Little Women
Chapter 44 — 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
Deciding what their wealth is for, Laurie and Amy admit that Amy once meant to marry for money and that Laurie prefers helping a decayed gentleman to a beggar, so what do these admissions do to their plans, and is a promise to give the same as giving?
The tension The chapter is a bargain struck in a drawing-room. Amy catches herself mid-sentence when she hears her own rule about marrying for money; Laurie answers that she refused a richer man and was true to her mother's teaching, and she says she sometimes wishes he were poor so she could prove it. Laurie's charity has a preference he calls wrong and keeps; Amy's has a memory of being an ambitious girl without help. They plan to trick Jo into taking money in spite of herself, name themselves Dorcas and St. Martin, and shake hands on it. The narrator closes on feelings, a home more homelike because they hope to brighten others, and records no gift given.
Today's focus
Notice how Laurie and Amy talk about money and giving, and how each of them owns something about their past.
Two core ideas
- Amy and Laurie are at ease enough to name their old mistakes: hers about marrying for money, and his about whom he prefers to help.
- They make plans to give, including a plan to help Jo, and the chapter ends on the plans and a handshake.
The shape at a glance
Laurie comes to borrow his wife for half an hour. He says he will go into business, and Mr. and Mrs. March are pleased. That evening in their drawing-room the couple talk about Jo and the Professor, about Amy's old idea of a rich match, and about what to do with their money. They name themselves Dorcas and St. Martin and shake hands on it.
A way in
Start with Amy stopping mid-sentence. Ask what she remembers, and how Laurie answers.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the borrowed wife, the weathercock, Laurie's business plan, the talk of marrying for money, and the bargain.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences: one person's memory and wish to help, then another person's bigger plan in reply.
Debate Take sides: is making a plan to give the same as giving? Each side must use at least one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why the author ends the chapter on a handshake and a hope.
Easier Read Amy's speech about girls who cannot ask aloud together and talk through discussion questions 1 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 Laurie or Amy says something playful that also says something serious, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- Amy starts to say, “Women never should marry for money,” and stops herself. What do you think just went through her mind?Inference
What it asks It asks what a sentence broken off in the middle shows about Amy, and why she hurries to reassure Laurie afterward.
One reading
She remembers her own old belief and is embarrassed to hear it echo.
Amy caught herself up short as the words escaped her, and looked at her husband
you once thought it your duty to make a rich match
Another reading
She fears Laurie might take it the wrong way, so she hurries to set it right.
O my dearest boy, don’t, don’t say that! I forgot you were rich when I said ‘Yes.’
It would break my heart if you didn’t believe that I’d gladly pull in the same boat with you
Listen for
- Says what Amy remembers, using what Laurie says next.
- Notices how quickly she answers him.
If stuck
- What does Laurie say when she stops?
- How does Laurie say it: seriously, or teasing?
- What does Amy say she forgot when she said yes?
A strong answer Amy hears her own old rule come out of her mouth and stops. Laurie answers with "malicious gravity," reminding her she once thought it her duty to make a rich match, and she hurries to say she forgot he was rich when she said yes. So she may be embarrassed by the old belief, or afraid of how it sounds to him, or both. A strong answer says what she remembers and uses her quick reply as evidence.
- Laurie likes to help “a decayed gentleman” better than “a blarneying beggar” and says, “I suppose it’s wrong.” Do you think it is?Moral reasoning
What it asks It asks whether preferring one kind of needy person to another is unfair, or whether Laurie has a reason for it.
One reading
It is unfair: need is need, and he ranks people by manners, as he half admits.
I like to serve a decayed gentleman better than a blarneying beggar; I suppose it’s wrong, but I do, though it is harder.
Because it takes a gentleman to do it
Another reading
It has a reason: the gentlefolk go without help because they will not ask.
Out-and-out beggars get taken care of, but poor gentlefolks fare badly, because they won’t ask, and people don’t dare to offer charity
there are a thousand ways of helping them, if one only knows how to do it so delicately that it does not offend
Listen for
- Takes Laurie's own doubt seriously.
- Says who is left out if only one kind of person is helped.
If stuck
- Who does Laurie say gets taken care of already?
- What does he say makes the other kind of help hard?
- What does he call his own preference?
A strong answer Laurie calls his preference wrong himself, and the chapter does not tell us he is mistaken or right. His reason is that beggars get looked after, while poor gentlefolk go without because they will not ask and no one dares to offer. Amy's comment, "Because it takes a gentleman to do it," adds a little flattery. A strong answer weighs his reason against his doubt and gives a reason for its own view.
- Amy says she once belonged to those “who can’t ask, and who suffer in silence.” How does that memory shape what she wants to do now?Theme
What it asks It asks how Amy's own past turns into a wish, and what she thinks a little help at the right moment can do.
One reading
She wants to give back what was given to her.
People have been very kind to me; and whenever I see girls struggling along, as we used to do, I want to put out my hand and help them, as I was helped.
before you made a princess of me, as the king does the beggar-maid in the old story
Another reading
She wants to reach those who cannot ask, before their chances pass.
there’s another class who can’t ask, and who suffer in silence
have to see youth, health, and precious opportunities go by, just for want of a little help at the right minute
Listen for
- Connects Amy's own past to her wish.
- Notices the words "as I was helped."
If stuck
- What does Amy say happens to ambitious girls?
- What does she say she wants to do when she sees them?
- What does she say people have been to her?
A strong answer Amy says she knows something of girls who cannot ask, because she was one, and that people were kind to her. She wants to put out her hand to girls struggling as she did, before their youth and opportunities slip past for want of a little help at the right minute. A strong answer says how her own past shapes the wish and uses "as I was helped."
