Written in 1868 and set during and after the American Civil, Little Women follows the charming lives of the March family namely the four daughters: Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. We learn about the misfortunes and the success of the girls as well as learning important life lessons and advice from their experiences and the people around them. Sadly, I have only read the book for the first time as an adult however intend to read this book to my children one day when they are at a similar age to the March girls. The reason for this is I think that any young, impressionable person would benefit greatly from some of the teachings in Louisa May Alcott's wonderful novel.
Be happy with what you have
The March family are by no means rich or even well off. It is established very early on in the story that each of the daughters has a job and works for what they have. The beginning of the book sees the girls discussing what they want for Christmas, eventually they agree that they don't need any more and instead set out to buy presents for their mother instead setting an excellent example of selflessness to children. Mrs March is a big advocate of the advantages of hard work and earning your way and there is even an instance in the book in which she sits all four girls down and explains why they should be content with what they possess rather than dwell on what they don't possess. Amy and Meg both struggle with unhappiness due to lack of materialistic possessions, it is implied that they will both always long for worldly goods but that at their core both girls understand that having lavish possessions is nothing compared to having love and happiness in your life. I think the fact that the girls are not perfect and struggle with vanity like this respectful because time after time the March daughters seek self improvement and that is a running theme throughout the book also. This tells readers that it is acceptable to have flaws but no acceptable to not work on improving them.
Family is all that matters
At the heart of Little Women is the March family and the book can be labelled as a family drama. Life is not always smooth sailing for the Marches and they have their fair share of trials and tribulations. The first time in the book that this lesson is expressed is when Amy burns Jo's book out of spite and Jo will not forgive her. That is until Amy falls through the ice in the lake and Jo realises how devastated she would be without Amy. This situation teaches us not to hold grudges against the people dearest to us as life is unpredictable and can be short and you should cherish those you love in life rather than express bitterness or contempt towards them.
Be thankful for those who work hard for you
Although the March girls earn their way with work they still have a childish mentality when it comes to hard work in their home life. Mother March conducts an experiment on the girls in which she neglects her usual work in the house and retires to bed for the week to see what will become of the house. The girls struggle of course and through this hardship they learn to appreciate the hard work that their guardians put into looking after them and their home. This lesson is incredibly important as parents are often overlooked and their labour taken for granted so upon reading this chapter audiences will feel gratitude and respect for those in their life that had supported them, something I think everyone should be more aware of.
Love is the greatest treasure you can possess
As I've already mentioned the Marches are not a rich family but it is argued in the book that they might be among some of the wealthiest people in the book because of their endless amount of love for one another and their ability to find happiness in the simple things they are lucky enough to have. Beth meets an untimely end in the book and upon reading her death might be read as a tragedy but in Beth's opinion she lived a full and wonderful life and by the time of her passing she came to the conclusion that she was incredibly fortunate to have felt the amount of love and joy that she did in life. This teaching is furthered through John and Meg's marriage, the two are unconditionally in love and Meg is willing to marry John regardless of the disadvantageous nature of the union proving once over all that love trumps money any day and to be without love is to be the poorest person of all.