Little Women
Chapter 43 — 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
Jo calls herself a literary spinster with nothing to show, laughs with Laurie in the old way and tells him they can never be boy and girl again, and is left companionless as the family pairs off, so what has Jo actually got to show, and what does the chapter suggest she still lacks?
The tension The narrator contradicts Jo at once, saying there was a good deal to show, and then spends the chapter letting the reader count it: a friendship with Laurie rebuilt across an invisible barricade, an honest exchange in which he says she and Amy changed places in his heart and she answers that playtime is over, a family that hugs her and an old man who asks her to be his girl now, Beth's chair and basket kept in their places. Against that, everyone pairs off and even Teddy deserts her at the foot of the stairs. Then a knock, a man in a new black suit with gold sleeve-buttons, and a picture kissed in the dark that Jo never sees. The reader knows more than Jo, and the chapter leaves the reader to decide what that knowledge is worth.
Today's focus
Notice what Jo says she has, what she is shown in the chapter, and what the ending lets the reader see that she cannot.
Two core ideas
- Jo opens the chapter counting what she has not done, and the chapter lets the reader count what she has: a rebuilt friendship, a family, and a place at its table.
- The ending gives the reader a scene Jo never sees, and leaves the reader to decide what it means.
The shape at a glance
Jo lies alone on the sofa on the eve of her birthday, thinking of herself as an old maid. Laurie appears with news that he and Amy are married, and the two of them talk as friends. The family comes home, and then Jo is left alone at the foot of the stairs. A knock at the door brings Mr. Bhaer, and the chapter ends on a scene in his room.
A way in
Start with Jo's line, "A literary spinster, with a pen for a spouse." Ask how seriously she means it.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the sofa, Laurie's news, the talk, the family coming in, the knock and the Professor's evening.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences in the same pattern: something that was gone, and something that took its place without being seen.
Debate Take sides: is Jo right that she has nothing to show? Each side must use at least one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why the narrator lets the reader know more than Jo at the end.
Easier Read the talk on the sofa aloud together and talk through discussion questions 2 and 3 only.
On level Talk through all five discussion questions, then have the student write one critical-thinking answer with two pieces of evidence from the chapter.
Harder Ask the student to find one more place where the reader knows something Jo does not, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- Jo calls herself “a literary spinster, with a pen for a spouse.” How seriously does she mean it, and how can you tell?Tone
What it asks It asks the student to hear whether Jo is joking, sighing or both, and to find the words that tell.
One reading
She is half joking: the pen for a spouse and the family of stories are made-up comforts.
A literary spinster, with a pen for a spouse, a family of stories for children
Well, I needn’t be a sour saint nor a selfish sinner
Another reading
She is half sighing: the picture does not please her.
there Jo sighed, as if the prospect was not inviting
Almost twenty-five, and nothing to show for it.
Listen for
- Points to words, not only to a feeling.
- Lets the joke and the sigh sit together.
If stuck
- What does Jo say she will have instead of a husband?
- What does she do just after she says it?
- Whom does she compare herself with?
A strong answer Jo makes a joke of her future: a pen for a spouse, a family of stories, a morsel of fame twenty years on. But she sighs at the end of the speech, as if the prospect were not inviting, and she counts her years with nothing to show for them. A strong answer hears both the joke and the sigh and points to the words that carry each.
- Laurie says, “Amy and you change places in my heart, that’s all.” Does his account of how that happened convince you?Inference
What it asks It asks whether Laurie's explanation of his changed love is a clear account or a tidy one, and what he admits along the way.
One reading
It is convincing: he owns his mistake and says plainly what changed.
I was a boy then, headstrong and violent; and it took a hard lesson to show me my mistake.
You both got into your right places
Another reading
It is a little too tidy: he admits he was muddled and that he tried to love both.
I was so tumbled up in my mind, at one time, that I didn’t know which I loved best, you or Amy, and tried to love both alike
Amy and you change places in my heart, that’s all.
Listen for
- Uses Laurie's own words, not only a verdict.
- Says what would make an account like this believable.
If stuck
- What does Laurie say he was when he first loved Jo?
- What does he say about not knowing which he loved best?
- What does Jo answer?
A strong answer Laurie owns that he was a boy, headstrong and violent, and says that once he saw Amy in Switzerland everything cleared and they got into their right places. He also admits he was so tumbled up that he tried to love both alike. A strong answer says how far an honest account of muddle can be trusted and what Jo's answer adds.
- Jo tells Laurie, “playtime is over,” and adds, “I shall miss my boy.” Is she accepting the change, grieving it, or both?Character
What it asks It asks what Jo feels as the old boy-and-girl friendship ends, and how the chapter lets her say it.
One reading
She accepts it and says so plainly: brother and sister, man and woman.
We are man and woman now, with sober work to do, for playtime is over
we will be brother and sister, to love and help one another all our lives
Another reading
She grieves it: the change costs her something, and the narrator says so.
I shall miss my boy, but I shall love the man as much
regret mingled with her pleasure
Listen for
- Uses Jo's own "but" and what comes before it.
- Notices what Laurie does in answer.
If stuck
- What does Jo say can not come back?
- What does she say she will miss?
- What does Laurie do when she offers her hand?
A strong answer Jo says the happy old times cannot come back and that they will be brother and sister, which is acceptance. She also says she will miss her boy, and the narrator says regret mingled with her pleasure at the change. A strong answer keeps the acceptance and the loss together and points to the "but" in her sentence.
- Mr. Laurence says, “You must be my girl now,” and Jo answers, “I’ll try to fill her place, sir.” Can anyone fill a place like Beth's?Theme
What it asks It asks whether a lost person's place can be taken by another, or only kept, and what the chapter's last scene by the piano shows.
