Little Sacrifices
What
does it mean to “support a family?” During the American Civil War, many
families were plagued by poverty as a result of economic displacement. The
unfortunate disparity of wealth was evident in many literary works from the
mid-nineteenth century. In 1868, Louisa May Alcott produced Little Women, a story written specifically
for girls. Through this work, she addresses several societal concerns and successfully
erects an “ethic of poor but honest virtue against the temptations of
affluence” (Brodhead, 627). Although the burden of selfishness is attributed to
Amy, each female in the March family makes an altruistic decision to “support” a
loved one. Using each girl in Little
Women as an example, it can be argued that American middle-class females should
willingly make sacrifices as they embrace the domestic responsibilities
associated with their gender.
Without wasting any time, Alcott suggests the
importance of sacrifice on the first page of Little Women. While the four young sisters discuss the hardships of
being “poor,” Meg sets the tone for the story as she proclaims, “We can’t do
much, but we can make our little sacrifices, and ought to do it gladly”
(Alcott, 11). After this revelation, each girl agrees to put aside their
materialistic desires and purchase a Christmas gift for Marmee without
expecting anything in return. Consistent with popular belief, these characters
developed “tender consciences early in life” (MacLeod, 11). Under the
instruction of their virtuous matriarch, they are taught to be modest and
compassionate despite living amongst extravagant friends and family. Instead of spending Christmas morning with her
daughters, Marmee leaves to care for the truly impoverished Hummel family. Even
after returning home, she encourages the young girls to donate their breakfast
to the starving immigrants. Eventually rewarded for their generosity by a
sensitive neighbor, these characters become “immensely (and consciously)
instructive as models of conventional ideals” (MacLeod, 15).
In an attempt to teach economic
responsibility, Alcott expresses poverty in terms of pickled limes during the
chapter titled “Amy’s Valley of Humiliation.” After acquiring a debt of “at
least a dozen pickled limes,” Amy seeks out family to help restore her credit.
She provides Meg an elaborate explanation of the schoolyard drama and receives
financial support with the instruction, “Make it last for as long as you can,
for it isn’t very plenty” (Alcott, 57). Rather than paying the creditors, Amy
brags about her newfound wealth and uses this power to explore revenge. As a
consequence for blatant disobedience, she is publicly humiliated by her teacher
and forced to throw the pickled limes out the window. Since Little Women was written during the
Reconstruction, it is reasonable to relate this scenario with the United
State’s postbellum fiat paper system. Possessing an enormous amount of wartime
debt, the American government issued paper money to stimulate the economy and
did not pay the creditors until much later (Elwell, 2). As a result, the
economy experienced substantial inflation and many families were unable to feed
their children. Just as Meg made a financial sacrifice for her sister,
middle-class American women sacrificed their entire livelihoods in hopes of
rebuilding the war torn nation. Later in the story, Amy admits a willingness
to sacrifice love for wealth while traveling in Europe. She writes in a letter
to her mother, “If Fred asks me, I shall accept him, though I’m not madly in
love with him... I may be mercenary, but I hate poverty, and don’t mean to bear
it a minute longer than I can help. One of us must marry well.”Feeling obligated to financially support her
family, Amy is willing to sacrifice love if it “will make everything cosy all
around” (Alcott, 252). During this time period, many middle-class girls were
asked to make the same sacrifice and married for either love or money. Contrary
to logical thought, idealized perceptions of marriage would not allow wealth to
influence this decision. Remembering her mother’s wishes, Amy waits to be
married and falls in love with Laurie instead.
One of the most profound examples of
sacrifice from Little Women occurs
after the March family receives a telegram indicating that Mr. March is “very
ill” in Washington. Without the means to travel to his bedside, Marmee tells
her daughters, “I am not too proud to beg for father” (Alcott, 131). While
Marmee is away, Beth becomes responsible for providing medical assistance to
the Hummel family. Considered a domestic responsibility, she embraces the idea
of nurturing a sick child. Referenced in
the chapter title, Beth “faithfully” visits the family every day and eventually
becomes noticeably fatigued. Since no one else was willing to accept the duty,
Beth “went out into the chilly air with a heavy head, and a grieved look in her
patient eyes” (Alcott, 142). Involved in their own activities, Meg and Jo do
not recognize Beth’s early symptoms of scarlet fever until after it is too
late. Feeling guilty, “Jo devoted herself to Beth night and day” as the “shadow
of death hovered over the once happy home” (Alcott, 146). Then one evening, the
doctor indicates a breaking point is near, but does not think that Beth will
survive. Just before Marmee arrives home, the innocent girl’s fever reduces and
Beth begins to sleep. Now fully aware of the potential consequences, readers learn
to pay closer attention to their loved ones.
After that same telegram arrives, Jo
feels an uncontrollable obligation to help however she can and leaves the house
abruptly. A short while later, she returns with twenty-five dollars. Alcott
describes her facial expression as a “mixture of fun and fear, satisfaction and
regret.” Jo explains that she “didn’t beg, borrow, nor steal it” (Alcott, 132).
