Florence Nightingale, arguably the first great nurse, was born in 1820. She played a major role in the development and elevation of nursing as a respectable and healing profession. With an intellect to rival that of the male intellectuals of her time, during a period when women’s roles were mainly confined to the home, she made her name well known as she continued to prove herself to society as an educator, author, and professional nurse. Nightingale was born in Florence, Italy on May 12,1820. She came from a wealthy family and is the youngest of two children. During her time, it was expected for women to marry and make their primary place inside the home, however as a kid it was apparent that that wasn’t where she was headed. From a young age she was “active in philanthropy, ministering to the ill and poor people in the village neighboring her family’s estate.” Because of this experience, she realized that nursing was her calling from God “to do something toward lifting the load of suffering from the helpless and miserable” and began taking hold of her life in that direction. After …show more content…
Society was aggressively male dominated; “men were seen as superior in almost every aspect. They were the main voice in the family, got the best education, were the only politicians, and had great control over women.” The women’s place was in the home doing things such as cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the children. Although Florence was raised with this lifestyle instilled in her mind, she knew that she wanted something more than just the ‘stay-at-home-wife’ image for herself. In addition to gender inequality, the unsanitary and non-hygienic state of the infirmaries and hospitals was a topic of concern for many Americans as well. That coupled with the inorganization of the facilities, that drew Nightingale to attempt to do all that was in her power to fix the