Little Women, written by Louisa May Alcott, is a story of the four girls, Meg, Josephine, Beth and Amy. It is about their journeys from childhood to adulthood during the American Civil War. Little Women centers on the conflict between two emphases in a young woman’s life—that which she places on herself, and that which she places on her family. The story is based on the childhood experiences Alcott shared with her real-life sisters, Anna, May and Elizabeth.