Louisa May Alcott's influential 19th-century novel Little Women expresses didactic tendencies, as well as qualities of sentimentality, making it a compelling read for teenage audiences. By following the story of the March sisters, readers follow the growth and maturity of Alcott's characters. Our first experience transitioning into adulthood was March's older sister, Meg. In this article we will study the text of the early stages of Meg's marriage to Mr. Brooke to see her transition into the adult world catalyzed by her own marriage being used as a showcase of her maturity and growth, leading her to become a woman. mother, the definitive sign of his entry into adulthood. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay As we are told throughout the novel, one of Meg's most defining qualities is that of vanity and materialism, supported by her desire to marry into a rich family and name. However, when she falls in love with the poor, orphaned Mr. Brooke, Meg chooses love over financial status, and begins her marriage this way, described thus on her wedding day: "Neither silk, nor lace, nor would the orange blossoms be she has. "I don't want to look strange or settled today," she said. 'I don't want a fashionable wedding, but only those around me who I love, and for them I want to appear and be myself '” (p. 244). This text, we see that Meg actively denies signs of wealth in her marriage to John Brooke, showing the audience that she found joy in her marriage to Mr. Brooke, rather than in her marriage to one. social status. The fact that Meg claims to remain her "family self" takes readers back to Moffat's party, which she attends earlier in the novel, where Meg allows the Moffats to dress her up as a doll. experience, Meg shares that she is too "scared to get off, [she] feels so weird and stiff and half-dressed," and said that "[she] doesn't look anything like [her] self..." (p. 93). This contrast of experiences related to physical appearance is huge in showing Meg's growth in maturity and acceptance of who she is. Meg's maturity is also shown in her qualities of determination and hard work which are demonstrated by the fact that she made her own wedding dress, "...sewing into it the tender hopes and innocent romances of a girl's heart" ( p. 244).She has begun to take pride in her work and likes the simplistic instead of the materialistic. By mixing these traits, Alcott shows us that Meg is changing herself to succeed in this marriage, abandoning the comforts and instead encouraging the work ethic and a simple lifestyle However, noting the quote above, Alcott chooses an interesting diction, ending her statement with “novels of a girlish heart,” which reminds the audience that Meg is still a little girl with aspirations and desires that may not always coincide with her situation. When we are introduced to the married life of Meg and John Brooke, Alcott acknowledges the continued hard work in their home, saying that Meg "began her married life with the determination to be a model housekeeper" and "brought so much love, energy and joy to the work that it had to succeed" (p. 267). So instead of making this decision temporarily, Meg continues to put effort into the household responsibilities she has. Alcott humorously adds bits of bitterness, saying: “John became dyspeptic after a course of delicate dishes and ungratefully asked for simple dishes. As for the buttons, he soon learned to wonder where they went, to shake his head atthe negligence of men, and to threaten to have them sewn on, and to see if her work would hold up to impatient tugs and clumsy fingers better than she could. They were happy” (p. 267). The juxtaposition in sentence and overall message seems off-putting, with an extensive list of the clashes encountered between Meg and Mr. Brooke, creating a long account of the interactions between the two, only to begin the next paragraph with the cheeky and non-specific “They were happy ", almost purposely putting an ironic spin on Meg and John's marriage, as if they were in blissful ignorance of their own troubles. Both Meg and John seem to have this childlike innocence about their marriage, seemingly blind to their arguments with each other. Alcott describes the couple: “At first they played at home and had fun like children; then John constantly devoted himself to business, feeling on his shoulders the worries of a breadwinner; and Meg put aside her cambric garments, put on a large apron, and set to work, as already said with more energy than discretion” (p. 267). This quote reveals information regarding Meg's transgression into adulthood, telling us that both she and Mr. Brooke entered into marriage with an immaturity, viewing their new life and family as child's play. However, we are told that John grows into the habit of being the head of the house, adopting it “constantly.” In comparison, if we look at Meg's description, we are told that Meg continues to go to work around the house, with “more energy than discretion,” implying that Meg, while doing her chores dutifully, is doing them with excitement. