Free Spinster or Little Woman: Uncovering Little Women's Feminism from the Perspectives of Social and Radical Feminism

This thesis examines Little Women’s feminist reception from the perspectives of social and radical feminism. The study draws on the personal life of Louisa May Alcott, namely her work as a suffragist, and advocate for women’s rights in the nineteenth century, and her writings of sensation fiction to explore the author’s relationship with feminism. For this purpose, this thesis relies on a variety of sources such as autobiographical letters, research publications and scholarly articles. Little Women’s feminist themes are examined through selected passages from the novel. The study uses the ideological perspectives of social feminism and radical feminism to explore these themes. Social feminism supports Little Women’s feminist message by underlying the novel’s subversion of gender stereotypes and promotion of matriarchy. Radical feminism opposes what it considers Little Women’s mutilation of the self, rejection of womanhood and capitulation to patriarchal structures. The study does not identify either group of readers as exclusively social or radical, but draws on research, opinion pieces and published articles to present examples of both ideologies. The study reveals that the feminist reception of Little Women is the result of Alcott’s inclusive feminist approach and that the novel’s themes promote discussions from the perspectives of social feminism and radical feminism