In the 1951 Disney movie, Alice in Wonderland, Alice falls down a rabbit-hole while chasing a White Rabbit with a waistcoat and ends up in Wonderland. It is a place where animals talk and logic no longer exits. In the original work by Lewis Carroll, Alice grows internally and has control over her surroundings in Wonderland. She learns how to wear the crown of adulthood by finally knowing her identity in the end. Although Disney’s version imitates the same adventure as the original, Alice’s character’s identity does not develop. In the opening scene, Alice desires something beyond orthodox. This is showed by her lack of interest in her studies and longing for a world in which everything would be “nonsense.” She is a curious child. Deborah Ross argues that Alice expresses the usual idealistic desires: “to escape boredom (with lessons), to satisfy curiosity (about the white rabbit), and above all, to exert power” (Ross 57). However Alice does not know exerting power is difficult when the world is consumed of “nonsense”. Thus she has different qualities that contributes to her vague identity. She believes life would be different in her world. Also Disney strives to reveal Alice’s incentive of Wonderland by introducing pictorial wonders such as singing flowers and surrealistic insect, making it seem as a dream. The movie progresses in the same route as Lewis Carroll’s book by focusing on her immature thinking of Wonderland. When Alice falls down the rabbit hole by curiosity to pursue the Wonderland, she encounters characters that questions her identity. One main example was the dialogue with the Cheshire Cat, who tells her everyone in the neighborhood is mad. Alice speaks Carroll's line, "But I don't want to go ... ... middle of paper ... ...She cannot pursue her progressive dreams of her identity. She has to adopt respectable behavior in every circumstance, in contrast to support of creative thinking of Wonderland. She calls for help during a time of conflict in contrast the original Alice’s confident and spirit. Alice in both versions has no level of toleration for difficulties. However Carroll’s Alice becomes more determined and self-reliant as she travels through her identity, which was wonderland. She states when she comes back home “what a wonderful dream it had been” (Carroll 98). Alice knew where she belonged because of Wonderland. Disney’s Alice just wanted the dream to end and be free from the madness of herself. Unfortunately Wonderland never taught Alice a lesson about her individuality. Instead the whole 95 minutes of Wonderland was just a comedic dream without meaning.
The journey of Alice out of the movie from ‘Alice in Wonderland’ is one that is remarkably unique. Alice is the typical girl that finds herself lost in an imaginary world where she is challenged to be brave and test her limits. The imaginary world is full of obscure creatures and events. “Alice’s Theme” written by Danny Elfman for “Walt Disney Pictures” 2010 film “Alice in Wonderland”, perfectly demonstrates Alice’s journey and the characteristics she possesses. Through the exceptional manipulation of musical elements and the manipulation of the song ‘Alice’s Theme’ during the movie Danny Elfman has represented Alice as being a person that is unsure about her scenario and identity. The different variations of the song that are played throughout
Alice in Wonderland starts when Alice “sees” a rabbit exclaiming it was going to be late. When Alice starts dreaming about the Wonderland it may have been a little strange, but she ends up realizing that it helps with her problems in the real world.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a story about a little girl who comes into contact with unpredictable, illogical, basically mad world of Wonderland by following the White Rabbit into a huge rabbit – hole. Everything she experiences there challenges her perception and questions common sense. This extraordinary world is inhabited with peculiar, mystical and anthropomorphic creatures that constantly assault Alice which makes her to question her fundamental beliefs and suffer an identity crisis. Nevertheless, as she woke up from “such a curious dream” she could not help but think “as well she might, what a wonderful dream it had been ”.
Alice in Wonderland is a Disney film that is different from all the others. It was released in 1951, similar to Cinderella, and helped the world get over the war. It is the 13th film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and is one of Mr. Disney’s favorites. Alice is a bit younger than most female Disney characters, about seven or eight. Most of the other Disney movie’s offer a world where the character had no control on what was in it, however Alice gets to live in her own Wonderland. She is a very adventurous child and wants to discover what is around her, testing her imagination. Alice learns many lessons and values that most young children should learn and use in their own lives. Most of the Disney movies have many valuable lessons that can be related to everyday life.
Alice Adventures in Wonderland is about a little girl who brings non-sense, strong will, and confusing in a new world. How it all started was by the author Lewis Carroll. Alice Adventures
...e at the end of the story, in which she herself dreams about the adventures Alice has just had. The adult Alice will have children of her own, and, perhaps, she will entertain them with the story of Wonderland. Indeed, the dream gains some reality when it is spread, as a story, to so many others.
