Josephine’s struggle of life portrayed in Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women: A Feminist Literary Criticism

ABSTRACT

Traditionally, men have always been recognized in higher level than women in all aspects. But in feminism women have their right to participate in politic, economy and intellectual as some as men. Basically, Little Women novel is a reflection of women’s position which under male authority. In Little Women, Jo is portrayed as a woman who has high- idealism in her adulthood which always rebels the norms of society rules. She wants to find freedom and suffrages in order to get equality with men. Her character which is very masculine reflected in the story which named by feminism, those appears the contradictory to the male authority that has dominated the world or usually we called as the patriarchal system.

Concerning the topic which happens in Little Women that is Jo is struggling against the culture. Researcher chooses Little Women to be analyzed from the point of view feminism; this study has done to know how is Josephine’s struggle of life and how is the result of her struggle of life in Little Women by her own support, using Simone De Beauvoir’s theory. The independence of women is a major theme in the novel.

This analysis used literary criticism, because it is to describe the aspect of feminism of the main female character. In addition, the data are taken from Little Women By Louisa May Alcott. The researcher has done some steps in finding the data, firstly, close reading and understanding the novel, second; selecting the content of the novel which deal with the research problem and the researcher identifies the data based on Simone De Beauvoir’s theory, and the last step is rechecking towards paragraphs, phrases and sentences.

Based on the result of the analysis, the researcher finds that actually as the work of a woman, the character and story of the novel can conclude that the main character in this novel is the person who thinks that women also have equal responsibility with men in every aspect. Women also have the same opportunity to get her wishes and dreams. Woman also has the ability to miserable life not just livings has fun in an atmosphere of glamour and desire to obtain their dreams. This novel describes the power of woman to get their freedom by struggles against the all of problem in her life and finally she gets her dream to be famous writer, help her family’s economy and open a school to improve education and makes transform in society. The results of the struggle Josephine can life better than before doing struggle or before to be a writer in every aspect.

The researcher suggests for the next researchers to find a new discourse of concept in analyzing this object. It needs to continue in being deeper research and also to use another theory for conducting the study. Even though feminism becomes the highlight issue in this novel, more than that, the next researchers should be more critical in investigating the object. If it is used in another researches’ analysis, they will be better to use in different object which has significant theory. May it gives the new discourse of paradigm and enriches the knowledge of literatures.