Placing the storyline of the original novel into today's USA could easily have been achieved in a more authentic way, I think. The good feeling present throughout Little Women just wasn't present for me in The March Sisters at Christmas. One of my favourite parts of the original novel - the introduction of Professor Bhaer as romantic interest for Jo, is completely messed up; the Professor's character becomes a weedy young editor instead of an enigmatic wise and much older man. On that alone I'd mark The March Sisters film a failure. In some ways it came over for me as more of a rather cynical "spoof" than a re-working.
Anyway, all of that had me re-reading my own post on Louisa M. Alcott and Little Women, from 2009. I'm going to copy it here. I still ponder over possible Sun and Moon signs of the girls. In The March Sisters at Christmas Amy has a birthday between Thanksgiving and Christmas, making her a likely Sun Sagittarian. I don't think this is mentioned in the original, and it's not the Sun sign I'd have imagined for her either. As will be seen below, I had imagined her with Leo prominent, though a commenter considered Libra a better match due to her artistic leanings. There's more below on this.
FROM DECEMBER 2009:
Apart from the opening lines of Dickens' Tale of Two Cities ("It was the best of times, it was the worst of times....."), the only first lines of a novel I have engraved upon my memory are:
I received Little Women as a gift one Christmas long ago. After reading it with much delight I sought out its sequels Good Wives, Little Men, and Jo's Boys. Louisa May Alcott wrote much else, but these books brought her international fame. I've read the books, several times, seen all versions of the movies based on them, and in my first few weeks of blogging I wrote about Ms Alcott and her Little Women. I've fished out my old post, polished it up and here it is, refreshed and revived:
Louisa May was one of four daughters of transcendentalist and teacher Bronson Alcott, and Abigail, his wife, a vocal proponent of women's rights. They settled in Concord just outside of Boston. Louisa May and her sisters were educated mainly by their father. They were often in company of his friends who included such luminaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne and other literary figures, all of whom lived nearby. The Alcott family was not materially prosperous however, the children grew up in basic poverty, but surrounded by intellectual richness.
Young Louisa began writing early, first for her sisters, in the form of poems or plays which they would perform. She was forced to take any kind of work available for a few years in order to help the family finances, but she continued writing short stories and poems which were published in popular magazines. At age 22 her first book, "Flower Fables" was published . It was not until age 35 that she wrote "Little Women". The tale is partly autobiographical, drawing broadly from the experiences of herself and her sisters during childhood. At least 30 of her books were published, "Little Women" has never been out of print.
Louisa never married. In later life she became an advocate of women's suffrage and was the first woman to register to vote in Concord, MA. Her health had been permanently damaged when serving for a short spell as a Civil War nurse. Louisa contracted typhoid fever, she recovered but suffered the poisoning effects of mercury from a drug used at that time to cure the disease . Her health failed gradually, she died, aged 56, two days after her father had passed away. Interestingly her father was born in 1799, on the same day and month as Louisa May - 29 November.
So, does Louisa May Alcott's astrology fit? Born 29 November 1832 in Germantown, Pennsylvania at 12.30AM (Astrodatabank).
Sun and Mercury in Sagittarius with 19 degrees between them. Sagittarius is the sign of philosophers and free thinkers. It has been said that Louisa May, though surrounded by transcendentalist philosophies in her young life, did not ascribe to them herself - she followed her own free-thinking, possibly fuelled by her Moon and Uranus in Aquarius.
Saturn is in Virgo, squaring Mercury within 2 minutes of arc - the writer's Saturnian link: discipline and structure.
There is a Grand Trine in Earth linking Mars in Taurus, Saturn in Virgo and Neptune in Capricorn. I believe that this accounts for Louisa May's determination to provide for her poverty stricken family, which she continued to do throughout her lifetime. If she had any ambition or inclination to write worthy intellectual tomes, she decided to forego it in favour of writing what she was sure would sell and provide for her loved ones.
Jupiter, the publishing planet and traditional ruler of Pisces, lies strong in that sign, it squares Louisa's Mercury in Sagittarius, and opposes Saturn in Virgo, producing dynamic energy between the writing and publishing planets.
Pluto in Aries trines her Sagittarian Sun, but exactly squares her Venus in Capricorn. Perhaps while powerful Pluto may have aided her deepest ambitions, did the powerful, if diminutive, planet place an obstacle to her love life ?
She is quoted as having said "I have fallen in love with so many pretty girls, never once, the least bit, with any man". Whereas nowadays that statement might be thought to imply a certain sexual orientation, in the 19th century I very much doubt that was the case.
My longtime interest in astrology inspired me, when much younger, to try to categorise the sisters in Little Women according to their archetypes. I decided that Jo, who I'm sure was Louisa's alter ego had to represent Aquarius (reflection of her Moon). Meg, the homemaker seemed to me to depict Taurus (Cancer would fit well too though). Amy, the spoiled, vain sister was typically Leo. Beth the gentle one fitted Pisces well, I thought. However, after I'd posted the original of this piece, in December 2006, astrologer April Elliot Kent of Big Sky Astrology
commented as follows, with an alternative, and probably more accurate view.
Thinking about this again now, I reckon additional Aquarius flavour in the novels comes from Prof. Bhaer, who Jo eventually married, her Aquarius Moon and his Aquarius Sun would be a good combination.
