ILLUSTRATIONS

Abigail May Alcott, know as May, was the Illustrator for this book. May was Louisa’s youngest sister. The character Amy, in Little Women, was modeled after May Alcott. There are four illustrations in this book. All four of these illustrations are in black and white, and are spaced throughout the book. Louisa May Alcott had anxiety about how the illustrations would turn out once the engraver transferred them into the book. She has been quoted having written that she hoped the engraver would not “spoil the pictures and make Meg cross-eyed, Beth with no nose, or Jo with a double chin (Myerson).” In the end, the illustrations turned out beautifully, and add an important visual element to the book.


The first image appears in the book before the story even begins. It is the first thing you see when you open the cover of the book and turn the first page. Before the reader sees the title page, or the table of contents, there is a beautiful image of Mrs. March with the four girls surrounding her. Underneath the picture is an excerpt from the book that states, “They all drew into the fire, Mother in the big chair, with Beth at her feet; Meg and Amy perched on either arm of the chair, and Jo leaning on the back.” This picture sets the mood for the book, and gives the reader insight to what the story will be about. Before the reader even begins the story, there is a connection established.

The next image that is present in the book is of Jo on page 117. In the image Jo is ice skating. This image provides a good visualization of the character of Jo through the clothes she is wearing, and the activity she is participating in. It also sets the character in the time period in which the story takes place. Below the image there is an excerpt that reads, “Keep near the shore; it isn’t safe in the middle,’ Jo heard, but Amy was just struggling to her feet, and did not catch the words.” This particular image hooks the reader, with the foreshadowing of the unsafe ice. It is possible that this is a tactic to hook the reader and keep them reading.

The next image in the book is of Meg on page 134. At this particular moment of the book, Meg is attending a fancy party called Vanity Fair. In the illustration you see Meg looking into the mirror admiring herself in the attire she is wearing. Under the image the excerpt reads, “For several minutes, she stood like the jackdaw in the fable, enjoying her borrowed plumes.” This is another image that gives great insight to the character. As stated before, the personal flaw Meg is trying to overcome throughout the story of Little Women is vanity. This illustration provides a visualization of Meg and her character, and what she is trying to overcome.

The final image in the book is of shy Beth running into her father’s arms on page 321. Again this image helps develop the character through visualization. Their father has finally come home from working in the military as a chaplain. This image projects the love the girls have for their father, and portrays how much he is missed in his absence. Not even shy Beth can resist running into his arms. Below the image the caption reads, “But it was too late; the study-door flew open, and Beth ran straight into her father’s arms.”


Steel engraving is most likely what was used in this book. Engraving is the process of chiseling and image of design in to a hard material, steel in this case. The process of steel engraving begins with the transfer of the illustration to the etching ground, and then being etched with the burin. Often a machine was used to etch the lines. “It might have been thought that after the introduction of acierage (steel facing) in the 1860s steel as an engraving surface would have been abandoned in favor of copper, but this does not seem to have happened in book illustration.” Steel engraving continued to be use through the end of the nineteenth century (Wakeman).