Little Women

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Each March sister has distinct personality traits and aspirations: Meg desires luxury and domesticity, Jo craves independence and literary success, Beth embodies selflessness, and Amy pursues refinement and artistic achievement. Which sister did you most identify with and why? Did this change as you progressed through the novel?

2. Throughout the novel, Jo struggles against gender constraints while her sisters adapt to them in various ways. Have you ever felt limited by societal expectations because of your gender or other aspects of your identity? How did you navigate those challenges?

3. Marmee admits to Jo that she struggles to control her temper. What personal challenge of yours mirrors the internal battles faced by characters in the novel? How have you worked to overcome it?

4. At different points in the novel, each sister sacrifices something important to her: Meg gives up wealth for love, Jo relinquishes independence for family responsibility, Beth sacrifices her health to help others, and Amy abandons Fred for true love. What meaningful sacrifice have you made in your own life, and do you feel that it was worth it?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. Little Women is set during and after the American Civil War, and Mr. March serves as a chaplain for the Union Army. How does the war’s influence appear in the March household? What commentary is Alcott making about war’s effects on families?

2. The novel presents contrasting views of wealth through characters like the Marches, Laurences, and Moffats. How does Alcott portray the relationship between wealth and happiness? In what ways do these themes still resonate in our current economic climate?

3. Marmee emphasizes the value of hard work and moral integrity, telling her daughters, “I’d rather see you poor men’s wives, if you were happy, beloved, contented, than queens on thrones, without self-respect and peace” (130). How do Marmee’s values reflect or challenge 19th-century American ideals about women’s roles and responsibilities? How have these ideals evolved today?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. While the novel centers on the four March sisters, Marmee serves as their moral compass and guide. How does her character evolve beyond the stereotypical “angel of the house” trope common in 19th-century literature? What makes her advice and influence important to the narrative?

2. Little Women is often described as semi-autobiographical, with Jo representing Alcott herself. How does this fact influence your reading of Jo’s character arc, particularly her writing career and ultimate life choices?

3. The narrator sometimes directly addresses the reader and offers moral instruction. What is the intended effect of this?

4. Flowers appear throughout the novel as symbols for the girls and their development. Which flowers are associated with each of the girls? How does this alter your understanding of their characters and journeys?

5. Alcott structured the novel in two parts, with the first focusing on the March sisters’ childhood and the second on their adult lives. How does this structure reflect the coming-of-age theme? How might the novel’s impact differ if Alcott had ended the story after Part 1, as she originally intended?

6. Throughout Little Women, Alcott includes references to John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, which the girls read at the beginning of the novel. How did this framing device affect your understanding of the story? If you’ve read Alcott’s sequels, Little Men or Jo’s Boys, how do you see the pilgrim’s journey continuing beyond this novel?