Little Women (2019)

Little Women is a 2019 film version of the classic American novel by Louisa May Alcott. The film follows the stories of four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, as they attempt to navigate life and womanhood during and after the Civil War. The 2019 film version was directed by Greta Gerwig and incorporates several experiences that civilians may have endured during the Civil War, including financial, social, and personal hardships.

Overall, the film is not noted for its historical themes, but viewers still related to the timeless characters and the experiences that they endure throughout this modern version. Many viewers felt welcomed into the personal family space of the characters and praised the director’s portrayal of realistic, individual storylines as they progressed within the scope of the movie. However, some viewers noted that the storytelling was confusing at times because of its non-linear structure that jumped from the present to the past without warning.

The movie was generally well received by both the public and historians alike, and many viewers praised the performances of notable actors in every role. The film does not seem to push feminism as its main message, but rather incorporates the concept by inspiring viewers to follow their own path while still keeping their foundation firm. Although this film does not directly depict the Civil War, it serves as a window to civilian life during the war. Viewers of all ages are able to get a glimpse of how noncombatants endured each day of the Civil War. 

Further Reading

Books

Judith Giesberg, Army at Home: Women and the Civil War on the Northern Home Front, (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2009).

Louisa May Alcott, Little Women: Or, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, (Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1899).

Robert C. Plumb and Elisabeth Griffith, The Better Angels: Five Women Who Changed Civil War America, (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2020).

S. J. Kleinberg, Eileen Boris, and Vicki Ruíz, The Practice of U.S. Women's History: Narratives, Intersections, and Dialogues, (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2007). 

Stephanie McCurry, Women's War - Fighting and Surviving the Civil War, (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2019).

Thavolia Glymph, The Women's Fight: The Civil War's Battles for Home, Freedom, and Nation, (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2019).

Articles

Alice Fahs, “The Feminized Civil War: Gender, Northern Popular Literature, and the Memory of the War, 1861-1900,” The Journal of American History 85, no. 4 (1999): 1461–94.

Alice George, “Why Louisa May Alcott’s ‘Little Women’ Endures,” Smithsonian Magazine, September 18, 2018.

Joan E. Cashin, “Some of Them Also Served: White Civilians and Mobilization During the Civil War,” OAH Magazine of History 26, no. 2 (2012): 13–17.

Film Reviews

Peter Debruge, “‘Little Women’: Film Review,” Variety, November 25, 2019.

Peter Bradshaw, “Little Women Review – Sisters Are Writin’ It for Themselves in Greta Gerwig’s Festive Treat,” The Guardian, November 25, 2019.

“Review: Little Women (2019),” Boshemia, January 7, 2020.

Tomris Laffly, “Reviews: Little Women,” Roger Ebert, December 24, 2019.

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