One reading
A place can be filled by someone who loves and tries, and Jo and Amy both try.
I’ll try to fill her place, sir.
she sung Beth’s songs with a tender music in her voice
Another reading
It cannot be filled, only kept: the chair and basket stay where they were.
The little chair stood in its old place
Beth still seemed among them, a peaceful presence, invisible, but dearer than ever
Listen for
- Separates filling a place from keeping it.
- Uses what the family does with Beth's things.
If stuck
- What does Mr. Laurence glance at when he says it?
- Where are Beth's chair and basket?
- Who sings Beth's songs?
A strong answer Jo promises to try to fill Beth's place, and Amy sings Beth's songs, so love can carry something forward. But the chair and the basket stay where they were and Beth still seems among them, so the place is also kept, not filled. A strong answer says whether those are the same thing and gives a reason.
- The chapter ends with the Professor kissing a picture in the dark, while Jo thinks he has been “appointed to some great honor.” Why might the author let the reader see what Jo does not?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what the author gains by showing a scene Jo never sees, and how it changes our reading of what Jo guesses.
One reading
It makes us smile at Jo's wrong guess and feel the gap between what she knows and what we do.
finally decided that he had been appointed to some great honor, somewhere, but had been too modest to mention the fact
If she had seen his face when, safe in his own room
Another reading
It leaves a question open, since the chapter shows the act and does not explain it.
he turned off the gas, and kissed the picture in the dark
the picture of a severe and rigid young lady, with a good deal of hair, who appeared to be gazing darkly into futurity
Listen for
- Says what Jo knows and what the reader knows.
- Does not claim to know what the picture or the business means.
If stuck
- What does Jo wonder about Mr. Bhaer's business?
- What does Jo decide it must be?
- What would Jo have seen if she had been in his room?
A strong answer Jo wonders what business brought him to the city and decides he has been appointed to some great honor. We see him kiss the picture in the dark, which she cannot. That lets us smile at her guess, and it also leaves us with a question, since the chapter does not say what the picture or the business means. A strong answer says what the gap does and does not claim more than the chapter does.
Critical thinking
- When Amy and the others pair off again to return to the parlor, Jo is left companionless. Using two pieces of evidence, explain what she does and feels in that moment.
What it asks It asks what the narrator shows about Jo as she watches the others go up the stairs, and how she treats her own feeling.
One reading
She feels it sharply and looks for something to lean on.
a sudden sense of loneliness came over her so strongly that she looked about her with dim eyes, as if to find something to lean upon
even Teddy had deserted her
Another reading
She puts it aside and tries to keep her spirits up.
I’ll weep a little weep when I go to bed; it won’t do to be dismal now.
had just managed to call up a smile when there came a knock at the porch-door
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Says what Jo does about the feeling.
If stuck
- Who has gone upstairs ahead of her?
- What does Jo say she will do when she goes to bed?
- What does she manage to call up just before the knock?
A strong answer As the others go up, a sudden sense of loneliness comes over Jo, and even Teddy has deserted her. She answers herself that she will weep a little weep at bedtime because it won't do to be dismal now, and she manages to call up a smile. A strong answer uses one piece of evidence for the feeling and one for what she does with it.
- Jo welcomes Mr. Bhaer at the door, then keeps her eyes on her knitting. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how she shows her feelings and how she hides them.
What it asks It asks the student to sort what Jo lets show from what she keeps back in the same evening.
One reading
She lets her gladness show without trying: at the door and in the introduction.
she forgot to hide her joy at seeing him, and showed it with a frankness that proved irresistible to the solitary man
with a face and tone of such irrepressible pride and pleasure that she might as well have blown a trumpet
Another reading
She guards her eyes and her face once he is in the room.
feeling that they could not be trusted, she prudently kept them on the little sock she was knitting
she had to drop her ball, and go down after it to hide her face
Listen for
- One quote for showing and one for hiding.
- Says what Jo is glad about without adding what the chapter does not say.
If stuck
- What does Jo say when she sees him at the door?
- What does she do with her eyes while he talks with her father?
- Why does she drop her ball?
A strong answer At the door Jo forgot to hide her joy, and in the introduction her face and tone show irrepressible pride and pleasure. Once inside she keeps her eyes on her knitting because she feels they cannot be trusted, and she drops her ball to hide her face. A strong answer uses one line for showing and one for hiding and does not claim more about Jo's feeling than the narrator does.
- Laurie says Amy rules, “at least I let her think so.” Using two pieces of evidence, explain what kind of husband he says he is.
What it asks It asks the student to hear two sides of Laurie's talk about his marriage, one playful and one proud.
One reading
He is easygoing and happy to be led a little.
I don’t mind telling you that she does, now; at least I let her think so
she winds one round her finger as softly and prettily as a skein of silk
Another reading
He is proud and says he will not be ruled, or rule.
I am not the sort of man to submit to it.
My wife and I respect ourselves and one another too much ever to tyrannize or quarrel.
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence, one from each tone.
- Notices that Jo teases him after the first and approves the second.
If stuck
- What does Laurie say about who rules now?
- What does Jo say when he says it?
- What does Laurie say when she calls him henpecked?
A strong answer Laurie says Amy rules now, or at least he lets her think so, and that she winds him round her finger as softly as silk. When Jo calls him henpecked, he squares his shoulders and says he is not the sort to submit and that he and Amy respect each other too much to tyrannize or quarrel. A strong answer uses one quote from each tone and says what kind of husband he wants to be.