Education Values in Little Men by Louisa May ALcott Essay - 2

Education Values in Little Men by Louisa May ALcott - Essay Example So, Christian morality and worldly wisdom are put side by side in this novel. In the nineteenth century, there was a gender differentiation in the children literature and books were written separately for boys and girls presenting them in their own spheres and inspiring their young readers to cross the hurdles with strength, courage and bravery and take a positive part in the development of a society. Many books and magazines got published which aimed boys and girls separately in order to educate them. The books and magazine meant for boys presented the adventurous stories and sport activities to motivate the boys to learn skills and to attain a healthy life, i.e. ‘Treasure Island’ and the books and magazines meant for girls presented domestic matters and imaginative stories to teach the girls to take active part in the household and proved their importance in emotional relationships, i.e. ‘Little Women’. In 1879, ‘The Boy’s Own Paper’, a well-known magazine, was published by the Religious Tract Society and it pre sented the adventurous stories of sports, schools and explorations and emphasised the manliness and naturalness in order to motivate its readers. In 1880, its companion magazine ‘The Girls’ Own Paper’ was published to amuse and instruct girls through the pleasurable articles that presented the household matters. These magazines were claimed to be full of educational material and ethical requirements (Holland 8-9). Alcott has written her novel ‘Little Women’ for girls with a didactic purpose as she shows the struggle of the girls to do all the household and living a personal life of imagination and spirituality. She also shows that dullness and laziness cannot bring respect, prosperity or happiness in life. She does not show a conventional woman of the nineteenth century who could not actively participate in the society and stay at home to do the chores rather she inspires her readers by the