1) Louisa May Alcott is known for her stories that focus on relationships among groups of women. Discuss such relationships in The Inheritance: those of Edith, Amy, Lady Ida, Lady Hamilton, and Theresa. Do these relationships form the heart of the story? What roles do the male characters in the story play? Are they secondary to the female characters?
2) During their boat ride on the moonlit lake, Lord Percy offers Edith a place in his home as companion to his mother. Why does he not ask her to marry him? Is he not yet in love with her? Does he sense (and she later confirms) that, as a woman of humble birth, she could never wed a nobleman?
3) When the others suggest acting out the tableaux, Edith does not wish to participate and cuts a lock of her own hair to free herself from Amy's grasp. Is this a turning point for Edith, as she defies Amy's wishes and refuses to participate in the game? Were you surprised at her display of anger? Is it the most emotion Edith displays throughout the story?
4) When Lord Arlington confronts Edith in the forest with his passion for her, she says, "My lord, I thank you, but I have no heart to give." What does she mean by this?
5) At various moments throughout The Inheritance, Lady Ida feels remorse for her cruel behavior towards Edith. Is Lady Ida truly a wicked character? Does she win your sympathy at all, or does she receive her just desserts? Is there a reversal of roles between Lady Ida and Edith at the end of the story?
6) When Lady Hamilton suspects Edith of stealing the money, why does she refuse to believe in the girl's innocence? And why is she then so willing to forgive Louis of the theft, even before she has heard his reason for stealing the money?
7) Discuss the importance of family in The Inheritance. Edith destroys her father's will, knowing this would prove her noble birth and free her to wed Lord Percy or someone of his class. Does she value the family ties and the love of the Hamiltons more than the romantic love she shares with Lord Percy?
8) Did you have any preconceived ideas about The Inheritance, knowing that it was Alcott's first novel and that she wrote it at the young age of seventeen? Were these expectations realized? Did anything about the story surprise you?
Little Women
With an Introduction by Elaine Showalter
0-14-039069-3
Alcott's famous autobiographical novel is a portrait of the March girls - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy - and a classic American feminist novel.
Work
A Story of Experience
With an Introduction by Joy S. Kasson
0-14-039091-X
In this story of a nineteenth-century woman searching for a meaningful life through work outside the family, Alcott explores her own personal conflicts and provides a social critique of America.
