louisa may alcott

 

Based on her recollections of her own childhood, Little Women describes the domestic adventures of a New England family of modest means but optimistic outlook. Louisa May Alcott (November 29, 1832 – March 6, 1888) was an American novelist and poet best known as the author of the novel Little Women (1868) and its sequels Little Men (1871) and Jo's Boys (1886). Louisa was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1832 to Bronson Alcott and Abigail May. In 1868, Alcott published her most popular work, Little Women. BOSTON, Mass., March 6.--Miss Louisa M. Alcott died this morning. National Women's History Museum. While many date the “first wave” of feminism to the Women’s Rights Convention held in 1848 in Seneca Falls, the origins of the feminism movement lay much earlier. When the Civil War started in 1861, Alcott served as a nurse in a Union hospital. Abigail May Alcott was born July 26, 1840 into the eccentric – today we might say ‘progressive’ — Alcott family. "Louisa Alcott." By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Her health had been flagging for decades prior, however, and she wrote in her journal that she frequently suffered from exhaustion, headaches, nerve issues, and digestive pain. Work: A Story of Experience (1873), based on Alcott’s own struggles, tells the story of a poor girl trying to support herself by a succession of menial jobs. “Little Women by Louisa May Alcott” Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: Primary Source Set. To do so, she simply reflected back on to her childhood with her sisters. Alcott’s books for younger readers have remained steadfastly popular, and the republication of some of her lesser-known works late in the 20th century aroused renewed critical interest in her adult fiction. She attributed her poor health to mercury poisoning which she believed she contracted while she worked as a nurse during the Civil War. Late in life she adopted her namesake, Louisa May Nieriker, daughter of her late sister, May. Her father, Bronson Alcott, was a popular educator who believed that children should enjoy learning. Louisa May Alcott’s father, Bronson Alcott, was a Transcendentalist educator who frequently entertained friends such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louisa-May-Alcott, HistoryNet - Biography of Louisa May Alcott, National Women's History Museum - Biography of Louisa May Alcott, Louisa May Alcott - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Louisa May Alcott - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Before Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women, she wrote a book about a young girl named Sylvia in love with an intellectual like Ralph Waldo Emerson and a naturalist like Henry David Thoreau. Louisa May Alcott, (born November 29, 1832, Germantown, Pennsylvania, U.S.—died March 6, 1888, Boston, Massachusetts), American author known for her children’s books, especially the classic Little Women (1868–69). Louisa May Alcott wrote many works in every genre — conservatively, more than two hundred, over a career that spanned almost forty years — … Omissions? The Gothic tales and thrillers that Alcott published pseudonymously between 1863 and 1869 were collected and republished as Behind a Mask (1975) and Plots and Counterplots (1976), and an unpublished Gothic novel written in 1866, A Long Fatal Love Chase, was published in 1995. Also wrote under: L.M.A., A. M. Barnard, Flora Fairfield, A.M. A progressive social reformer and activist, Jane Addams was on the frontline of the settlement house movement and was the first American woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize. 1986. March 7, 1888 OBITUARY Louisa M. Alcott Dead By THE NEW YORK TIMES. But May Alcott would always be defined by her oldest sister: first as the least likable March sister, Amy, and second as the younger sister of Louisa May Alcott. Her work introduced readers to educated strong female heroines. Much like her novel Little Women, Alcott was one of four daughters and she remained close with her sisters throughout her life. The "marriage plot" didn't interest her…In fiction or in life! Alcott produced potboilers at first and many of her stories—notably those signed “A.M. Raised by her transcendentalist parents, she grew up among many of the well-known intellectuals of the day such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau. Alcott wanted Jo to be a "literary spinster." Little Women, novel for children by Louisa May Alcott, published in two parts in 1868 and 1869. Students will use the words of Gloria Steinem, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Betty Friedan to better understand sexism in America. Alcott also wrote other domestic narratives drawn from her early experiences: An Old-Fashioned Girl (1870); Aunt Jo’s Scrap Bag, 6 vol. She taught briefly, worked as a domestic, and finally began to write. Although regarded during much of the 20th century only as the author of Little Women, Louisa May Alcott had a manyfaceted personality. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House has been closed to the public since March 13, 2020. Louisa May Alcott was born on Nov. 29, 1832, in Germantown, Pennsylvania but she grew up in Concord, Massachusetts most of her life. The book traces the differing personalities and fortunes of four sisters (Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March) as they emerge from childhood and encounter the vicissitudes of employment, society, and marriage. Some modern researchers have found her ailments later in life symptomatic of lupus. (1872–82); Eight Cousins (1875); and Rose in Bloom (1876). Abrams is now one of the most prominent African American female politicians in the United States. She volunteered as a nurse after the American Civil War began, but she contracted typhoid from unsanitary hospital conditions and was sent home. Louisa May Alcott, (born November 29, 1832, Germantown, Pennsylvania, U.S.—died March 6, 1888, Boston, Massachusetts), American author known for her children’s books, especially the classic Little Women (1868–69). Louisa May Alcott was the second of four daughters, born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, and raised in Boston and Concord, Massachusetts. Therefore, at an early age, Alcott took to reading and writing. Date accessed. 1 of Previous Next. Little Women also inspired numerous movies, including the 1933 classic, starring Katharine Hepburn as Jo, and Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation. Print. She also released many of her earlier works under the name, A.M. Barnard. National Women's History Museum. Her sister May illustrated the first edition. 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