#hospital sketches

[veronicaleighauthor]

Before “Little Women”

Louisa May Alcott is best known as the author of the American classic “Little Women,” and has become synonymous with her literary counterpart, Jo March. While the Alcott family and their experiences inspired the events of the book, we must remember it is fiction and Louisa was her own person. She was raised by the idealistic Bronson Alcott and practical Abigail May. The Alcott’s were often in debt, starving and moving from place to place, yet their unorthodox Transcendental beliefs encouraged them to continually sacrifice for others. It was not uncommon for them to ration their food and give what they had to spare to the less fortunate. The Transcendentalists supported the abolition of slavery before it was popular; Bronson welcomed an African American girl into his classroom and was later forced to close down his school for such a progressive act. The Alcott family even had connections to the Underground Railroad.

            When the Civil War began, the Alcott’s did their part. They rolled bandages, donated their time and meager funds. For Louisa that was not enough. A woman of action, she was not satisfied with sitting on the sidelines and she was not faint of heart. For years she struggled alongside her family, striving for something more. At age fifteen she made a vow: “I will do something by and by. Don’t care what, teach, sew, act, write, anything to help the family. I’ll be rich and famous and happy before I die, see if I won’t!” She had always had a knack for writing and had begun to make a small name for herself writing blood and thunder tales. Louisa had become her family’s breadwinner.

Dorothea Dix and her band of nurses broke barriers. Prior to the Civil War, it was unthinkable for a lady to attend to wounded and ailing men. Early on in the war, only married women were allowed to participate. By 1862, the Union was so desperate for volunteers, that they accepted unmarried ladies. When Louisa heard of this, she volunteered and headed to Washington. Bronson felt as though he were “sending his only son to war.” It was the only acceptable way Louisa could serve her country, without actually donning on a uniform and fighting. This was one of the many times she lamented being born a girl instead of a boy.

            On her arrival at the hospital, Louisa’s eyes were open to the results of war. She supported the Union wholeheartedly and believed that slavery was a great evil. However, she realized that there was no glory in the suffering of men who shed their blood. Men of all ages and backgrounds were coming straight from the battlefield. They were mangled, ill, and many dying. The ones that survived, their broken bodies and spirits had to be repaired. Louisa washed them, administered medication, assisted in surgeries and amputations, read to them and helped them write letters home to their families.

She connected with one Union soldier; a Virginian blacksmith named John. She was drawn to his strength and quiet grace. As he slipped away, she remained by his side, holding his hand. Withdrawing from him, the white marks of his fingers were still pressed into her skin. He also left a lasting impression on her heart. While she worked there, she sent letters home detailing her experiences. Her parents saved and cherished her correspondence.

            Typhus, typhoid fever, cholera, and pneumonia struck down many of the patients…and the hospital staff. Louisa was in her sixth week of nursing when she contracted typhoid fever and struggled between life and death. Her long, dark hair –which she considered her one beauty- was shorn off to relieve her of her fever. The doctors treated her with mercury, in the form of calomel. Calomel was deemed unsafe, but many physicians still used it, which would result in mercury poisoning. When he heard she was deathly ill, her father Bronson escorted her from the hospital and brought her back home, where it took many months for her to recuperate. Prior to her service as a nurse, Louisa’s health had been robust. But now it was fragile and remained so for the remainder of her life. The mercury would have eventually left her system; however it is suspected that her illness and treatment could have let to her suffering from the auto-immune disease, Lupus.

When Louisa recovered enough from typhoid fever, she looked over the letters she had sent home. After some editing, she submitted them to a gazette. Excerpts of her work, “Hospital Sketches,” appeared in print throughout the east coast. In 1863, it was published in book form. A slim volume, it was a costly 50 cents and though the royalties she received did not lift her or her family out of poverty, it was a literary success. She received attention and made important connections, paving the way for her to become a famous author.

            Louisa made her youthful vow partly come true. By 1868, through “Little Women,” she was famous and rich. Her family never had to worry about money again. Yet all of that came with a heavy price. The public always wanted another book, her health and emotional state were delicate and she never wrote the kind of fiction that she had dreamt of writing.

But she was forever proud of her service to her country and at that time in history, she was considered a war veteran.  

#louisa may alcott #little women #hospital sketches #civil war #american history #women writers

[roseunspindle]

What I Want to Read by the end of 2023

Witch King,

System Collapse Starter Villain How to Sell a Haunted House Silver Nitrate A Study in Drowning Delicious Monsters Divine Rivals Silver in the Bone What the River Knows

#Booklr #2023 #Reading #Hospital Sketches #louisa may alcott #Gridlinked #Neal Asher #Dividing Eden #Joelle Charbonneau #Nemsis #Agatha Christie #The Haunting of Leigh Harker #Darcy Coates #Light Chaser #Peter F. Hamilton #Gareth L. Powell #An Echo of Things to Come #James Islington #Born to Run #Mercedes Lackey #Larry Dixon #Pahua and the Soul Stealer #Lor M. Lee #a lesson in vengeance #victoria lee #The Reality Bug #D.J. MacHale #Moby-Dick #Herman Melville

[kaogens]

simpler times

#trigun #trigun fanart #vashwood #vash the stampede #wolfwood #nicholas d. wolfwood #hospital yuri save me… save me hospital yuri #i miss them everyday every hour even While im drawing them #the grip ​this watercolor sketch-y coloring style has on me atm… #dissociated at 2am and drew these maybe the key to doing banger art is dissociation (joke)

[caelanglang]

Letter to Mackerel… I miss you to the stars and back

continuation of the childhood AU I made :3

I hope our planets collide again...

