H.
Florence Nightingale was a long-time nurse who served in the Crimean War. She lived from May 1820 to August 1910. To say she was a reformer is an understatement. Not only did she bring esteem and recognition to women in the nursing profession, she established her own nursing school in London. She was a pioneer in the nursing and medical health fields. Betons that, she worked on reform from overall healthcare and hunger relief to challenging laws harming women in the workplace and even harsh prostitution laws against women.
There’s a lot more information to pick apart about Florence Nightingale (which you should absolutely look into) but, just by looking at these few pieces, you can see feminism at its finest. One person took a chance to benefit others, not all the same as themselves, and succeeded. Florence Nightingale was a classic feminist that moved to give everyone equal opportunity in healthcare by improving the system. She fought to give women a voice not only on the streets but professionally as well. Her work in the nursing field is a great example. She rejected the life set before her by her family and by the status quo and used her intelligence and strong will to enact change in her society to benefit others. Nightingale wrote many books and other works revolving around her life and her work, which, despite most being released posthumously, are taken into high regard by many feminists today.
Nightingale’s work is still having an influence on today as we take her ideas of breaking the mold and reform our own society. Nightingale went out and changed the world rather than just living in it. Now it's our turn.