Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses racism toward Indigenous Americans and ableism.

Laura Ingalls, age 13, is The Long Winter’s thoughtful and spirited protagonist. Physically, Laura is small for her age and wears her long brown hair in braids. Laura is dedicated to her family and looks out for her sisters, particularly her older sister Mary, since Mary is blind after contracting scarlet fever. Her personality and preferences more closely align with her father, but that clashes with patriarchal expectations at the time. She loves to be outside, which conflicts with the expectations for women and girls to primarily work inside the home. Laura is allowed to step outside the expected norm by necessity, such as when she helps Pa gather hay for winter. Laura enjoys the work, and it gives her satisfaction to see how she has helped her family prepare for winter. Through Laura, Wilder questions narrow gender roles.

When she moves into town, Laura must meet patriarchal expectations for girls because of what others would think. At several points in the novel, she is frustrated by the confines of gender roles. When she enters school, she and the other girls must stay inside at recess while the boys play outside.