Summary:
Little Women written by Louisa May Alcott, is the story of the March family and their friends and neighbors. It describes the period of time during which the four young March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, develop from young girls into "Little Women." The story is set in Concord, Massachusetts during the Civil War.
Little Women written by Louisa May Alcott, is the story of the March family and their friends and neighbors. It describes the period of time during which the four young March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, develop from young girls into "Little Women." The story is set in Concord, Massachusetts during the Civil War. The girls live with their mother, "Marmee," while their father is serving as a Union chaplain in the Northern Army. The absence of their father makes life for the girls very difficult, but also helps them to learn to be independent. During the book, the March sisters become acquainted with their neighbor, Theodore, "Laurie," Laurence, his tutor, Mr. Fred Brooke, and his grandfather. Each of the girl's different personalities work together to make Little Women a very interesting book. Though it has many characters, the protagonist of the story is Jo, and her dreams of becoming a writer. Under the guidance of Marmee, an educated and deeply religious woman, pretty, mature Meg, boyish and opinionated Jo, sweet-tempered Beth, and vain Amy, learn to persevere during trying times, and to find their proper place in the world.
Little Women is a very mimetic book. One way in which it is believable is the interaction between the sisters. Throughout the book, the March sisters behave with much emotion toward each other. One example of this is the jealousy shown by Amy when Jo refuses to let her go to a play. Enraged, Amy throws Jo's most prized possession, her manuscript, into the fire. A second way in which Little Women is mimetic is in the situation with Mr. March's absence. Like many families in those days, the Marches were forced to be torn apart during the Civil War. In the book, the March family actually receives a telegram with the news that Mr. March has taken ill, and is being treated in a hospital in Washington, D.C. Desperate to pay for her mother's fare to visit him, Jo cuts off all of her hair, and sells it in order to finance the trip. A third way in which this book is realistic is in the lack of cures for deadly diseases. During Little Women, Beth, the kind-hearted sister catches scarlet fever after visiting the Hummels, an extremely poor family with not enough food, and too many mouths to feed. The lack of antibiotics in those days not only caused the family to have to split up, sending Amy away in the hopes that she could stay healthy, but also to cause Beth to become tremendously weak, leaving her permanently disabled, and ultimately causing her death.
Little Women has many didactic elements. One lesson that can be learned is the importance of family. Throughout this book, we see many situations in which the sisters get mad, or bicker at each other, but in the end, they learn that the most important thing in life is staying close to those you love. A second didactic component is in the value of patience. As the girls grew older, they gained in maturity and wisdom, and began to see different aspects of their lives in a new light. For instance, Amy, the youngest sister, ends up falling in love with Laurie, while Jo, Laurie's first love, goes on to publish her manuscript, and meets a man named Frederick Bhaer, who shares in her love of theater and literature. A third didactic lesson is the value of simple goodness and faith. While various characters in the book possessed beauty, talent, and wealth, ultimately, Beth's innate goodness and faith affected her family and friends more than any possession, trait. or physical attribute ever could have. At the time of Beth's death, the characters all realized the peace and joyousness of Beth, as she willingly prepared to leave the pain and suffering of this earth, and meet her Heavenly Father.
One aesthetic quality of Little Women is in the dialogue between Professor Bhaer and Jo. Professor Bhaer was a German man, and tended to speak in broken English. Alcott portrays his German accent very well by spelling words differently in order to make the reader better understand the character. A second way in which Little Women is aesthetic is in the descriptiveness. One example of this is in the description of the March sister's growing friendship with the Laurences, which Alcott describes as, "flourishing like grass in the spring." Another example of description is Meg's description of the Laurence house as, "The Mansion of Bliss." A third aesthetic quality of this book is in the allusions used by Alcott to better acquaint the reader with the girls' ways of thinking. An example of this is in Beth's idea of the Laurence house. She alluded to Mr. Laurence as being one lion, because he seemed stiff, and hard to get along with, which was a false assumption in the end. Beth describes her family's poverty as being the other lion, because of Laurie's wealth, which made them, "shy of accepting favors which they could not return."
This is the complete article, containing 841 words
(approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page).
