The Analysis of Jo in Little Women

1.Introduction

The novel Little Women was wrote by a American writer Louisa May Alcott in the latter half of the nineteenth century. The story happened in a small town of New England in the American Civil War， told about the growth experiences of the four sisters in March’s family. They encountered a lot of difficulties and undesirable situations in the growth in their lives， they were still optimistic， and brave to strive for liberty and purse independence and their own dreams. And Jo is the most impressive tomboy of the four sisters.

2.The Characters of Jo

Jo is the heroine in this story， and become a classical image between a "economically independent woman and a housewife. She was scared from the restriction of the society， and tried her best to achieve to the dream of being a feminine writer. She yearned for freedom， and had a stormy temper that made her act on impulse. Although there were some small bad character that made others fell unhappy， she gradually overcame the flaws in his character with her strong will after the later experiences and achieved his dream about becoming independent as a feminine writer.

2.1. Her Independence

In 1860s， the Civil War in United States had great impact on social lives and thoughts. Jo， who liked playing with boys， was scared from the restriction of the traditional society. She was not a traditional woman， and this kind of personality inspired her to become an independent woman who chose her own life style.

2.1.1.The Independence in Thinking

She was very dissatisfied with the prevailing social customs of the unreasonable demands and restriction to women， and she hoped gain freedom and privilege in this society like a man. Her ambition was to become a writer who can earn a lot of money， rather than being a qualified housewife like other women at that time. What’s more， she did not like to live at home， nor get charities and favors from others， and she would rather living in poverty ， rather than owing others.

2.1.2The Difficult of the Independence

She never signed it when sent his work. That’s because that she was ashamed to present the embarrassed poverty about herself to the world. On the other hand， it was also influenced by the society to the female literature in the patriarchal society at that time. Female position was very low and they were demanded to spend all their time on family. She knew that they could not fully eliminate the week image of female in the hearts of men， even if women have achieved independence in economy， which must shaken by a certain social influence.

2.2. Her Responsibility

she learned to look after his young sister Beth when she was very young because of the poverty of her family. When the neighbor Laurie expressed his love to her， her chose to refuse. Because she knew that the most important task for her now is looking after the family because of the difficulties they are suffering. She always pay much more care and love for the family silently， but forgot her own happiness and love. What’s more， when the younger sister Beth was sick with scarlet fever， she looked her sister day and night.

2.3. Her bravery and persistence to look for dream

Jo loved reading and writing， and she aspired to become a writer. Even during the time when she looked after aunt March， she red her favorite books and practice writing in any free time. That time， the women were demanded to stay at home as a housewife and there were some restrict them to walk out of the house to work. But Jo was brave and she went to London to pursue her dream alone. In the way to realize her dream， she faced with many difficulties and undesirable situations and overcame them bravely.

2.4. Her attitude to marriage

Jo had a feeling of resistance to love and marriage. She did not think the love and marriage as their whole lives， but had a special love for literature. Although she had a passive attitude to the marriage， she eventually forced to choose a marriage， and learned to control herself in true emotion. Finally she chose to marry Prof. Bhaer who did not have a very good family background and abundant material wealth， but he could give Jo a peace and warm life after she suffering a set of difficulties. So， in Jo’s eyes， happiness of the marriage had nothing to do with the material.

2.5. Frankness and Restiveness

Jo was a bit boyish， out of the image of a conventional lady. She hated those things that should belong to girls. For example， making up， wearing a skirt. She spoke bluntly without thinking. When she met her neighbor Mr. Laurence were feared by all her sisters first time， she said it to his face that he was not so handsome as her grandfather. She was not willing to violate her own standards of living， nor to cater to the lady image.

3.Conclusion

During the American Civil War， conflict and turmoil brought many sufferings and misery. But the spirits and good qualities in this story also brought people a lot of positive energies. Jo in this story told us that as long as you don’t give up， the suffering of life will eventually be in the past.

In our lives， each girl has its own growth experience， character， and also dreams and the pursuit. And we want to be an woman who is independent， full of dream and strive for liberty. We should not only achieve economic independence by ourselves， but also to be independent in personality， making men have a completely new understanding of women.

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