Oral Presentation 2nd SEMESTER

(Little Women, Louisa May Alcott)

Having been presented with the work proposal, I chose the work "Little Women" by Louisa May
Alcott. Originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869.

The book basically tells the story of a simple family made up of four sisters with completely
different temperaments. Different, but in a way complementary. Along the book, we are
exposed to the life, development and common events that a family faces. Each character is
immensely complex and complete and is described with a richness of detail that impresses.
The piece emphasises the moral values of the time: civic spirit, love of country and extreme
dedication to home and neighbour. Each chapter closes in on itself, as if they were episodic.

There are several characters in the book, but I'd like to emphasise the four most important
ones: the sisters.

Meg: is the eldest sister, who dreams of wealth. She plays the role of mother to her sisters
when their mother is absent, which is perhaps why she is so loved and respected by everyone.
During the story we see the character change and mature as a person and the discoveries of
adulthood. Meg is the sisters' thermometer, representing both maturity (as she is the oldest)
and innocence (as she is facing many things for the first time).

Jo: is the most complex character in the book. I think it's daring for a character from 1868 to be
so free, intelligent and unconcerned with fashion, balls, boys or any of the futility that was
destined for women. Jo is explosive, likes to read, write, create theatre plays, wear crude
boots, disowning everything that a "good girl" needs to have by the standards of the time. Even
though she's so independent, she asks her parents for their arms and hugs in order to
understand the anxieties and doubts that arise during her life.

Beth: is angelic, loves music and is in love with the piano. Towards the end of the novel, the
character contracts an illness but she recovers. During the chapters narrating Beth's decline in
health, various debates and reflections are made about life and its finitude. Beth is extremely
shy, so she studies at home because she's terrified of socializing.

Amy: is the youngest daughter, being innocent and silly, she lives for appearances. She likes
beauty, vanity and doesn't want to feel left out of any event. She always wants to fit into
society's mould, attending parties, balls and travelling.... It is her speech that convinces her
friend Laurence to review various mistakes in his life, and in a way, transforms the lives of the
whole family.

The work has a few notable characters, here's a list of some who, although they're not the
main characters, are given a lot of attention:

Abigail March/Marmee: the matriarch of the family and mother of four girls. It develops great
conversations and reflections on life as a couple and on the family.

Mr. March: the father of the four sisters who is serving in the war.

Laurence/Laurie: the family's neighbour, a 16-year-old boy about to go to college, who

practically becomes a member of the family, and in his teen years of socializing with the
sisters, he was in love with Jo.
The book continues to be popular with today's readers, bringing quotes that are as
accurate today as they were so many years ago. Here are three examples of them:

Just because my dreams are different than yours doesn’t mean they’re unimportant.

We people are different, so obviously our dreams and desires will be too. We often diminish
our dreams and desires in order to be better accepted in the social group in which we are
included. One example is the choice of courses, which in itself is completely chaotic, and how
many times are we humanities students devalued compared to science students just because
that course is more socially privileged? And what about the so-called "intelligent people"?

Perhaps the biggest wake-up call we have in life that the world is not a fairy tale is that the
best people we know are usually the first to die.

There are people who deal with grief at an early age, and this is the easiest way to get
traumatised by loss. In life, we are often unconsciously prepared to experience grief only when
it comes to older people and when death is already " predictable". And then when someone
very close or young dies, it takes us by surprise. Suddenly you just don't feel it, and then all
that's left is the memory. The memory that there, in that place that is now vacant, there was
once a feeling. It was so intense and so great that it overflowed. And as uncontrollable as it is,
it fled, disappeared, drained away, overflowing to the last drop. It died.

I want to be great or nothing.

This phase means a lot to anyone who constantly compares themselves with those around
them, because they experience a feeling that swallows up any leftover confidence in the
system, since the best is on their side.

Only those that reach this highest level of greatness are publicly honoured within our society.
There are no accolades and awards given out to those who only meet our expectations. The
awards are reserved for those who exceed them. There is a bigger issue that stems from the
emphasis that we place on greatness. We have become apathetic in cases when we feel that
we cannot do great things. In the modern narrative of “I want to be great or nothing,” people
who feel they cannot be great, have instead chosen the option of nothing.

It's important to note that the most famous film adaptation of the story (Little Women,
directed by Greta Gerwig in 2019) has some differences from the original story. So, if you've
noticed facts that haven't been mentioned, it's because they didn't originally exist.

In concluding my work, I would like to leave you with the message that I recommend you read
this book. Even though the story is already well known, reading the original work is another
experience.

Little Women shows Louisa May Alcott's mastery of describing people and their behaviour. The
author paints realistic pictures through the clever use of different images, evoking readers'
feelings towards their favourite character. Despite being written in the style of the last century,
the sentences show a variety of expressions and phrases, where the adequacy of the diction is
excellent and suited to the modern age.