PART TWO: CHAPTER FORTY - TWO - All Alone Practice Quiz — Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: PART TWO: CHAPTER FORTY - TWO - All Alone
What promise did Jo make before Beth died?
Jo promised to comfort Father and Mother, make the house cheerful, and find some useful, happy work to do.
Why does Jo initially struggle with grief after Beth's death?
She feels it is unjust that her joys are lessened and her burdens heavier. She resents being trapped in a quiet, humdrum domestic life she never wanted.
Who are Jo's "good angels" that come to help her?
Her mother (Marmee) and father, who comfort her at night and counsel her during the day, though Jo does not recognize them as angels at first because they wore "familiar shapes."
What does Jo call her father's study?
She calls it "the church of one member," where she goes for spiritual and emotional guidance.
How does Jo's relationship with her father change in this chapter?
They begin talking not only as father and daughter but as man and woman—as equals able to serve each other with mutual sympathy and love.
How does Jo honor Beth's memory through housework?
She takes over Beth's household tasks, hums Beth's songs, imitates her orderly ways, and maintains the small domestic touches that kept the home cozy.
What does Hannah say about Jo's domestic efforts?
"You thoughtful creeter, you're determined we shan't miss that dear lamb ef you can help it. We don't say much, but we see it, and the Lord will bless you for't."
What metaphor does Meg use to describe Jo's personality?
A chestnut burr—"prickly outside, but silky-soft within, and a sweet kernel, if one can only get at it."
How does Jo respond to Meg's chestnut burr metaphor?
She retorts that "frost opens chestnut burrs" and she doesn't care to be "bagged" by boys who go nutting.
What prompts Jo to start writing again?
Her mother suggests she write something for the family, saying it always used to make her happy. Jo reluctantly gets out her desk and begins overhauling half-finished manuscripts.
How is Jo's new story different from her earlier writing?
It contains truth, humor, and pathos because she wrote with her heart rather than for fame and money. Her father says she has "found her style at last."
What happens when Jo's father sends her story to a magazine?
It is published, paid for, and praised. Letters of admiration follow, newspapers copy it, and other stories are requested.
How does Jo react to Amy and Laurie's engagement?
She looks grave at first but accepts it gracefully, becoming full of hopes and plans for them. However, it awakens her own loneliness and longing to be loved.
What does Jo confess to Marmee about Laurie?
She admits that if Teddy had tried again, she might have said yes—not because she loves him more, but because she cares more about being loved than she did when he went away.
What does Jo admit about her heart's capacity?
She says her heart is "so elastic, it never seems full now," and the more she tries to satisfy herself with natural affections, the more she wants.
What allusion does the narrator make to The Pilgrim's Progress?
Jo's comfort in writing is compared to Christian resting in the little arbor as he climbed the hill called Difficulty—a temporary refreshment on a hard spiritual journey.
What does Jo find in the garret at the end of the chapter?
Among old exercise books from her time at Mrs. Kirke's, she finds a note written in Professor Bhaer's hand.
What does Professor Bhaer's note say?
"Wait for me, my friend. I may be a little late, but I shall surely come."
How does the chapter end?
Jo clutches Professor Bhaer's note, lays her head on a rag bag in the garret, and cries while rain patters on the roof. The narrator asks whether her tears are from self-pity or from an awakening romantic sentiment.
What is the significance of the chapter title "All Alone"?
It captures Jo's emotional isolation after Beth's death and with her other sisters gone, but it is ironic because the chapter systematically shows Jo surrounded by sources of comfort, suggesting her loneliness is a catalyst for growth.