First off, yes, I was tempted to read the book because I saw Emma Watson on a Little Women movie trailer and as I die-hard fan of Harry Potter book series, I vowed that I will finish the book regardless how boring it would be.
Usually when we say the “classic” we tend to connect it to being “dull” or “out of date”. But for me, a true “classic” is something that is timeless and that even through many generations, it could still spark our imaginations and touch our deepest souls.
Little Women: Quirks and Talents
The four sisters in Little Women had their own unique talents which convey their different personalities. Distinct as they are, even reflecting on the plants they toiled to grow in their garden, they have the same kind heart and resilient spirit.
Margaret (Meg/Daisy) March- the eldest, who is described as very pretty, fair and sweet-natured, she is considered as the mother figure of the four. She was the nursery governess in a rich family. Meg was ‘fond of luxury’, always moaning about not affording pretty dresses and can’t help comparing herself with her rich friend Sallie Gardiner. She longed for her old life before all the wealth was consumed by her father, Robert March, whose reason was to help a friend in debt. Because of this, he was absent to most of his daughters’ teenage lives as he was away serving as a chaplain. It made me wonder was there any other way for Mr. March to help his friend without breaking the bank? This just shows though that there are some (rarely) people that are so loyal and selfless that they will gladly surrender everything in order to help someone. Going back to Meg, she was often the one who breaks up childish bickering between her sisters and often reminded everyone, especially Jo to act accordingly.
Josephine (Jo) March – My most favorite character. She is the dreamer of the family. Jo is portrayed as very tall and thin, with an expressive face. A little rebellious, and tomboyish. Although they are complete opposites, she and Meg get along together. Their close bond can usually be seen every time they leave the house in the morning as they set off to work. Jo was a bookworm, which was the ultimate bribe of her prickly Aunt March for Jo to become her companion. I like Jo for she is ambitious, and she wants to do something splendid through her writing. She is the friendliest among the sisters, even making a friend out of shy Theodore ‘Laurie’ Laurence, who was their new neighbor and became like a brother to them.
Elizbeth (Beth) March- I often mistook Beth as the youngest sister maybe because she was the most timid of the family. She has smooth hair, bright eyes and rosy cheeks. She was the perfect housewife and was called “Little Miss Tranquility” by their father. Beth had simple pleasures. She is satisfied to stay at home, do her little chores like taking care of her pet kittens and dolls. She also has a gift in playing the piano, but as they were poor, they only had an old, yellowing keyed piano. Beth had to learn to overcome her shyness and was rewarded with a beautiful grand piano of her own, gifted to her by their neighbor, James Laurence, Laurie’s grandfather. Beth is the favorite of Jo, and I think it is because she is her complete opposite and bring calmness to Jo’s rumbustious personality.
Amy Curtis March- Amy who is always mindful of her manners, has extremely fair skin, blue eyes, blond curly hair but finds her nose as offending. Early in the story, she showed a distinct sign of the “youngest child syndrome”: being spoiled. That’s why she was my least favorite of the sisters. But don’t worry, she will eventually grow out of it and became the proper and respectable lady she had hoped to become. Amy is the artist and the schoolgirl in the family. She diligently practices sketching, creating paper mashay, and clay models.
Little Women: Dreams and Reality
“Wouldn’t it be fun if all castle in the air, which we make could come true, and we could live in them?”
Oh, how I wish that would be so easy Jo. Dreaming and hoping is something, making them happen and putting the effort is another thing.
Dreams... tend to change over time.
If I’ll be building my castle, it would mostly likely be either topsy-turvy or total chaos, or both. Even now, I’m still reconstructing and remodeling and it’s okay. You should never stop dreaming because when you do, you wouldn’t have any purpose in life and what a boring way of living that would be.
Each sister shared with another (and Laurie) their castles in the air one lazy September afternoon and here's how it goes:
Meg’s Dream- Meg, who was “fond of luxury”, dreams of a grand house with extravagant things, like food, clothes and furniture, and with lots of money and servants she can be a mistress off.Jo further added why not wish for “a splendid, wise, good husband and some angelic little children”. In the end, Meg did not get her luxurious house, but Jo did predict that Meg would find a wise husband and that is in person of John Brooke, the poor but kind tutor of Laurie. He worked as a bookkeeper and earned enough to provide Meg a modest home. I think the most important realization that the young couple had was that
They couldn't live on love alone
They had to learn to compromise, to sacrifice (especially Meg, who was sometimes tempted again by luxury) and to work as a team. The family was then blessed with two darlings, twins, Daisy and Demi. With a few bumps, Meg learned to be contented with living humbly and happily.
Jo’s Dream- I can relate to Jo’s dream more than any of the sisters. She and I dream of doing something worthwhile and that even we no longer tread on this temporary home we call Earth, we will be remembered.We also don’t settle for mediocrity,
"We mean to astonish you all someday,"
Well said Jo! This is the reason why I choose to put my work to the world through blogging because I want to share my thoughts and my talents. Being famous and rich will be a bonus for me but is a favorite dream of Jo. Had Jo ever achieved her dream? Well, certainly she did publish a few books and a lot of articles, stories and poems in the newspaper, and she did receive a decent amount of payment, but she did not became famous or rich. She found happiness elsewhere. She got married to her beloved professor Friedrich "Fritz" Bhaer, inherited her Aunt March’s house, turned it into a school for boy and soon enough had children of her own. Jo found that the affection and admiration of the boys who now called her “Mother Bhaer”, was more satisfying than the recognition of the world and with that Jo also found her happiness.
To tell you honestly, I never thought Jo would ever marry. Even from the beginning of the story, she was obstinate on not marrying. I read somewhere that the character Jo was loosely based on the author herself, Louisa May Alcott! Louisa was a strong feminist and in real life never married. She had planned for Jo not to marry, but because of some conflict with her publisher, who was adamant on the belief that if Louisa’s Jo will remain a spinster, no one will want to read and buy it. So, Jo married.
Thinking about it, it was not yet socially accepted to be unmarried at the time Louisa published her book. In her time, it was still a social culture that marriage is a must! It’s safe to say that if ever Louisa was born in this generation, many would have approved of her independence. What do you think my fellow single ladies?
Beth’s Dream- Beth is just a sweetheart. She didn’t have big dreams. All she wanted was to continue living at home and take care of her family. I will say more on Beth’s dream in part two of this post as it relates to what I want to share about the lessons I have learned after reading the book.
Amy’s Dream- Artistic Amy of course wanted to be the best artist in the world! She wanted to travel to Rome to find inspirations for her sketches. Amy was a little like Meg, she wanted to marry rich in order to have lovely things. She even considered marrying, Fred Vaugh (a rich friend of Laurie’s) not because of love but because she hated poverty. Amy even goes into saying that since her sisters have not found wealthier options, she will make it her responsibility to marry well for economic reasons.
Amy did fulfill her first wish in traveling, (thanks to the generosity of her aunt and uncle) and she was able to continue practicing her art, but soon understood the fact that
There is a big difference between being genius and being talented
Amy also did marry well, but for the right reasons. She married Laurie! They both found comfort with each other during dark times and fell in love. The couple vowed that they would spread happiness by using their riches in a generous way.
Growing up, the sisters’ world widened and with that they experience things that change their perceptions. This just proves the point that dreams do change overtime and it’s very much alright, just as long as it brings you happiness (and they are legal, and morally correct).
If you want to read Little Women for free, click here.
End of Part 1
Click me for Part 2
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