"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.
"It's so dreadful to be poor!" sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.
"I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls nothing at all," added little Amy, with an injured sniff.
I received Little Women as a gift one Christmas long ago. After reading it with much delight I sought out its sequels Good Wives, Little Men, and Jo's Boys. Louisa May Alcott wrote much else, but these books brought her international fame. I've read the books, several times, seen all versions of the movies based on them, and in my first few weeks of blogging I wrote about Ms Alcott and her Little Women. I've fished out my old post, polished it up and here it is, refreshed and revived:
Louisa May was one of four daughters of transcendentalist and teacher Bronson Alcott, and Abigail, his wife, a vocal proponent of women's rights. They settled in Concord just outside of Boston. Louisa May and her sisters were educated mainly by their father. They were often in company of his friends who included such luminaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne and other literary figures, all of whom lived nearby. The Alcott family was not materially prosperous however, the children grew up in basic poverty, but surrounded by intellectual richness.
Young Louisa began writing early, first for her sisters, in the form of poems or plays which they would perform. She was forced to take any kind of work available for a few years in order to help the family finances, but she continued writing short stories and poems which were published in popular magazines. At age 22 her first book, "Flower Fables" was published . It was not until age 35 that she wrote "Little Women". The tale is partly autobiographical, drawing broadly from the experiences of herself and her sisters during childhood. At least 30 of her books were published, "Little Women" has never been out of print.Louisa never married. In later life she became an advocate of women's suffrage and was the first woman to register to vote in Concord, MA. Her health had been permanently damaged when serving for a short spell as a Civil War nurse. Louisa contracted typhoid fever, she recovered but suffered the poisoning effects of mercury from a drug used at that time to cure the disease . Her health failed gradually, she died, aged 56, two days after her father had passed away. Interestingly her father was born in 1799, on the same day and month as Louisa May - 29 November.
So, does Louisa May Alcott's astrology fit? Born 29 November 1832 in Germantown, Pennsylvania at 12.30AM (Astrodatabank).
Sun and Mercury in Sagittarius with 19 degrees between them. Sagittarius is the sign of philosophers and free thinkers. It has been said that Louisa May, though surrounded by transcendentalist philosophies in her young life, did not ascribe to them herself - she followed her own free-thinking, possibly fuelled by her Moon and Uranus in Aquarius.
Saturn is in Virgo, squaring Mercury within 2 minutes of arc - the writer's Saturnian link: discipline and structure.
There is a Grand Trine in Earth linking Mars in Taurus, Saturn in Virgo and Neptune in Capricorn. I believe that this accounts for Louisa May's determination to provide for her poverty stricken family, which she continued to do throughout her lifetime. If she had any ambition or inclination to write worthy intellectual tomes, she decided to forego it in favour of writing what she was sure would sell and provide for her loved ones.Jupiter, the publishing planet and traditional ruler of Pisces, lies strong in that sign, it squares Louisa's Mercury in Sagittarius, and opposes Saturn in Virgo, producing dynamic energy between the writing and publishing planets.
Pluto in Aries trines her Sagittarian Sun, but exactly squares her Venus in Capricorn. Perhaps while powerful Pluto may have aided her deepest ambitions, did the powerful, if diminutive, planet place an obstacle to her love life ?
She is quoted as having said "I have fallen in love with so many pretty girls, never once, the least bit, with any man". Whereas nowadays that statement might be thought to imply a certain sexual orientation, in the 19th century I very much doubt that was the case.
My longtime interest in astrology inspired me, when much younger, to try to categorise the sisters in Little Women according to their archetypes. I decided that Jo, who I'm sure was Louisa's alter ego had to represent Aquarius (reflection of her Moon). Meg, the homemaker seemed to me to depict Taurus (Cancer would fit well too though). Amy, the spoiled, vain sister was typically Leo. Beth the gentle one fitted Pisces well, I thought. However, after I'd posted the original of this piece, in December 2006, astrologer April Elliot Kent of Big Sky Astrology
commented as follows, with an alternative, and probably more accurate view.
April said...
Thanks for a fine post about the author of one of my favorite books! But I must object: Amy didn't have the fiery spunk of a Leo! (Well, perhaps I'm biased, being a Leo myself.) I'm thinking she had to be a Libra with all her paintbrushes and that fine sucking-up ability. And Jo was such a Sag to me (the character even says she was born in November!) - but had to have Mercury in Scorpio with that temper of hers. But yes, let's give her an Aquarius Moon!
December 15, 2006 12:37 PM
Twilight said... Thanks, April!
Sag. was my second choice for Jo, Aquarius (my own prejudice) was decided more on the content of the sequel books I guess, on her disinterest in marriage, and general obtuse-ness. lol! I'd forgotten about her birthday having been mentioned.
You're probably right about Amy, too. Libra would better fit her arty side.
That clothes peg got me though !!
If LW were set in today's world Amy would be at the head of the queue at the plastic surgeon's office! :-)
Thinking about this again now, I reckon additional Aquarius flavour in the novels comes from Prof. Bhaer, who Jo eventually married, her Aquarius Moon and his Aquarius Sun would be a good combination.