She honestly earned the money by selling the hair off her head. After Jo removes her bonnet, everyone is
shocked to see the boyish hairstyle. Marmee responds to this selfless act by
saying, “I can’t blame you, for I know how willingly you sacrificed your
vanity, as you call it, to your love” (Alcott, 132). Jo’s willingness to relinquish
a defining feature reflects the traditional belief that a woman should put her
family before herself. Her actions throughout the story demonstrate the
American middle-class woman’s “need to be able to earn” (Sicherman, 648).
Since Mr. March eventually proves to be an ineffective breadwinner, Jo assumes the traditionally male role of providing financial support for her family. After winning a sensationalist writing contest, she gives her earnings directly to Marmee during Beth’s second battle for good health. Jo continues to contribute money to family even after publishing a book and moving to New York. Considered by some the most devastating sacrifice in Little Women, Jo also gradually renounces her youthful exuberance as she assumes the title of Mrs. Josephine Bhaer. After officially surrendering her independence, Jo accepts her domestic responsibilities with the infamous statement, “I may be strong-minded, but no one can say that I’m out of my sphere now, --for woman’s special mission is supposed to be drying tears and bearing burdens” (Alcott, 372).
Tempted by the lifestyles of the
emerging leisure-class, Meg struggles to overcome the burden of vanity. Despite
her young age, she anticipates a marriage proposal from Laurie’s “poor” tutor.
Shortly after providing Mr. Brooke with a polite rejection, Meg and John are interrupted
by Aunt March. While John is waiting in the other room, Meg enters into a
passionate conversation with her wealthy aunt about love and marriage. Sacrificing
an inheritance, Meg unexpectedly defends her suitor and assertively states, “My
John wouldn’t marry for money, any more than I would. We
are willing to work and we mean to wait” (Alcott, 182). Disregarding the
earlier refusal, John interprets this display of affection as an acceptance to
his proposal and Meg “meekly” indulges his excitement.
Over the next three years, Meg welcomes
the humble beginnings to a domestic life. Rich in happiness and free from
materialistic temptations, she assumes the responsibilities of a proper housewife.
She tells her husband, “I shall always be prepared: there shall be no flurry,
no scolding, no discomfort, but a neat house, a cheerful wife, and a good
dinner” (Alcott, 219). As if it were recited from Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management, her promise reflects
the “idealized norms of middle-class life” (Brodhead, 626). After failing to
produce jelly and welcome an unexpected guest, Meg and John encounter their first
“squall” as a couple. To settle the dispute, Meg internally forgives her
husband and silently kisses him on the forehead. According to Alcott, “thoughts
of poor John coming home to such a scene quite melted her heart” (Alcott, 225).
Months later, a “serpent in paradise” tempts Meg to purchase an expensive silk
using the household fund. After biting the apple, Meg is full of remorse. Her
indulgence causes John to cancel his coat order since he can no longer afford
it. Pocketing her pride, Meg sells the fabric to Sally Moffat and “orders home
the great-coat” for her husband (Alcott, 226).
Reinforced by examples from Little Women, it is evident that
American middle-class females are expected to makes sacrifices as they gain
power over the domestic sphere. While
highlighting conventional values, Alcott reflects mid-nineteenth century
concerns as “burdens” for Amy, Beth, Meg, and Jo. During times of economic struggle, it is
important to acknowledge a “difference between the right world of Marmee and
the more affluent surround” (Brodhead, 627). Regardless of social status, compassionate
Americans will always feel obligated to “support” their loved ones. According
to author Mario Puzo, “The strength of a family is in its loyalty to each
other.”
Works
Cited:
Alcott,
Louisa May, Anne K. Phillips, and Gregory Eiselein. Little Women, Or, Meg,
Jo, Beth, and Amy. New York: Norton, 2004. 1-380. Print.
Brodhead, Richard H. Starting Out in the 1860’s: Alcott, Authorship, The Postbellum Literary
Field. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1993. In Norton Anthology of Children's Literature,
ed. Jack Zipes et. al. New York: Norton, 2005, 624-632.
Elwell,
Craig. Brief History of the Gold Standard
for the United States. Congressional Research Service. H.R. Rep. No. R41887 (2011). Online.
Internet. February 27, 2013. <
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41887.pdf>.
"Family
Quotes." Family Quotes. Notable Quotes, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2013.
Klein,
Sarah. Bringing Up Jo: Little Women,
Female Rhetoric Activity, and the Nineteenth Century American Conduct Book
Tradition. Domestic Goddesses. May 31, 2000. Online. Internet.
February 27, 2013. <
http://www.womenwriters.net/domesticgoddess/kleinalcott.htm>.
MacLeod, Anne Scott. American
Childhood: Essays on Children's Literature of the Nineteenth
and Twentieth Centuries. Athens, GA: U of Georgia P, 1994.
Sicherman, Barbara. Reading Little Women: The Many Lives of a Text. Chapel Hill, NC:
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New York: Norton, 2005, 632-657.
Vallone,
Lynne. Disciplines of Virtue: Girls' Culture in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth
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