continuation here

#ye bascially dazai got sicklier and changed hospitals and moved again and that's why the letters stopped #insert awkward reconnecting but then boom it felt like they were never apart for xx years #waaaaaaaahhh i hope this reunion was fun for you guys i had fun thinking about it #yes dazai ran away bc he was planning to find chuuya in yokohama university #but ye chuuya came to the hospital instead #yes chuuya draws a lot mwehehehehe hes an athelet and an artist here ~ #yes i like cliche fight me #skk #bsd #my art #sketch #sketches #spinning this brainrot in my brain since idk when tbh #thank you for reading! #my comic #little prince skk au

[onebadnoodle]

the receptionist ☎️

#robot #character design #sketch #shes got corporate hospitality #phone

[arrowsperpetualcringe]

Hometown's most tragic comedic duo part 3

#more doodles of the hospital buddies #undertale #undertale yellow #uty #utdr #deltarune #rudy holiday #deltarune rudy #chujin ketsukane #uty chujin #my art #sketch

[crypticpawart]

Doodle Request | Dr. Phage from Awful Hospital

Follow on TikTok @crypticpaw.official

What do you want to see next?

#crypticpaw #art #artists of tumblr #artist #dark #dark art #dark aesthetic #horror #goth #horror art #gothic art #spooky #spooky art #scary #scary art #creepy #creepy art #sketch #drawing #drawings #request #doodle requests #doodles of tumblr #doodle art #doodles #doodle #small artist #awful hospital #doctor phage #dr phage

[jventureart]

#subjecting them to my attempts to learn to draw #also my tablet is broke so 🙃 have some sketches #kakagai #kkg #gaikaka #maito gai #hatake kakashi #might guy #kakashi hatake #kakashi “wears a fanny pack to hide the fact that he has no ass” hatake #strikes again lmao #jvart #nart #naruto #my favorite is the 2nd sleeping gai on kks shoulder #i imagined those are while lee and kks are in the hospital at the same time waiting on tsunade or something idk #finally blacking out after not sleeping for awhile #🤷🤷🤷 #idk what do you think

[anannua]

solidarity

#kakashi #obito #minato #rin #yamato #kakayama #obirin #team minato #these two have some thick ass partners #theyll live #minato came to visit #'how did you get those injuries...' #...'oh' #fist bump #hospital #sketch #doodle #kinktober2023 #something soft #the kinky part can come later #inspired by that one post where some dude goes to hospital for deep throating a massive cock #and another goes bc their partner broke their neck riding their face #kakashi and obito are ready to die happy #heaps of implications #kakashi and obito are so proud tho #best team #implied face fucking #tenzo

[mikrotyalm13]

I love Gavriil🖤

I want him to suplex me into the ground🖤

💟💟💟

#had the strength to sketch a few silly things #was in a hospital today oughuguhgufhd #i had a blood sample taken and a lung x-ray done. why? #i have no clue #but at least got another rabies shot done #my right arm ACHES #microtya's kids #art #my art #digital art #digital drawing #digital artwork #artists on tumblr #monsterfucker #monster fucker #monster x human #monster boyfriend #monster lover #teratophillia #god x human

[sillygutzartz]

lovey fishies!!!!

#sillygutzartz #digital art #fanart #sketch #art #cemetery mary #blackout hospital #my art <3 #mareggie

[yosb]

accidental renaissance courtroom sketch of defense counsel from the KOWALSKI v. JOHNS HOPKINS ALL CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL trial. defense counsel giving plaintiff's counsel death glares after a sassy retort that i'm shocked the judge didn't reprimand plaintiff's counsel for...

#courtroom sketch art #take care of maya #maya kowalski #kowalski v. johns hopkins all children's hospital #true crime

[todayisafridaynight]

#rgg #ryu ga gotoku #yakuza series #ryu ga gotoku 7 #yakuza like a dragon #yakuza 7 #ryo aoki #masato arakawa #jo sawashiro #hi jo :] #snap sketches #i have this progression in my brain where for the first few months after he leaves the hospital aoki's in denial bout going to the doc #he'll take his meds but he'll insist he's fine. until he's not and THEN he's just paranoid henceforth #but thats for me to elaborate in future comics ... lol ... anyway i just wanted to draw aoki with stubble . cause lol #hi jo <- already said hi to jo #i like jo :) ok bye jLKVEJKLVJ

[senoleaf]

i present to you: my piece for the Lights On! Lights Off! Sun and Moon fan zine!!

you can download the free PDF zine over here!!

go check it out if you haven't yet! :)

it was super nice to work alongside such great artists and talented people and i'm very happy i had the chance to participate! thank you very much for having me!!

#fnaf #fnaf security breach #fnaf sun #fnaf moon #five nights at freddy’s #the daycare attendant #sundrop #moondrop #security breach #lights on lights off zine #zine #fan zine #this piece means a lot to me #drew the sketch in hospital the day after my surgery LMAO #art #fanart #digital art #sen draws

[ginooknook]

our fav photographer, 🐱👓📸

#wonwoo #jeon wonwoo #seventeen #seventeen fanart #svt fanart #kpop fanart #digital art #artists on tumblr #i loved the colors in this pic so much #literally felt such a strong urge to draw this pic i started sketching at the hospital 💀

[dr-fancy-pants]

Made a number of sketches this afternoon and I think this one is among my favourites.

Colonel Mustang, expert at falling asleep anywhere, everywhere, except in his own bed.

#does he even own one #sketch #roy mustang #pencil sketch #for real we canonically only see him in bed in the hospital #if not he's sleeping on the couch #fullmetal alchemist #fma