Little Women Literary Devices

Explanation and Analysis—Poverty:

Despite the cheerful and cozy atmosphere of Little Women, poverty plays a huge role in the dynamics of the March household. On the very first page, readers discover that the March girls are poor.

"It's so dreadful to be poor!" sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.
"I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls to have nothing at all," added little Amy, with an injured sniff.

"We've got Father and Mother and each other," said Beth contentedly from her corner.

They can't afford Christmas presents or new clothes, and they envy richer girls, but Beth realizes the most important aspect of life is familial love. Moreover, some families suffer much worse fortunes. In Chapter 2, Alcott describes the dwelling of the Hummel family. This provides a contrast to the cozy and comfortable (if simple) lifestyle of the Marches.

A poor, bare, miserable room it was, with broken windows, no fire, ragged bedclothes, a sick mother, wailing baby, and a group of pale, hungry children cuddled under one old quilt, trying to keep warm.

Here is an example that puts the Marches' situation into perspective. The girls learn they are privileged by comparison and choose to share their resources with the struggling family. Despite a continued emphasis on the importance of love and friendship over money, most of the characters' poverty is alleviated at the end of the story. All of the girls get married. Jo inherits an estate from a relative. So the story's prevailing lesson is twofold: that those who help others will be rewarded, and that families who lack money might still be rich in love (which is a far more important component of life).

Explanation and Analysis—The Home:

Alcott portrays the home as not only a domestic center but also a moral one. In this spirit, Marmee often emphasizes the principles of good homemaking, and in Chapter 4 Beth follows her example:

Even when he went away, and her mother was called to devote her skill and energy to Soldiers' Aid Societies, Beth went faithfully on by herself and did the best she could. She was a housewifely little creature, and helped Hannah keep home neat and comfortable for the workers, never thinking of any reward but to be loved. Long, quiet days she spent, not lonely nor idle, for her little world was peopled with imaginary friends, and she was by nature a busy bee.

The descriptor "housewifely" is a high compliment; Marmee desires that her girls learn how to keep house, and Beth does so despite her physical limitations.

Alcott also depicts a close-knit, loving household as the necessary unit of a stable society. In Chapter 1, she establishes her characters as model homemakers and family members:

It was a comfortable room, though the carpet was faded and the furniture very plain, for a good picture or two hung on the walls, books filled the recesses, chrysanthemums and Christmas roses bloomed in the windows, and a pleasant atmosphere of home peace pervaded it.

As the girls mature, they learn to contribute to their family home, which provides them with the skills needed to run their own homes in the future. According to the novel, a good home provides the ideal atmosphere in which women can exert positive moral influence over their children and husbands.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Poverty:

Despite the cheerful and cozy atmosphere of Little Women, poverty plays a huge role in the dynamics of the March household. On the very first page, readers discover that the March girls are poor.

"It's so dreadful to be poor!" sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.
"I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls to have nothing at all," added little Amy, with an injured sniff.

"We've got Father and Mother and each other," said Beth contentedly from her corner.

They can't afford Christmas presents or new clothes, and they envy richer girls, but Beth realizes the most important aspect of life is familial love. Moreover, some families suffer much worse fortunes. In Chapter 2, Alcott describes the dwelling of the Hummel family. This provides a contrast to the cozy and comfortable (if simple) lifestyle of the Marches.

A poor, bare, miserable room it was, with broken windows, no fire, ragged bedclothes, a sick mother, wailing baby, and a group of pale, hungry children cuddled under one old quilt, trying to keep warm.

Here is an example that puts the Marches' situation into perspective. The girls learn they are privileged by comparison and choose to share their resources with the struggling family. Despite a continued emphasis on the importance of love and friendship over money, most of the characters' poverty is alleviated at the end of the story. All of the girls get married. Jo inherits an estate from a relative. So the story's prevailing lesson is twofold: that those who help others will be rewarded, and that families who lack money might still be rich in love (which is a far more important component of life).

