Little Women II. A Merry Christmas. Summary

Summary

On Christmas morning Jo awakens and finds a crimson-covered copy of a devotional book under her pillow; Meg, Beth, and Amy each have a copy as well, and the sisters begin the day by reading together. Their quiet morning of piety and small domestic vanities—Amy’s pride in a new bottle of cologne, Beth’s lovingly marked handkerchiefs, Jo’s russet boots—shifts when Hannah reports that Marmee has gone out to help some poor people. The girls prepare breakfast, and when Marmee returns she asks them to give their meal to a nearby suffering family with a new baby. Though hungry, the sisters cheerfully surrender their dishes, carry food and fuel, and help warm and feed the children. The grateful poor call them angels; the March girls return content with bread and milk, feeling merry because they have done good.

Back home the family devotes the day to making improvised costumes, props, and scenery for an evening entertainment. Their homemade “Operatic Tragedy” is inventive, comic, and energetic: Jo plays male roles using treasured russet boots; Meg, Beth, and Amy contribute music, acting, and stagecraft; the plot includes witches, potions, a tower collapse, and a rain of tin money. The performance ends in uproarious laughter when the audience-bed folds up, but the actors are led downstairs to an unexpected supper—ice cream, cakes, flowers—sent by Mr. Laurence in acknowledgment of the girls’ earlier charity. The chapter closes with warmth and tenderness as Marmee and the girls enjoy the surprise and Beth quietly wishes she could send her rose to their father, remembering him on the day.

Key events

1. Girls wake and find devotional books under their pillows and read together.
2. Marmee asks the girls to give their breakfast to a nearby poor family.
3. The sisters and Hannah bring food, make a fire, and comfort the needy household.
4. They spend the day creating costumes and staging an elaborate home-made play.
5. Their play ends in comic mishap but great merriment among the performers.
6. Mr. Laurence sends a sumptuous supper to reward their charity and surprise them.

Analysis

This chapter establishes household values and the March family’s moral compass through a Christmas episode that contrasts private enjoyment with public charity. The initial scene of the devotional books frames the sisters’ behavior: their shared reading functions as both literal guidance and an organizing principle for the day’s choices, prompting self-denial and neighborly compassion. Giving away their breakfast dramatizes the novel’s recurring theme of love enacted through sacrifice; the girls’ happiness after their good deed reinforces Alcott’s ethic that moral action yields genuine joy. The homemade play showcases the siblings’ creativity, cooperation, and class-limited resources—their inventive use of household objects emphasizes resourcefulness and play as wholesome substitutes for costly amusements. Jo’s male role-playing and possession of the russet boots hint at her restless, theatrical spirit and growing independence. Narrative technique alternates quiet interior domestic detail with lively public scenes, balancing tenderness with comedy. Mr. Laurence’s anonymous gift functions as social recognition—an external validation of the girls’ charity—while also introducing a neighborly link without altering the family’s modest dignity. Symbolically, the roses and the tin-money rain in the play contrast natural beauty and crude glitter, underscoring sincerity versus artifice. Overall, the chapter deepens character relations and themes—sacrifice, creativity, and moral formation—while keeping the tone affectionate and humorous.

Important quotes

“She knew it very well, for it was that beautiful old story of the best life ever lived, and Jo felt that it was a true guide-book for any pilgrim going the long journey.”

NarratorSets the moral tone: the devotional book shapes the sisters' behavior and decisions on Christmas morning.

“My girls, will you give them your breakfast as a Christmas present?”

MarmeeMarmee’s request prompts the central act of charity that defines the chapter’s moral lesson.

“Ach, mein Gott! it is good angels come to us!”

Poor woman (quoted by Narrator)A direct response from the needy family that highlights the girls' impact and the emotional rewards of their generosity.

Characters in II. A Merry Christmas.

• Jo March
• Meg March
• Beth March
• Amy March
• Marmee
• Hannah
• Mr. Laurence
• Aunt March
• Laurie
• Mr. March
• John Brooke
• Friedrich Bhaer