little women

Little Women, a novel about four young teenagers growing up during the Civil War can be seen by a feminist perspective. Alcott used these characters as a parallel to her life. The four girls - Meg, Amy, Jo and Beth- each had their own purpose in the novel. Alcott depicted herself as Jo March. Jo, unlike all the other girls in her time did not care about societal norms. She did not try to fit in. She does not want to be a girl; she wants to be a man. Jo openly says how she wishes to be a man: “I like boy’s games and work and manners! I can’t get over my disappointment in not being a boy” (Louisa May Alcott 4). From the start of the novel, Alcott’s description of Jo recognizes masculine traits; she has round shoulders, big hands and feet, a flyaway look to her clothes (Alcott 6). These manly qualities are also noticed by her family. When Mr. March comes home from the war he refers his daughter as his “son Jo” (Alcott 348). Amy, the classic Victorian girl who follows society’s norms, is disgusted by Jo’s boyish manners. We can see that Jo’s male desires are caused by the society she finds herself in. When Jo cuts her hair short it removes her femininity by masculinising her appearance while also becoming the source of monetary support. Meg and Beth embody the traditional models of Victorian womanhood. Alcott was forced to incorporate these models of feminine virtue in her novel because her publisher wanted a novel with heroines to instill good behavior in the young female readers. Like Alcott, Jo could never become this type of woman for it would mean she would have to sacrifice too much of her individuality. Rejecting Laurie’s proposal signifies her beliefs that she cannot be married and work. She knew that if sh...

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...om patriarchal power frees them from fixed gender roles. She is capable of managing a whole household alone while her husband is away in the war. Marmee demonstrates that she can survive without a man in her life and his assistance. The family which has manages perfectly fine without the father, struggle when Marmee leaves to assist her ill husband. Amy, being the most sophisticated of all sisters is modeled after Alcott’s younger sister, May. Amy March is very feminine as she makes sure her appearances and her wardrobe pleases others. Amy, able to follow societal norms, proves that she can make a place for herself in the society they live in. By turning down Fred Vaughn’s, Laurie’s friend from school, proposal shows that Amy refutes the fact that women must marry a wealthy man to achieve any social significance. Her marriage for Laurie is one of real love.