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—The Home:

Alcott portrays the home as not only a domestic center but also a moral one. In this spirit, Marmee often emphasizes the principles of good homemaking, and in Chapter 4 Beth follows her example:

Even when he went away, and her mother was called to devote her skill and energy to Soldiers' Aid Societies, Beth went faithfully on by herself and did the best she could. She was a housewifely little creature, and helped Hannah keep home neat and comfortable for the workers, never thinking of any reward but to be loved. Long, quiet days she spent, not lonely nor idle, for her little world was peopled with imaginary friends, and she was by nature a busy bee.

The descriptor "housewifely" is a high compliment; Marmee desires that her girls learn how to keep house, and Beth does so despite her physical limitations.

Alcott also depicts a close-knit, loving household as the necessary unit of a stable society. In Chapter 1, she establishes her characters as model homemakers and family members:

It was a comfortable room, though the carpet was faded and the furniture very plain, for a good picture or two hung on the walls, books filled the recesses, chrysanthemums and Christmas roses bloomed in the windows, and a pleasant atmosphere of home peace pervaded it.

As the girls mature, they learn to contribute to their family home, which provides them with the skills needed to run their own homes in the future. According to the novel, a good home provides the ideal atmosphere in which women can exert positive moral influence over their children and husbands.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Love & Marriage:

Love and marriage feature prominently in Little Women. These concepts are intimately related. As Marmee says in Chapter 9:

"I want my daughters to be beautiful, accomplished, and good. To be admired, loved, and respected. To have a happy youth, to be well and wisely married, and to lead useful, pleasant lives, with as little care and sorrow to try them as God sees fit to send. To be loved and chosen by a good man is the best and sweetest thing which can happen to a woman, and I sincerely hope my girls may know this beautiful experience.

Alcott depicts marriage as a wonderful institution. According to Marmee (and the narrator), it is highly beneficial in terms of money and emotional support. It also marks the accomplishment of adulthood. Those who are unable to be together (like Marmee and her husband Robert) struggle and miss each other desperately.

However, in Chapter 15, the girls also express frustration at the limitations society places on women by expecting them to marry and have children:

"People don't have fortunes left them in that style nowadays, men have to work and women marry for money. It's a dreadfully unjust world," said Meg bitterly. "Jo and I are going to make fortunes for you all. Just wait ten years, and see if we don't," said Amy, who sat in a corner making mud pies, as Hannah called her little clay models of birds, fruit, and faces. "Can't wait, and I'm afraid I haven't much faith in ink and dirt, though I'm grateful for your good intentions."

All of the girls (except Beth) get married by the story's end. Jo and Mr. Bhaer make the most notable match, not least due to Jo's initial resistance to marriage and femininity. But her craving for love, and her family's influence, lead her to choose a more traditional path.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Women & Femininity:

As the title suggests, Little Women explores the feminine perspective from many angles. Women are most prominently featured as wives and mothers. They are the moral center of the household; they are most often praised for keeping a house and raising children. For example, Marmee exemplifies the ideal wife and mother as she remains loyal to her husband and raises her girls to be useful, productive, and kind. And remarkably, even though she encourages the girls to get married, she also remains open to their staying single:

"Right, Jo. Better be happy old maids than unhappy wives, or unmaidenly girls, running about to find husbands," said Mrs. March decidedly. "Don't be troubled, Meg, poverty seldom daunts a sincere lover. Some of the best and most honored women I know were poor girls, but so love-worthy that they were not allowed to be old maids. Leave these things to time. Make this home happy, so that you may be fit for homes of your own, if they are offered you, and contented here if they are not. One thing remember, my girls. Mother is always ready to be your confidant, Father to be your friend, and both of us hope and trust that our daughters, whether married or single, will be the pride and comfort of our lives."

