Summary
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott is a well-known novel that takes place during the Civil War
and the Reconstruction time period. In the novel, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are four sisters of the March family. Their father is away fighting in the war, and the girls must help their mother, Marmee, to support the family while he is away. As they grow up, they become close with each other and with their
neighbor, Theodore Laurence, whom the girls call Laurie.
Each of the girls has her own goals and struggles that she tries to achieve and overcome throughout the course of the novel. Meg wishes to be wealthy and is very jealous of her friends who seem to have so much more than her. This is her dream as much as it is her obstacle to overcome. Jo would like
to make it in the world as a writer. However, she must learn to overcome her tomboyish ways and her inability to control her anger. Beth would just like to stay home and take care of the family. Her dream is so small because of her overwhelming shyness. She has a passionate love for music, but will not do
anything about it because she is too shy to try. Finally, Amy is like Meg in the sense that she would like to become rich and become of a higher social class. Both Amy and Meg must learn that love and principles come before riches. Amy’s dream is to pursue her artistic talents.
At the age of 17, Meg falls in love with Laurie’s poor tutor, John Brooke. Despite his lack of wealth, Meg agrees to marry him. She finally realizes that love is much more important than wealth, thus overcoming her obstacle in the novel. John and Meg have twins, a girl named Daisy and a boy named Demi. Soon after, Amy travels to Europe with her aunt and cousin. She sees this as an opportunity to work on her art and enjoys staying in Europe very much because with her cousin and aunt she is much higher on the social ladder. Laurie declares to Jo that he loves her and proposes to her, but Jo tells Laurie that she does not love him the same way. Jo leaves the family home to become a tutor in New York for a short amount of time. While in New York, Jo works on her writing and is published in a newspaper anonymously. She also meets a professor named Professor Bhaer. Jo is truly intrigued by him and he begins to teach her German. When she returns home, she cannot help but hope that he will visit her
soon.
Laurie travels to Europe with his grandfather to try and get over Jo. While there, he meets up with Amy, who is still with her aunt and cousin. They become close again and visit each other often. At home, Beth is very sick and dies at a young age. As Amy and Laurie comfort each other, they realize that they have fallen in love. They get married and return home to share the good news with the family. Professor Bhaer comes to visit Jo and ends up proposing to her. Jo accepts and they get married. They open a boarding house for young men and call it Plumfield. Amy and Laurie use their wealth to support
struggling artists. They have a baby girl and name her Beth, after Amy’s sister who passed away.
and the Reconstruction time period. In the novel, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are four sisters of the March family. Their father is away fighting in the war, and the girls must help their mother, Marmee, to support the family while he is away. As they grow up, they become close with each other and with their
neighbor, Theodore Laurence, whom the girls call Laurie.
Each of the girls has her own goals and struggles that she tries to achieve and overcome throughout the course of the novel. Meg wishes to be wealthy and is very jealous of her friends who seem to have so much more than her. This is her dream as much as it is her obstacle to overcome. Jo would like
to make it in the world as a writer. However, she must learn to overcome her tomboyish ways and her inability to control her anger. Beth would just like to stay home and take care of the family. Her dream is so small because of her overwhelming shyness. She has a passionate love for music, but will not do
anything about it because she is too shy to try. Finally, Amy is like Meg in the sense that she would like to become rich and become of a higher social class. Both Amy and Meg must learn that love and principles come before riches. Amy’s dream is to pursue her artistic talents.
At the age of 17, Meg falls in love with Laurie’s poor tutor, John Brooke. Despite his lack of wealth, Meg agrees to marry him. She finally realizes that love is much more important than wealth, thus overcoming her obstacle in the novel. John and Meg have twins, a girl named Daisy and a boy named Demi. Soon after, Amy travels to Europe with her aunt and cousin. She sees this as an opportunity to work on her art and enjoys staying in Europe very much because with her cousin and aunt she is much higher on the social ladder. Laurie declares to Jo that he loves her and proposes to her, but Jo tells Laurie that she does not love him the same way. Jo leaves the family home to become a tutor in New York for a short amount of time. While in New York, Jo works on her writing and is published in a newspaper anonymously. She also meets a professor named Professor Bhaer. Jo is truly intrigued by him and he begins to teach her German. When she returns home, she cannot help but hope that he will visit her
soon.
Laurie travels to Europe with his grandfather to try and get over Jo. While there, he meets up with Amy, who is still with her aunt and cousin. They become close again and visit each other often. At home, Beth is very sick and dies at a young age. As Amy and Laurie comfort each other, they realize that they have fallen in love. They get married and return home to share the good news with the family. Professor Bhaer comes to visit Jo and ends up proposing to her. Jo accepts and they get married. They open a boarding house for young men and call it Plumfield. Amy and Laurie use their wealth to support
struggling artists. They have a baby girl and name her Beth, after Amy’s sister who passed away.