Most people know the name Lewis Carroll, and even more know about the taleof a little girl who fell down a rabbit hole straight into the adventure of a lifetime. But not many people know the name Charles Dodgson, the man behind the pseudonym and the one who constructed this wonderland from a summer time boat ride in 1862. Originally written for three friends, the Liddell sisters, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has inspired philosophers, artists, writers, theologians, and not to mention the general public. The culture in which this piece of art was written has shaped Alice’s dream-like journey from the first false step into an almost never ending fall to the last storm of cards. Dodgson’s enchanting work illustrates mankind’s childlike spirit that 1880s English society tried so hard to ignore. The Victorian Age was the time period named after England’s Queen Victoria, who ruled from 1837 to 1901. Her attitude was a severely dull and strict one, which rapidly spread over the rest of Britain. The British were afraid to talk about anything close to being unsuitable, and they treasured childhood as a time where there were no worries or responsibilities. Although the youthful period was valued, children were better left to be seen, and not heard. They were encouraged to grow up as fast as possible and taught to mind their manners with extremely strict discipline.Besides the obvious, the way and language Alice was written in, Victorian culture appears in almost every turn of the page. Alice is shaped because of the use of her manners in the book toward elder strangers. Despite the fact, as she gets deeper into wonderland, she seems to become frustrated and forgets to be polite. The ever so popular tea party appears when Alice, the M... ... middle of paper ... ...ce films, the latest released in 2010, directed by Tim Burton. There were also two more sequels written by Dodgson and multiple comic books. There is even a statue in New York’s Central Park featuring Alice, the Mad Hatter, and the Mad March Hare. Alice continues to be a modern symbol of the bewildering and twisted side of today’s visual arts, literature, and entertainment. Many people know the culture-shaped story of Alice falling down the rabbit hole, into a dream-like adventure that has impacted the world. But not many people know about the real mystery, how it was created and how the world reacted to it. That is the actual magic, how the book that was shaped by 1800s English culture, affected the rest of the world’s culture from that point on. Dodgson’s work of art paints a picture of the childish outlook that was looked down upon during the Victorian period.
In ‘Alice and the Wonderland’ Alice’s characterization is parallel to that of Miranda as they both depict a change in character and ultimately undergo an inner discovery that exemplifies their capabilities. This is portrayed in the line “I can’t go back to yesterday because I was a different person then” which is juxtaposed with Alice’s earlier uncertainty in the line “I can’t explain myself, I’m afraid…because I’m not myself, you see” The power of inner discovery is exemplified in Alice’s shift in perspective. Her change in tone validates that she is content with herself and that there is a move from her initial self-doubt. This supports that once an individual overcomes self-doubt, the impact of self-discovery is far-reaching and transformative. Alice broadens her mind to future possibilities and further states “It’s rather curious, you know, this sort of life! …There ought to be a book written about me, that there ought! And when I grow up, I’ll write one.” The continued repetition of the word “curious” throughout the novel represents that Alice’s inquisitive nature is coming through as a result of her inner discovery. Moreover, Alice’s “ought to write a book about herself” is equivalent to Miranda’s quest to drawing her own path. This may be subverting stereotypes of the 19th century that
Alice in Wonderland seeks to experience a new path of life in “a world of nonsense.” This idea relates to Neil Gaiman’s Going Woodwo, because both characters leave their ordinary lives to gain the experience of “nonsense.” Alice, starting to become bored with her studies, begins to day dream of a world that is precisely the opposite of the time she was living in, the Victorian era. During the journeys of Alice and the Woodwo, both experience three key settings: escape from their world, the search for acceptance in the new world, and the hardships of finding their way home. Alice had very high expectations in her mannerisms: the way she spoke, presented herself and especially her body language.
The musical piece “Alice’s Theme” was composed in 2010 by composer Danny Elfman. This piece was written for Walt Disney Pictures’ “Alice in Wonderland”. Danny Elfman has represented Alice as lonely, questioning herself and anxious until the end of the film where she discovers her true purpose. Her journey is gradually revealed and represented through the different sections, instruments and lyrics. This is through the successful use of all the musical elements. These musical elements include duration, expressive devices, pitch, structure and texture.
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 ”.
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).
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 ...
