Little Women
Chapter 13 — Teaching Companion
Louisa May Alcott · Trailblazers 4th–6th
Coaching, not a script — and not an answer key: every question here has more than one defensible answer.
This chapter's big question
When Laurie decides to let his castle go and stay with his grandfather "while he needs me," is that the motive Marmee said he lacked, or the same castle set aside for later?
The tension The chapter sets Laurie's dream of music with no money or business against a grandfather who wants an India merchant and has no one else. Jo tells him to sail away and try his own way; Meg tells him to do his duty and be rewarded as Mr. Brooke has been. Each sister sees one danger and not the other. Around the argument the chapter keeps setting finished work beside dreaming: the sisters share their castles after a summer of completed stints, while Laurie arrives from a day of shirking and fuming at the stupidity of the world. His closing resolve is made cheerfully, in the shadow of a curtain, watching an old man grieve, and it contains the word while.
Today's focus
Set Laurie's castle in the air beside the choice he makes, and notice the word he uses.
Two core ideas
- Laurie's dream is music without money or business. His grandfather wants an India merchant, and Jo and Meg each give him half of the advice he needs.
- The sisters' castles sit beside finished work, while Laurie arrives from a day of shirking, and his closing resolve is made cheerfully, with the word while in it.
The shape at a glance
On a warm September afternoon Laurie follows the Marches up the hill and is let into the Busy Bee Society. The sisters explain the pilgrim game and look at the sunset, then each tells a castle in the air. Laurie speaks of his grandfather's plan, and Jo and Meg give opposite advice. That night, as Beth plays for Mr. Laurence, Laurie resolves to let his castle go while his grandfather needs him.
A way in
Start with the castles and ask the student which sister's castle is easiest to picture, then go to Laurie's.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the afternoon back in order: the hammock, the pines, the pilgrim game, the castles, the advice, and the piano.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences in the same pattern about something they would rather do than what is expected of them.
Debate Take sides on the big question: is Laurie giving up his castle, or only setting it aside? Each side must use at least one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why Alcott ends on a choice made in the shadow of a curtain.
Easier Talk through discussion questions 1 and 4 only, with the pines and the piano as the two pictures to hold.
On level Talk through all five discussion questions, then have the student write one critical-thinking answer with two pieces of evidence.
Harder Ask the student to decide what Laurie's resolve costs him and to add that to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- Laurie follows the girls up the hill, hides in the bushes, and looks in on them. What is he hoping for?Inference
What it asks It asks what draws Laurie to the sisters' picnic, given that he was not asked.
One reading
He is lonely and wants company, and the quiet party looks more attractive than his own day.
feeling that he ought to go away, because uninvited; yet lingering, because home seemed very lonely, and this quiet party in the woods most attractive to his restless spirit
Well, that’s cool!” said Laurie to himself, “to have a picnic and never ask me.
Another reading
He wants a cure for a bad day, and it is the sight of them that lifts him.
for the day had been both unprofitable and unsatisfactory, and he was wishing he could live it over again
looking wide-awake and good-natured already
Listen for
- Uses the narrator's words about why he lingers.
- Notices that he worries he is uninvited.
If stuck
- What kind of day has Laurie had?
- What does he think when he sees the girls go by?
- Who sees him first, and what does she do?
A strong answer Laurie has spent a bad day shirking his studies, frightening the maids, and quarrelling with the stableman, and he is in one of his moods. He feels he ought to go away because he is uninvited, but lingers because home seems lonely. A strong answer says that what he wants is company, and can add that the sight of the sisters also cheers him.
- Meg says “it's against the rules to be idle here,” and Laurie agrees to sew, read, or draw. Why does he go along so meekly?Character
What it asks It asks why a boy who shirked all day takes orders so readily from the sisters.
One reading
He wants to stay, and obeying is the price of a place in their circle.
Much obliged; I’ll do anything if you’ll let me stop a bit
doing his best to prove his gratitude for the favor of an admission into the Busy Bee Society
Another reading
He is being playful and humble on purpose, and he is also a little ashamed of his own idle day.
