Beyond Little Women - by Lauren Hehmeyer (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

This collection concentrates on the secondary works of Louisa May Alcott and looks at the idea that Alcott was as heavily influenced by her times as by her transcendentalist upbringing. Her work often subverts the conventional and includes the new, the practical, and the real. The sections include: (1) the gothic and the monstrous feminine, (2) the theme of useful work, (3) the themes of physical and mental health, and (4) Alcott's philosophy concerning creativity and genius. Contributors emphasize Alcott's belief in women's agency and argue that Alcott can be considered as a brilliant bridge between the Transcendental idealism of the early nineteenth century and later reforms.

From the Back Cover

"Lauren Hehmeyer's collection provides new and engaging discussions of Louisa May Alcott's work before and after the transformative phenomenon that was Little Women. This book is an excellent addition to Alcott studies. Not only does it provide welcome resources for the study of Alcott's secondary works, some of which have received little scholarly attention, it also brings together the voices of established and emerging scholars in the field."

--Prof. Marlowe Daly-Galeano, Lewis-Clark State College, USA

"Beyond Little Women is the most capacious examination of Alcott's oeuvre to date. It introduces readers to the impressive range of Alcott's writings and includes her experiments in Gothic fiction, journalism, children's stories, and engagement with the Romantic sublime. Hehmeyer convincingly argues that Alcott's significance goes beyond her Transcendentalist connections."

--Dr Azelina Flint, Lancaster University, UK

"This is an indispensable volume that moves beyond Alcott's most well-known book to delve into Alcott's interest in the Gothic, health, creativity, work, education, politics, and changing women's roles. Her female characters are seen as progressive in their own terms as Alcott reinvents Emersonian self-reliance in female terms."

--Monika Elbert, Prof. of English, Montclair State University, USA

This collection concentrates on the secondary works of Louisa May Alcott and looks at the idea that Alcott was as heavily influenced by her times as by her transcendentalist upbringing. Her work often subverts the conventional and includes the new, the practical, and the real. The sections include: (1) the gothic and the monstrous feminine, (2) the theme of useful work, (3) the themes of physical and mental health, and (4) Alcott's philosophy concerning creativity and genius. Contributors emphasize Alcott's belief in women's agency and argue that Alcott can be considered as a brilliant bridge between the Transcendental idealism of the early nineteenth century and later reforms.

Lauren Hehmeyer, M.A., M.I.S., is a retired professor from Texarkana College, USA. She is the co-editor of The Forgotten Alcott: Essays on the Artistic Legacy and Literary Life of May Alcott Nieriker (2022). She has presented papers on the Alcotts in Paris, France; Lancaster, England; and Concord, Massachusetts.

About the Author

Lauren Hehmeyer, M.A., M.I.S., is a retired professor from Texarkana College, USA. She is the co-editor of The Forgotten Alcott: Essays on the Artistic Legacy and Literary Life of May Alcott Nieriker (2022). She has presented papers on the Alcotts in Paris, France; Lancaster, England; and Concord, Massachusetts