Invincible Louisa

    Louisa May Alcott's name is certainly one of great renown, but, at least for me personally, I had always associated her with children's books, and not having read her most famous, Little Women as a youngster, I did not pursue her works later on. That has changed. A while back I read a very small collection of a few of her Short Stories, which included some of the Hospital Sketches, and I was duly impressed.
    I also discovered I owned Little Women and Rose in Bloom, but all of Alcott's works are readily available as free eBooks at Project Gutenberg. I did not realize that I owned this book either, and when I found it I fortunately investigated its contents and realized it was a biography of that famous woman. Also thinking it was a book of little importance, I decided to read it anyways.
    OK, so I was wrong. This biography, written in 1933 by Cornelia Meigs, is in fact, excellently written, factual, (with quite a bit of romanticism built in, but it was written for children), and in addition, is a book, also of renown. It won both the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award and the Newberry Medal. And it is not just for children. I enjoyed it immensely, and literally tore through it. Still wondering if its author had dressed it up too pretty, I checked out Wikipedia's account of Alcott's life, and in fact, Louisa was a truly great woman—strong, determined, and yes, invincible. I add her to my list of favorite historical heroines and models. I am looking forward to reading her great body of works.
    Obviously, this book is written chronologically, but rather than reviewing it fact by fact or event by event, I will just highlight points of interest in Alcott's life and the life of her family, of which there are many. Meigs has provided a helpful five-page chronology in the back of the book, beginning with the birth of her parents, their marriage date, and the birth of Louisa's older sister Anna, then her birth in 1832.
    First, beginning with her parents, her father, Bronson Alcott, was a great visionary, self-made scholar, and teacher, with extremely high ideals and ideas way before their time. Like most people who hold to a vision, their value is only recognized long after they are gone, and living in the material world is beyond challenging. I can relate to that. Therefore, the Alcott family lived in utmost poverty until Louisa finally published Little Women in 1868, when she became an instant success, both financially and publicly. But she never gave up, and as a young girl, she was determined to be the breadwinner of the family. It took her years of sorrow and misery to reach her goal. It is always so tragic that people such as herself finally find success after youth and health have faded, and even more so for her poor mother, Abigail (Abba) May, who perhaps suffered the most from Bronson's inability to provide. And yet throughout her life, it seems that love and happiness as a family were never in short supply, Louisa lived with or near her parents for most of her life. She was a true example of putting others ahead of herself, which sometimes can be overdone. She was also a champion for women's rights, because at that time, a woman, even worse, a young girl who tried to make it on her own, fought an uphill battle all the way.
    But the Alcotts had friends—wealthy friends in fact, who were always there to step in and help out, the most notable being Ralph Waldo Emerson, a strong advocate for Transcendentalism, which Bronson clung to throughout his life. Among their other friends were Henry David Thoreau, and the Unitarian minister, Theodore Parker, who along with Emerson, were probably the greatest outside influences on Alcott's life. The Unitarian Church, by the way, was the one associated with Transcendentalism, which was also influenced by Hinduism.
    Another important person involved with the Alcotts was Nathaniel Hawthorne, whose sister-in-law, Elizabeth Peabody, served as an assistant when Bronson taught at the experimental Temple School in Boston. Hawthorne wrote a rather scathing book about his communal Transcendental experience, The Blithedale Romance. Although he did not embrace the philosophy as others did, he went there more to have a free place to live so he could save money and marry Elizabeth's sister, Sophia.
    Understanding Transcendentalism helps to understand the uphill battle that Bronson Alcott faced in an overwhelmingly closed-mindedly Christian country (which still is in some areas). That alone must have made public support a challenge. Louisa was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, where the family began what had the prospect of being a happy and prosperous life. Supported by Reuben Haines, Bronson, had a successful teaching position. But Haines died shortly before Louisa was born, and Bronson had not the overall experience to keep the school running. Worry overtook the parents' sense of security, and the next year, they began the first of their moves—29 in Louisa's first 28 years, until they settled at Orchard House in Concord Massachusetts, which remained their final home. It still exists as a historic museum.
    In addition to being educational and religious rebels, the Alcotts were also strong supporters of abolition, and were members of the Underground Railroad, a dangerous position even in the North, which was illegal before the Civil War. For many years, the fear of war loomed over them, but it finally came. It was during this period that Louisa ventured off—her farthest journey ever, since most of their moves were in or near Massachusetts, the birthplace of both parents.
    It was in Washington that Louisa went to work as a nurse, her usual cheerfulness making her a great favorite. However, after six weeks, she came down with typhoid fever, still refusing to stop her work, Until she became so ill that she was practically unconscious, and barely remembered her father gathering her up to bring her home. She was ill for a very long time, and never really recovered her vivacious energy. How very tragic!
    Louisa's older sister, Anna had been married three years prior, (so that was one less person Louisa had to provide for, at least for now), and in 1863, the year Louisa became ill, Anna's first child was born. Stories from Louisa's letters to home were also published in a periodical as Hospital Sketches, and when Louisa was well enough, she began to work again on two books she had previously begun. Moods was published in 1864. In 1865, Louisa jumped at a chance to see Europe, and returned home the following year. But it was not until 1867 that Thomas Niles, of Roberts Brothers, a publishing company she had previously rejected, approached her with the request to write a book for girls. At first shunning the idea, Louisa eventually agreed, and Little Women was begun, which, as we know, was based on life in the Alcott household. Niles was disappointed when the first part was completed. However, being a wise businessman, he gave it to girls that he knew. to be the final judge. They all loved it, and the rest, as they say, is history. Of course, the book, being the first of its kind, was an immediate and smashing success, putting Louisa, and her family now in the realm of prosperity, 1868.
    Louisa May Alcott died in 1888, at the too-early age of 55. Her father passed away on March 4th of that year, and Louisa followed him two days later, never knowing that he had died. And with that, I will leave the rest for you to investigate. I strongly recommend this particular book, and even more so if you have little daughters or granddaughters. It is not available as a free eBook, but can be purchased at Amazon.