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, if we read in the chosen diction, it could be analyzed by saying that Meg is still looking at this with a childlike perception, excited to play this part, rather than settling into the role, unlike John, who assumes his responsibilities “constantly”. Overall, looking at the collective information so far, we see that Meg is actively trying to accept her situation and fulfill her responsibilities as a wife, without the luxuries she had desired as a child. However, in each example, we see hints of immaturity peeking out from Meg, showing that as much as she loves Mr. Brooke and her life with him, she still retains some of that childish disposition. This leads to the discussion of what appears to be the culmination of Meg's "coming of age", in which Meg comes to some important resolutions. The first situation we will discuss is that of Meg attempting to continue her duties as a loving housewife, failing to make jelly and, more importantly, her responsibility to provide dinner for her husband and his guest. This is the first circumstance we see between Meg and John that is an openly described conflict. This outburst, while justified on both sides, tells us nothing about Meg or John's growth, but the decision made between the two is what shows us one of Meg's biggest steps into adulthood. After the jelly, Meg enters a process of penance, where she begins to realize that there are things she will have to sacrifice in her marriage, such as her pride. The beginning of his thought process begins with the idea that "married life is very tiring and requires infinite patience and love, as the Mother says" (p. 273). Before this fight, Meg was approaching her marriage with an excitement and positivity that might have seemed blind. Here, she begins to realize that marriage is real work and requires her to approach it as work rather than play. With the advice coming from her mother, Meg begins to remember the other advice given to her by Marmee, warning her that John, despite his qualitiespositive, he has some flaws and, as part of her partnership with him, Meg must learn “not to awaken his anger, against yourself, because peace and happiness depend on respecting him. Take care of yourself, be the first to ask for forgiveness if you both make mistakes, and beware of petty resentments, misunderstandings and hasty words that often open the way to bitter pain and remorse” (p. 273). Despite the double standard, this causes Meg to begin analyzing her part in the argument between the two and what she could have done wrong. This in itself is a sign that Meg is looking beyond herself and seeing how her actions could have affected someone else. The last part of this quote is particularly influential on Meg's situation, warning her that the clashes between her and John, if not resolved, can lead to a marriage of "bitter sorrow and remorse." Wanting to remedy the conflict between herself and Mr. Brooke, she takes the first step towards reconciliation. By making this conscious decision to apologize to John, Meg acknowledges that she was wrong, "his hasty speeches seemed both foolish and rude, and she remembered them, her anger seemed childish now" (p. 273). Meg sees her immaturity in hindsight, showing that she sees her own flaws, allowing her to take steps to resolve them. Her first step in changing her immaturity is to try to make things right with her husband: “She looked at him with tears in her eyes, but he didn't see them; she put her work aside and stood up thinking, “I'll be the first to say 'Forgive me'” but he didn't seem to hear her; she crossed the room very slowly, for pride was hard to stomach, and stood beside him, but he did not turn his head. For a moment he felt as if he really couldn't do it; then the thought came: "This is the beginning, I will do my part and I have nothing to reproach myself," and bending down, she kissed her husband sweetly on the forehead. (p. 273) With Meg making the decision to be the first to overcome her pride and make things right with her husband, showing that she accepts responsibility for her actions, showing that she is now starting to accept the wife's side as style of life, rather than as a game. While Meg's growth during the jellybean incident is extremely noticeable, it is not the end of her transition into adulthood. As we are reminded throughout the novel, Meg's true flaws lie in her vanity and desire to live a life of luxury, thus making her marriage to Mr. Brooke a test to see if she has fulfilled Marmee's previously expressed wish in the novel saying: "Money is a necessary and precious thing - and, if well used, a noble thing - but I never want you to think that it is the first or only prize to aspire to. I would rather see you as poor people's wives, if you were happy, loved, content, rather than queens on thrones, without self-respect and peace (p. 99-100) Meg's real challenge is to give up her dream of a rich life, and is shown in Alcott's last account of the Meg's married life. Alcott introduces us to the next challenge that Meg faces by bringing back a subject who reappears in Meg's life, who is her childhood friend, who married into a wealthy Moffat family it immediately repositions Meg into the situation she found herself in as a child, the poorest of her group of friends, often the object of pity and condescension. She actively hated being pitied because of her financial situation and consoled herself by “buying nice things, so that Sallie wouldn't have to feel like she had to save. He always felt bad, because good things were rarely necessary; but when they cost so little, it wasn't worth worrying about, so the nonsense increased unconsciously, and on shopping trips she was no longer a. 280).