Bring on your bears; I’m ready,” and Laurie sat down, with a submissive expression delightful to behold.
Laurie thought regretfully of his own idle days.
Listen for
- Notices the joking tone as well as the obeying.
- Connects it to what he did earlier in the day.
If stuck
- What does Meg say the rule is?
- What does Laurie offer to do?
- What does he think when Jo says the stints are all done?
A strong answer Laurie says he will do anything to stop a bit, sits down with a submissive expression, and says “Yes'm” to Jo. It is partly gratitude and partly play. He has also just spent a day dawdling, and when the girls say their stints are done he thinks regretfully of his own idle days. A strong answer says what he wants from them and what the idle day has to do with his readiness.
- Every sister but Beth tells a castle in the air that ends in fame or riches, and Beth wants to stay home safe. What do you make of the difference?Theme
What it asks It asks the student to weigh Beth's modest wish against the others' ambitions, and what Laurie says about it.
One reading
Beth is content with what she has, and her wish shows something the others lack.
Since I had my little piano, I am perfectly satisfied. I only wish we may all keep well and be together; nothing else.
We’re an ambitious set, aren’t we? Every one of us, but Beth, wants to be rich and famous, and gorgeous in every respect.
Another reading
Beth's wish is smaller, but it is also a wish she already half has, while the others must reach for theirs.
Mine is to stay at home safe with father and mother, and help take care of the family
It seems so long to wait, so hard to do; I want to fly away at once
Listen for
- Compares what Beth wants with what one other sister wants.
- Uses Laurie's remark about the set.
If stuck
- What does Beth say she wants?
- What does Jo want to do before she goes into her castle?
- What does Laurie say about the four of them?
A strong answer Laurie wants to be a famous musician who never worries about money, Meg a house full of luxuries, Jo fame as a writer, and Amy to be the best artist in the world. Beth wants to stay home safe with her mother and father and have everyone keep well. A strong answer says what the difference shows, such as contentment, or a different kind of ambition, and uses their words.
- Jo tells Laurie to sail away and try his own way, while Meg tells him to do his duty. Which of them is giving the better advice?Moral reasoning
What it asks It asks the student to weigh two pieces of advice that each see one danger and miss another.
One reading
Jo is right that Laurie should have a chance to choose a life for himself.
I advise you to sail away in one of your ships, and never come home again till you have tried your own way
a young man’s hatred of subjection, a young man’s restless longing to try the world for himself
Another reading
Meg is right that he has someone to care for and would be sorry to leave him.
As you say, there is no one else to stay with and love him, and you’d never forgive yourself if you left him without his permission.
Don’t be dismal or fret, but do your duty
Listen for
- Names what each sister sees and what she misses.
- Uses Laurie's own words about his grandfather.
If stuck
- What does Laurie say about his grandfather's plan?
- What does Jo feel about “Teddy’s wrongs”?
- What does Meg say about who is left to stay with the old man?
A strong answer Laurie hates the idea of an India merchant's life, and Jo, fired by sympathy, tells him to sail away. Meg answers that he has no one else to leave the old man to and would never forgive himself. Jo sees that his wish to choose is real; Meg sees that his grandfather needs him. A strong answer takes a side and says what it would take from the other.
- The chapter ends with Laurie listening to Beth play for Mr. Laurence, half hidden by a curtain. Why might Alcott end it there?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what the final setting adds to the afternoon's talk, and what Laurie sees and hears there that he did not in the pines.
One reading
The music and the old man's grief show Laurie what is at stake at home, so the ending turns talk into feeling.
Laurie, standing in the shadow of the curtain, listened to the little David, whose simple music always quieted his moody spirit
watched the old man, who sat with his gray head on his hand, thinking tender thoughts of the dead child he had loved so much
Another reading
The ending gives Laurie a private moment with no sisters to advise him, so what he says is his own.
Remembering the conversation of the afternoon, the boy said to himself
Listen for
- Compares the pines with the drawing-room.