- Laurie plans to “get round” Jo through her belief in “honest debts.” What does that plan show about how he sees her?Character
What it asks It asks what Laurie knows about Jo, and whether using her own principle against her pride is clever, kind, or a little sly.
One reading
He knows her well: he finds the one route her pride will allow.
I owe Jo for a part of my education, and she believes in people’s paying their honest debts, so I’ll get round her in that way.
she is very proud of him, just as he is
Another reading
He plans to work around her wishes, not with them.
do them a good turn in spite of themselves
We won’t interfere now, but watch our chance
Listen for
- Uses what Laurie says about Jo, and what Amy says.
- Says whether knowing someone well is the same as respecting her wishes.
If stuck
- What does Amy say Jo would do if she found out?
- What does Laurie say he owes Jo?
- What does Laurie say they will do meanwhile?
A strong answer Laurie and Amy both know Jo: she is proud, she would find them out, and she thinks poverty a beautiful thing. Laurie's plan uses her belief in paying honest debts, which shows he knows her well. It also means helping "in spite of themselves," which a reader might call kind or sly. A strong answer says which it finds more, and why.
- Laurie and Amy cast themselves as “Dorcas” and “St. Martin.” Why might Alcott have them take those names for this plan?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what two storybook names add to a plan to give, and what tone they give the end of the chapter.
One reading
The names lift the plan: each one is a picture of generous giving.
Will you be a little Dorcas, going about emptying a big basket of comforts, and filling it up with good deeds?
if you will be a brave St. Martin, stopping, as you ride gallantly through the world, to share your cloak with the beggar
Another reading
The names keep it playful: they are a game between two people who admire each other.
added the other member of the domestic admiration society
It’s a bargain, and we shall get the best of it!
Listen for
- Says what each picture, the basket and the cloak, asks of them.
- Names a tone for the ending and gives a reason.
If stuck
- What does Dorcas do with her basket?
- What does St. Martin do with his cloak?
- What do Laurie and Amy do when they agree?
A strong answer Dorcas empties a big basket of comforts and fills it with good deeds, and St. Martin stops on his ride to share his cloak, so the names make the plan sound generous and a little grand. The chapter also calls them members of a domestic admiration society, and their "bargain" is warm and playful. A strong answer names the tone of the ending and uses one of the two pictures to support it.
Critical thinking
- Laurie says he will go into business and “work like a man.” Using two pieces of evidence, explain why he wants to work.
What it asks It asks what Laurie says he wants from work, and whether it is for someone else or for himself.
One reading
He wants to please his grandfather and prove himself.
I’m going into business with a devotion that shall delight grandfather, and prove to him that I’m not spoilt.
Another reading
He wants to steady himself and stop drifting.
I need something of the sort to keep me steady.
I’m tired of dawdling, and mean to work like a man.
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Says what Mrs. March thinks of his answer.
If stuck
- Whom does Laurie say his work will delight?
- What does he say he needs to keep him steady?
- What does he say he is tired of?
A strong answer Laurie gives two reasons. He wants his devotion to delight his grandfather and prove he is not spoilt, which is about someone else's opinion. He also says he needs something to keep him steady and is tired of dawdling, which is about himself. A strong answer uses both and says which seems to weigh more with him.
- Laurie says, “That man intends to marry our Jo!” Using two pieces of evidence, explain what he thinks of the Professor.
What it asks It asks the student to sort Laurie's praise of Mr. Bhaer from his wishes for him, and to see how Amy answers.
One reading
He thinks very well of him, and wants to do something for him.
I consider him a trump, in the fullest sense of that expressive word
I wish we could do something for that capital old Professor.
Another reading
He has small worries about him: his age and his money.
I do wish he was a little younger and a good deal richer.
Couldn’t we invent a rich relation, who shall obligingly die out there in Germany, and leave him a tidy little fortune?
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence.
- Says that this is Laurie's guess and not something the chapter confirms.
If stuck
- What word does Laurie use to praise the Professor?
- What two things does he wish were different?
- What does Amy say about age and money?
A strong answer Laurie's own word for the Professor is a trump, and he calls him a capital old Professor and wants to help him. But he wishes he were a little younger and a good deal richer, and Amy tells him not to be too fastidious and worldly-minded. The chapter gives only Laurie's guess about a marriage. A strong answer uses one line of praise and one of worry and does not claim more than Laurie does.
- Laurie says rich people have “no right to sit down and enjoy themselves.” Using two pieces of evidence, explain what he thinks money is for.
What it asks It asks what Laurie says should be done with money, and how he ties it to his own happiness.
One reading
Money should be used while one is alive, not saved up or left behind.
Rich people have no right to sit down and enjoy themselves, or let their money accumulate for others to waste.
It’s not half so sensible to leave legacies when one dies as it is to use the money wisely while alive
Another reading
Giving is part of enjoying it, so the giver gains too.
We’ll have a good time ourselves, and add an extra relish to our own pleasure by giving other people a generous taste.
enjoy making one’s fellow-creatures happy with it
Listen for
- Two different pieces of evidence, one about timing and one about pleasure.
- Says what Laurie wants to do with the money.
If stuck
- What does Laurie say is not sensible?
- What does he say he will add to their own pleasure?
- What does he resolve to found?
A strong answer Laurie says money should be used wisely while one is alive, since leaving legacies is not half so sensible. He also says giving will add an extra relish to their own pleasure. A strong answer uses one line about when to use money and one about what it gives the giver, and says what he is resolving to do.