Gift-Giving

Frontispiece of the first edition of Louisa May Alcott’s Flower Fables.

Following a long tradition, December was a time of giving and receiving in the 19th century. Gifts among the Emersons might range from fruit—pears in particular—to poems. On December 21, 1854, fifteen-year-old Ellen Emerson received an unexpected gift: Louisa May Alcott’s first published book, Flower Fables. The Emersons and Alcotts were neighbors at various times and the families close. While the Alcotts were living at Hillside—now known as The Wayside—Louisa had created stories for Ellen to keep her amused.

Ellen wrote of her present:

So this morning I saw a bundle on the entry directed to me. I opened it and found the “Flower Fables” all bound and printed very nicely with pictures, but on turning it over I saw my name in large letters and discovered that ‘twas dedicated to me! Of course, I fell down in a swoon since I could not express my emotion, there being nobody in the house…. 

The Emerson family typically exchanged gifts at New Year’s. Emerson favored giving books as a gift. He wrote on December 22, 1840, “Some books leave us free and some books make us free.” In 1844, Emerson struggled with what would be the right gift (as we all do). He wrote, “Flowers and fruits are always fit presents; flowers, because they are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.” He continues, “The only gift is a portion of thyself…the poet brings his poem; the shepherd, his lamb; the farmer, corn;…this is right and pleasing, for it restores society in so far to the primary basis, when a man’s biography is conveyed in his gift, and every man’s wealth is an index of his merit.” 

— B. Ewen, Emerson House guide