About:

About this class:

This is a 2-meeting virtual class using the Zoom platform.

Thursdays March 21 and 28 - 1-3 pm Central time.

Just in time to celebrate Women's History Month we will take a look at the writings of Louisa May Alcott, "beyond" her master work, LIttle Women. These writings include romance and poetry and her Civil War Sketches. We will discuss how these writings marked her as a woman of her time, yet seeking to find her own independence in spite of the cultural constraints of her era, how Alcott was involved with the issues of her day, and how all of this prepared her to write Little Women. The second class session will include a one-woman show presenting Louisa May Alcott and offer time for questions on Alcott and on the process of creating a costumed character.

Instructor bio:

Joan Leotta is a writer and story performer, author of eleven books published by five different publishers. Her writings and performances are often food-or history-inspired. Her costumed character presentations of Colonial and Civil-War era women have taken her to audiences up and down the East Coast. She has written for magazines, newspapers, and books. Her latest book is Feathers on Stone. She is a two-time Pushcart nominee, twice a Best of the Net Nominee and was a 2022 Runner up in the Robert Frost Foundation contest.

Humanities North Dakota classes and events are funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

HND VALUE STATEMENT

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or Humanities North Dakota. However, in an increasingly polarized world, we at Humanities North Dakota believe that being open-minded is necessary to thinking critically and rationally. Therefore our programs and classes reflect our own open-mindedness in the inquiry, seeking, and acquiring of scholars to speak at our events and teach classes for our Public University. To that end, we encourage our participants to join us in stepping outside our comfort zones and considering other perspectives and ideas by being open-minded while attending HND events featuring scholars who hold a variety of opinions, some being opposite of our own held beliefs.