Louisa May Alcott - novel - 1868 - p. 172

A massive and enduring success among both literary critics and the general public, Little Women followed the exploits of four sisters--Meg, Beth, Amy, and Jo March--and their mother, affectionately referred to as “Marmee,” in New England. Mr. March is away fighting for the Union Army in the Civil War. The novel depicts various everyday struggles and excitements and portrays the girls’ growth--for example, tomboyish Jo must learn to control her temper and negotiate social expectations of feminine comportment with her own sense of self. 

The girls--particularly Jo--befriend Laurie, a young boy who lives nearby and also fails to conform fully to gender norms. Meg falls in love with an eventually marries Laurie’s tutor, Brooke. Amy, the youngest, is an artist who prefers to create purely for art’s sake in contrast to Jo, who aspires to support herself as a writer. While Beth is sickly and generally confined to the house, she nonetheless makes her mark on the world by knitting and sewing for the needy; the novel is distinguished by the degree of dignity it accords domestic work.

Louisa May Alcott wrote sequels but objected to pressure from publishers to make the girls’ narratives align with social conventions for women--i.e. marriage.

Key elements: absent father, art, juvenile literature