So, Alcott glorifies mothers and wives but does not scorn spinsters and professional or artistic women. In fact, she celebrates the latter by making her central character (Jo) a voracious reader and writer. Jo defies the traditional notion of feminine virtue with her tomboyish clothing and behavior, but she remains a sympathetic and triumphant character. Society limits the role of women, but it cannot keep determined souls like Jo from accomplishing their goals. In this novel, as in real life, there are many ways to be female, and one is no more valuable than the other.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Love & Marriage:

Love and marriage feature prominently in Little Women. These concepts are intimately related. As Marmee says in Chapter 9:

"I want my daughters to be beautiful, accomplished, and good. To be admired, loved, and respected. To have a happy youth, to be well and wisely married, and to lead useful, pleasant lives, with as little care and sorrow to try them as God sees fit to send. To be loved and chosen by a good man is the best and sweetest thing which can happen to a woman, and I sincerely hope my girls may know this beautiful experience.

Alcott depicts marriage as a wonderful institution. According to Marmee (and the narrator), it is highly beneficial in terms of money and emotional support. It also marks the accomplishment of adulthood. Those who are unable to be together (like Marmee and her husband Robert) struggle and miss each other desperately.

However, in Chapter 15, the girls also express frustration at the limitations society places on women by expecting them to marry and have children:

"People don't have fortunes left them in that style nowadays, men have to work and women marry for money. It's a dreadfully unjust world," said Meg bitterly. "Jo and I are going to make fortunes for you all. Just wait ten years, and see if we don't," said Amy, who sat in a corner making mud pies, as Hannah called her little clay models of birds, fruit, and faces. "Can't wait, and I'm afraid I haven't much faith in ink and dirt, though I'm grateful for your good intentions."

All of the girls (except Beth) get married by the story's end. Jo and Mr. Bhaer make the most notable match, not least due to Jo's initial resistance to marriage and femininity. But her craving for love, and her family's influence, lead her to choose a more traditional path.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Literature & Writing:

Literature and writing are two very prominent motifs in Little Women. The protagonist Jo experiments with genres and voices in the first half of the story. She begins to dream about writing sensational thrillers to make money but soon finds her voice in more realistic stories. In Chapter 27, Alcott describes Jo's burgeoning passion:

Every few weeks she would shut herself up in her room, put on her scribbling suit, and 'fall into a vortex', as she expressed it, writing away at her novel with all her heart and soul, for till that was finished she could find no peace[...] She did not think herself a genius by any means, but when the writing fit came on, she gave herself up to it with entire abandon, and led a blissful life, unconscious of want, care, or bad weather, while she sat safe and happy in an imaginary world, full of friends almost as real and dear to her as any in the flesh.

Jo embodies her own axiom that "you must cherish your illusions if they make you happy." She lives to create. She relishes the process. She dreams of success, first financial and then stylistic. One of her greatest challenges is forgiving her sister Amy for burning her precious notebook. The development of the literary motif marks the development of Jo's character.

More generally, the characters often discuss famous authors such as Bunyan and Shakespeare. This demonstrates their lively interest in literature and its prominent role in their everyday lives.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Explanation and Analysis—Sacrifice:

Sacrifice is an essential motif in Little Women. In the world of the novel, the ability to sacrifice one's own comfort for another person's benefit indicates good morals. Each of the March sisters must sacrifice some aspect of herself (such as pride or ambition) to contribute to the family. For instance, in Chapter 30, when Amy chooses to be friendly to the girls at the fair, they make a sour remark. She feels slighted, especially after compromising her own work, but her spirits are soon lifted:

Now, that was hard. When we make little sacrifices we like to have them appreciated, at least, and for a minute Amy was sorry she had done it, feeling that virtue was not always its own reward. But it is, as she presently discovered, for her spirits began to rise, and her table to blossom under her skillful hands, the girls were very kind, and that one little act seemed to have cleared the atmosphere amazingly.

Here, it seems that good behavior, including sacrifice, is ultimately rewarded. Although Amy performs an act of gracious kindness, she fails to find intrinsic value in it. Yet she is rewarded by the good graces of the other girls. Amy and the others take cues from Marmee, the exemplar of sacrifice, as she remains loyal to her absent husband while devoting all her time and energy to raising the girls and keeping house. The novel itself is suffused with the moral teachings of Christianity, a religion that emphasizes Christ's sacrifice for the good of humanity.

Unlock with LitCharts A⁺

Little Women

Louisa May Alcott

Little Women: Motifs 6 key examples