By: Ryo Nozawa
The Little Women story has influenced and followed me in every step of my life. From reading it in Japanese as a child to seeing it on the big screen years later, it never ceases to leave me wide eyed and warm. A story written by Louisa May Alcott-showcasing the lives of each member of the March family-its lines, speeches, and emotional prowess continue to imbue me with vigor, hope, and grace for the world around me. At her core, Jo is a dynamic and impassioned young woman, representing the possibility for more than the confining standards of the nineteenth century. She is “boyish”, hot-tempered, and impulsive but she is curious. Jo is consistently lured and seduced by the world around her, as she navigates her path and purpose in life. She acts as a beacon of hope and early-feminism for those who wanted more than what was expected of them. To evidently juxtapose her, Meg stands as a wife, a mother, and a girl who hopes for the simplicity of a nuclear family. She is a parallel of her mother, compassionate and temperamental. By taking these two contrasting characters, I hope to solicit understanding and empathy for both of their paths.
Growing up is a daunting experience for all, as it works to reconcile our fluid passions with reality and its seemingly cemented molds. For Jo, she finds solace in writing and taking a more unconventional approach to life. At that time, a woman was expected to fall in love, marry, and bear children. However, she-and many other women-found that expectation to be unfulfilling. We all know her story. We understand what it means to be a woman and to want more. Post-war modernity allowed for a long-awaited transformation for women, especially in western countries, but just how much has changed? The deep cracks in our everyday lives and our minds-well-solidified by the patriarchy and thousands of years of indoctrination-still stand to remind us of our society’s flaws. Yet, emerging from all of this, Jo’s raw vulnerability has always inspired me to be ambitious and chase for independent success but also allow myself grace for the simpler things in life. For her, it was wanting to be loved. Perhaps, her story teaches us that making a name for yourself is important especially as a woman, but independently, it may not always be fulfilling. Finding a balance could be the key to true happiness.
I believe that it would be a disservice to the discourse if I did not mention the more neglected March sister, Meg. She is compassionate and good, she is feminine and dutiful. I believe that she is largely forgotten because of what she wants. Her dreams are dimmed by Jo’s commanding aspirations but Meg confronts this notion and reminds Jo that “just because my dreams are different than yours, it doesn’t mean they’re unimportant”. This quote struck me to be significant and ultimately inspired me to write this. Despite approaching life in a more traditional fashion than Jo, it does not suggest that her dreams of being a mother and having a family should be relegated to her being a docile wife. It does not take away from her as a person and more importantly, as a woman. I think that as discussions of making oneself into something and creating a world for women to become successful, it can be easy to grimace at those who give up their jobs or economic opportunities to fulfill other aspects of their lives. However, we all want different things and I think that for me, Meg is a character that represents a girl hoping for a family like the one she grew up in and dreaming of another kind of fulfillment than Jo-and that is okay. Jo is enlivened by books and Meg by unconditional love.
I suppose the point of this commentary is to say that it is okay to want different things, even at different times of our lives. You do not have to just be a ‘Meg’ or a ‘Jo’, you can be both! We are never confined to just one path and they are never set in stone. Being a woman during this time is to understand and offer grace to those that do not “fit” all the values you possess. Never be quick to judge another person and never assume that your aspirations are more important. If we establish more confining molds for ourselves beyond the ones already placed, we soon will lose space to grow. The Little Women story continues to offer hope for all individuals navigating a world of endless possibilities and like Meg reminds us, just because your dreams may be different from the person beside you, it does not mean they are any less important.
