Little Women

Meet the voices

• Narrator · 旁白 — Tells Louisa May Alcott's story of the four March sisters, starting on a Christmas Eve without presents.
• Jo · 乔 — The second of the four sisters, fifteen, boyish and quick-tempered, who loves books and wants to be a writer.
• Meg · 梅格 — The eldest sister, sixteen, pretty, gentle and a little vain, who works as a governess for the King children.
• Beth · 贝丝 — The third sister, thirteen, gentle and very shy, who loves music and her home.
• Amy · 艾米 — The youngest sister, twelve, an artistic girl who is very proud of her good manners.
• Marmee · 妈妈 — Mrs. March, the girls' mother and the heart of the family, whom they call Marmee.
• Father · 爸爸 — Mr. March, the girls' gentle, bookish father, who is far away helping at the war.
• Laurie · 劳里 — Theodore Laurence, fifteen, the lonely rich boy next door, who lives with his grandfather and loves music.
• Mr. Laurence · 劳伦斯先生 — Laurie's rich, proud and gruff old grandfather, who lives in the big stone house next door.
• Aunt March · 马奇姑妈 — Father's rich, sharp old aunt, who is lame and has Jo come to read to her.
• John Brooke · 约翰·布鲁克 — Laurie's tutor, a quiet, honest man with very little money.
• Professor Bhaer · 巴尔教授 — A poor German professor of nearly forty in New York, who looks after his two orphaned nephews.
• Dr. Bangs · 班斯医生 — The Marches' family doctor.
• Mr. Dashwood · 达斯伍德先生 — The editor of the Weekly Volcano, a paper in New York.
• Hannah · 汉娜 — The Marches' old servant, who is almost one of the family.
• Mrs. Hummel · 胡梅尔太太 — A poor German widow nearby, with a newborn baby and six hungry children.
• Aunt Carrol · 卡罗尔姑妈 — A rich aunt of the girls by marriage, and Flo's mother.
• Flo · 弗洛 — Aunt Carrol's daughter.
• Mrs. Kirke · 柯克太太 — The mother of two little girls, who runs a boarding house in New York.
• Tina · 蒂娜 — The little daughter of a laundress, who adores Professor Bhaer.
• Daisy · 黛西 — A baby girl, Demi's twin sister.
• Demi · 德米 — A baby boy, Daisy's twin brother.

31 chapters in 6 parts

Part 1: Four Sisters 四姐妹

Part 2: Spring and Summer 春天和夏天

Part 3: Dark Days 难过的日子

Part 4: Growing Up 长大了

Part 5: Jo in New York 乔在纽约

Part 6: Harvest Time 摘苹果的日子

Key words in Little Women

• 圣诞节 shèng dàn jié: Christmas
• 姐妹 jiě mèi: sisters
• 结婚 jié hūn: to marry
• 钢琴 gāng qín: piano
• 故事 gù shi: story
• 手套 shǒu tào: gloves
• 袜子 wà zi: socks
• 补 bǔ: to mend
• 宝宝 bǎo bǎo: baby
• 果酱 guǒ jiàng: jam

Behind the story

Louisa May Alcott published Little Women in two parts, in 1868 and 1869. Its title is Father's name for his daughters: in a letter home from the war, he hopes they will be good and brave, so that he can be prouder than ever of his “little women”. The standard Chinese title, 小妇人, means the same.

This book retells both parts in simple Mandarin, from Alcott's own English. Her 47 chapters become 31 here, and a few side episodes, such as Amy's pickled limes at school, are left out.

Alcott never names the war, and neither does this book: the Chinese just says 打仗, “to fight a war”. Father has gone to help as a minister, not as a soldier. Money is short at home, so each girl does her part: Meg teaches the King children, Jo reads to old Aunt March, Beth keeps house and Amy goes to school.

Did you know?

• Chinese writes the family's English names by their sounds: March is 马奇 (Mǎqí), Meg is 梅格 (Méigé), Jo is 乔 (Qiáo), Beth is 贝丝 (Bèisī) and Amy is 艾米 (Àimǐ).
• The girls call their parents Marmee and Father. In Chinese they simply say 妈妈 (māma) and 爸爸 (bàba), the words any Chinese child uses at home.
• On Christmas Eve each sister has one dollar of her own, 一块钱 (yí kuài qián), and they all decide to spend it on Marmee. In everyday Chinese 块 (kuài) counts money, dollars as well as yuan.