- Says who is present and who is not when Laurie speaks.
If stuck
- Who is playing, and for whom?
- Where is Laurie standing?
- What does Laurie remember as he listens?
A strong answer In the pines Laurie is surrounded by talk: Jo urges him one way and Meg another. At the end he stands alone in the shadow of the curtain, hearing Beth's simple music and watching his grandfather think of the loved one he lost. The setting lets him see the old man rather than argue about him. A strong answer says what the change of place does, and what Laurie says to himself once he is alone.
Critical thinking
- Beth says she wants to fly away at once to the beautiful country in the clouds. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how Jo and Meg answer her.
What it asks It asks how the two sisters respond to Beth's longing, and what each thinks it takes to get there.
One reading
Jo answers that Beth will get there easily, while she herself must fight and work.
You’ll get there, Beth, sooner or later; no fear of that,” said Jo; “I’m the one that will have to fight and work, and climb and wait, and maybe never get in after all.
Another reading
Meg answers that there is a lovelier country, reached by being good enough, and Beth herself speaks of trying all one's life.
There is a lovelier country even than that, where we shall go, by and by, when we are good enough,
If people really want to go, and really try all their lives, I think they will get in
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- A reason that explains the difference between Jo's and Meg's answers.
If stuck
- What does Jo say about herself?
- What does Meg say you must be before you can go?
A strong answer Jo tells Beth she will get there sooner or later, and says she is the one who will have to fight, work, climb, and wait. Meg says there is a lovelier country where they will go when they are good enough. A strong answer uses one line from each sister and explains how their answers differ.
- Meg tells Laurie how she can read Mr. Brooke's face when he leaves. Using two pieces of evidence, explain what that shows about Meg and about Brooke.
What it asks It asks what Meg's watching shows about her, and what Brooke's face shows about him, using two pieces of evidence.
One reading
It shows Meg is paying close attention to Brooke and cares how Laurie treats him.
I can always tell by his face, when he goes away. If you have been good, he looks satisfied and walks briskly
It was only to show that I cared how you get on
Another reading
It shows Brooke takes his work seriously, since he goes away wanting to do it better.
if you have plagued him, he’s sober and walks slowly, as if he wanted to go back and do his work better
Listen for
- Evidence about Meg and about Brooke.
- Notices Laurie's reply about the thermometer.
If stuck
- What does Brooke's face look like when Laurie has been good?
- What does Laurie say Brooke is going to be?
A strong answer Meg says she can tell how Laurie has behaved from Brooke's face: satisfied and brisk when he has been good, sober and slow when he has plagued him. That shows she watches Brooke closely, and that he goes away wishing he had done his work better. A strong answer uses one piece about Meg and one about Brooke, and says what the chapter tells us without guessing beyond it.
- The sisters say they did not waste the holiday. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how Laurie's day compares with theirs.
What it asks It asks the student to set the sisters' finished stints beside Laurie's idle day, using two pieces of evidence.
One reading
The sisters finished their tasks and Laurie did not.
each has had a task, and worked at it with a will. The vacation is nearly over, the stints are all done
he had shirked his studies, tried Mr. Brooke’s patience to the utmost
Another reading
The sisters make their work pleasant, and Laurie sees that he could do the same.
Mother likes to have us out of doors as much as possible; so we bring our work here, and have nice times.
he made himself as agreeable as possible—wound cotton for Meg, recited poetry to please Jo, shook down cones for Beth
Listen for
- Uses what the sisters say and what the narrator says about Laurie.
- A reason that connects the contrast to his castle.
If stuck
- What does Jo say about the stints?
- What had Laurie done to his studies?
A strong answer The sisters say their stints are all done and they are glad they did not dawdle. Laurie has shirked his studies, displeased his grandfather, and fumed at the world. Yet in the pines he becomes useful, winding cotton and shaking down cones. A strong answer uses one piece from the sisters and one from Laurie, and says what the contrast does to how seriously we take his castle.