Alice In Wonderland Comparative Essay

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Comparing the “original” Alice and what other authors, artist, etc. believe Alice should be is interesting because it shows how people’s different values can change one specific character in a novel. Alice may be one character from one specific book, but with all of the different versions of Alice in Wonderland it is safe to say that there is more than one “Alice” in a sense. The “Alice” that Carroll wrote and illustrated is not the same Alice that is present in all of the different versions of Alice in Wonderland. This is clearly shown when looking at Blache McManus’ illustrations of Alice. While looking at Carroll and McManus’ versions of Alice, the Alice in McManus’ novel is more friendly and is smiling more, while Carroll’s Alice appears to be much more unpleasant with her facial features. Carroll describes and illustrates Alice as the classic Victorian-era child that is an ideal model for children in Great Britain, but McManus does not follow this description. Even though the story is the same in Blanche McManus’ edition of Alice in Wonderland, Alice as a character is dramatically different. Alice is not being represented as the Victorian child that she truly is in McManus’ illustrated version of the novel. In the 1899 edition that Blanche McManus illustrated, she shows what Alice would look like with American values and …show more content…

Lewis Carroll’s novel was written in 1865 and Blanche McManus’ illustrated edition of Alice in Wonderland was written in 1899. Studying these two editions demonstrates that over time the values about childhood have changed drastically in the thirty-four years between publications. Carroll’s illustrations show a more serious, miniature adult-like Alice while McManus’ illustrations give Alice a more childlike approach. In McManus’ edition of Alice in Wonderland Alice looks like she is happy in Wonderland rather than

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