Pensée - Notes on the working title


pensée
pɒ̃ˈseɪ,French pɑ̃se/
noun
noun: pensée; plural noun: pensées
  1. a thought or reflection put into literary form; an aphorism.



I have decided on 'Pensée - The Story of Weedy and Lulu' as the working title. It is satisfyingly cryptic but has hidden meaning. 

  • Pensée means thoughts put into literary form, something Louisa was an expert at, in both her fiction and her journals and letters in equal measure.

  • The pansy flower gets its name from Pensée. 

  • The Viola tricolor or wild pansy is also known as Johnny Jump upheartseaseheart's easeheart's delighttickle-my-fancyJack-jump-up-and-kiss-mecome-and-cuddle-methree faces in a hood, love-in-idleness, kiss-her-in-the-buttery, Kit-run-about, Kit-run-in-the-fields, live-in-idleness, love idol, loving idol, love-lies-bleeding, meet-me-in-the-entry, pansy, pink-eyed-John, pink-o'-the-eye, stepmother, three-faces-under-a-hood and is a common European wild flower.

  • Hearts-ease means calm and contented

  • This hearts-ease pansy has been introduced into North America, where it has spread. It is the mother of all cultivated pansies.
  • The hearts-ease pansy sprouts again and again in Louisa's fictional work from Little Women where pansies were embroidered on the slippers of Mr. Laurence

  • In 'Garlands for Girls' each story is titled with a name for a flower with a particular meaning, with 'Pansies' focusing on the benefits of reading good books

  • Louisa uses it in one of her poem's 'A Song for the Suds'

Along the path of a useful life
Will heart's-ease ever bloom; 

  • In 'A Flower's Tale' the entire story centers around a Hearts-ease pansy where the characters lives are illustrated by the petals and structure of the flower and cultivating the flower provides the thread of the story. As with many of her stories there were autobiographical symbols within. "Hearts-ease won't grow for everyone but all the world wants it and will pay well for it. so sell your pansies lads and earn a fortune worth having.

  • In the short story 'Pansies' the pansies and waterlillies become symbols of purity and noble thoughts between three friends. 

  • The hearts-ease pansy is an edible flower. The wild heartsease is thought of by some as a powerful remedial herb, that is specially good for children

  • and from garlands for girls This 'pensee' is a happy faithful thought of me.

  • and finally... its Pen and See which combined produces thoughts reflected in literacy... which summarises Louisa perfectly.

Oh and if you were wondering 'Weedy' was Louisa's nickname from when little Lulu couldn't pronounce Louisa and called her 'Aunt Wee'.

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