The gender roles change from the original to the remake. The original Alice role is defined as a young girl who is able to explore her curiosity, but she is constrained by her feminine characteristics. Alice being a young girl is portrayed as helpless in many situations throughout her journey. The characters of Wonderland offer her assistance, but she remains most times crying by herself. Alice’s character clearly shows the innocence and virtue American society attached to girls roles in the
Due to Alice’s positive perspective of her mentor, she is able to grow from her journey through Wonderland and ultimately find herself by facing the obstacles she once ran away from. In the beginning of the film, we are presented to a very insecure Alice, “unsure of herself, unsure of her future, unsure of anything in that moment” who
Lewis Carroll's Wonderland is a queer little universe where a not so ordinary girl is faced with the contradicting nature of the fantastic creatures who live there. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a child's struggle to survive in the condescending world of adults. The conflict between child and adult gives direction to Alice's adventures and controls all the outstanding features of the work- Alice's character, her relationship with other characters, and the dialogue. " Alice in Wonderland is on one hand so nonsensical that children sometimes feel ashamed to have been interested in anything so silly (Masslich 107)."
The Struggle for Identity and Agency in Lewis Carroll’s Alice Through the Looking-Glass and the Disney film Alice in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland follows the story of young Alice trapped in the world of Wonderland after falling down through a rabbit-hole. The rabbit-hole which is filled with bookshelves, maps, and other objects foreshadows the set of rules, the ones Alice is normally accustomed to, will be defied in Wonderland. This conflict between her world and Wonderland becomes evident shortly after her arrival as evinced by chaos in “Pool of Tears” and Alice brings up the main theme of the book “was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I am not the same, the next question is who am I?” (Carroll 18). After Alice fails to resolve her identity crisis using her friends, Alice says “Who am I, then? Tell me that first, and then, if I like being that person, I’ll come up: if not, I’ll stay down here til I’m somebody else” (Carroll 19). Hence in the beginning, Alice is showing her dependency on others to define her identity. Nevertheless when her name is called as a witness in chapter 12, Alice replies “HERE!” without any signs of hesitation (Carroll 103). Close examination of the plot in Alice in Wonderland reveals that experiential learning involving sizes leads Alice to think logically and rationally. Alice then attempts to explore Wonderland analytically and becomes more independent as the outcome. With these qualities, Alice resolves her identity crisis by recognizing Wonderland is nothing but a dream created by her mind.
Although the novel is notorious for its satire and parodies, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland main theme is the transition between childhood and adulthood. Moreover, Alice’s adventures illustrate the perplexing struggle between child and adult mentalities as she explores the curious world of development know as Wonderland. From the beginning in the hallway of doors, Alice stands at an awkward disposition. The hallway contains dozens of doors that are all locked. Alice’s pre-adolescent stage parallels with her position in the hallway. Alice’s position in the hallway represents that she is at a stage stuck between being a child and a young woman. She posses a small golden key to ...
The title character, Alice, is a young girl around pre-teen age. In the real world, the adult characters always look down on her because of her complete nonsense. She is considered the average everyday immature child, but when she is placed in the world of "Wonderland," the roles seem to switch. The adult characters within Wonderland are full of the nonsense and Alice is now the mature person. Thus creating the theme of growing up'. "...Alice, along with every other little girl is on an inevitable progress toward adulthood herself"(Heydt 62).
The characters in Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are more than whimsical ideas brought to life by Lewis Carroll. These characters, ranging from silly to rude, portray the adults in Alice Liddell’s life. The parental figures in Alice’s reality, portrayed in Alice in Wonderland, are viewed as unintellectual figures through their behaviors and their interactions with one another. Alice’s interactions with the characters of Wonderland reflect her struggles with adults in real life. Naturally curious as she is, Alice asks questions to learn from the adults.
Alice in Wonderland belongs to the nonsense genre, and even if most of what happens to Alice is quite illogical, the main character is not. “The Alice books are, above all, about growing up” (Kincaid, page 93); indeed, Alice starts her journey as a scared little girl, however, at the end of what we discover to be just a dream, she has entered the adolescence phase with a new way to approach the mentally exhausting and queer Wonderland. It is important to consider the whole story when analyzing the growth of the character, because the meaning of an event or a sentence is more likely to mean what it truly looks like rather than an explanation regarding subconscious and Freudian interpretations. Morton states “that the books should possess any unity of purpose seems on the surface unlikely” (Morton, page 509), but it’s better to consider the disconnected narrative and the main character separately, since the girl doesn’t belong to Wonderland, which is, as Morton says, with no intrinsic unity. Whereas, there are a few key turning points where it is possible to see how Alice is changing, something that is visible throughout her journey. Carroll wants to tell the story of a girl who has to become braver in order to contend with challenges like the pool made by her own tears, or assertive characters, like the Queen.