Children's literature in this case study uses Louisa May Alcott's Little Women (1868-69) to explore changing notions about childhood, giving insight into the changing position of girls and women in American society, from the ordinary aspects of children's daily lives in the late 19th century to the ethical and moral assumptions that guided young people at this time in their thinking about class, gender, nationality, friendship, marriage, parenthood, and other issues. echo [more]