With Alice’s journey through Looking-Glass Land and across the chess board, a reader with knowledge of Lewis Carroll’s personal life and inspirations can clearly see the connection between the two. The real-life Alice Liddell, the girl who Carroll had taken a liking to and based his character Alice on, was now over 16 years old, compared to the young girl that she had been when he had first met her and later written the first book (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland). Regardless of how one reads into their relationship, it is easy to then see that the contents of Carroll’s story are directly symbolic and reflective of Alice Liddell’s maturing, hence fictional Alice’s crossing of the chessboard to become a queen. The story reflects what is hard for Lewis Carroll to watch, a girl he has known and cared for since she was a child, turning into a
Finding the Child in Us All Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has entertained not only children but adults for over one hundred years. The tale has become a treasure of philosophers, literary critics, psychoanalysts, and linguists. It also has attracted Carroll’s fellow mathematicians and logicians. There appears to be something in Alice for everyone, and there are almost as many explanations of the work as there are commentators. It may be perhaps Carroll’s fantastical style of writing that entertains the reader, rather than teaching them a lesson as was customary in his time. Heavy literary symbolism is difficult to trace through his works because of the fact he wrote mainly for entertainment. In fact, Carroll’s stories, including Alice, are usually described as being direct parallels to Carroll’s life. This is obvious due to the various references Carroll makes of the favorite things in his life such as his obsession with little girls and not to mention his nostalgia for childhood1. The most prominent interpretation of Alice is the theme of fantasy versus reality. The story continuously challenges the reader’s sense of the “ground rules” or what can be assumed. However, with a more in-depth search, the adult reader can find Carroll may have indeed implanted a theme relative to the confusion Alice goes through as well as the reader. In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Carroll uses not only his love for children and logic but his linguistic playfulness to create a story in order to show the psyche of a child. Moreover, Carroll makes fun of the way Victorian children were raised. In the nineteenth century people were expected to behave according to a set of rules and morals. Carroll’s nonsensical behavior of his characters can be seen as making fun of the way children were forced to behave and their rationale. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland overall is contradicting the standard way children’s literature was written. As one can see, the story of Alice takes its reader through many different levels. With the lovable creation of a fantastical world, Carroll invites his readers on a nonsensical yet familiar journey of the questioning of identity by child yearning to take the step into adulthood prematurely, enabling him to entertain while simultaneously satirizing the Victorian Era. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland begins with Alice si...
In the sacrifice of a unique artistic depiction of the world heavily reflective of Disney’s style, the film’s story becomes a weaker version of Carroll’s original text with several plot changes and characters misrepresented, showing Alice as a hollow and version of her Victorian counterpart and the themes of the novel completely contradicted. Though there is debate whether any film adaptation could compare to Carroll and Tenniel’s Wonderland , had Disney not made these mistakes and instead evolved Alice to a character audiences could relate more too, perhaps these errors could have been fixed and the film could remain as timeless as the classic
Phillips, Robert, ed. Aspects of Alice: Lewis Carroll’s Dreamchild as seen through the Critics’ Looking-Glasses. New York: Vanguard Press, 1971.
Down the rabbit hole she goes; her curiosity sparked as to why a rabbit could be in such a rush. Alice in Wonderland, a classic tale from 1951: Based on the books Alice Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll. Alice is a child living in the real world, her imagination just too big for others to understand.
By looking at Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, one can see that Lewis Carroll included the themes of understanding one’s true identity, and distinguishing between real versus fantasy life because he was a unique man who was able to understand and connect with what was going on in children’s minds. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a story by the English author, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, written under the pen name Lewis Carroll. It tells the story of a girl named Alice, who falls down a rabbit-hole into a fantasy world. Lewis Carroll experienced an unique lifestyle, successfully novels, and unusual relationships.
Alice in Wonderland by Charles L Dodgeson (Lewis Carrol) is a classic masterpiece and example of great literature. Many people know of this book as merely a child’s tale or a Disney movie. As both were adopted from the book, many of the ideas were not. I have my own feelings and opinions of this book. Remarkable use of words and an originally creative theme and plot structure are both used in this book. The author of this novel used many hidden meanings, symbolism, and ambiguous terms to greatly describe the actual nature of the story. Many people have different views as to the type of book it is and the novel’s actual meaning. Although this book inspires many people to laugh, it also inspires them think.
Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland message to us is that there’s nothing wrong with living free with your own imagination or bend the rules. In my opinion, I believe imagination is important but using it too much can leave you detached from reality Alice in Wonderland is a departure from this. Literature is the province of imagination, and stories, in whatever disguise, are meditations on life. Nowadays stories that were made to instruct children on how to acquire happiness have now been replaced with stories that teach children how to be in control of their life by including diseases, physical anomalies, and death to assure them that there’s nothing to be afraid of.
Lewis Carrolls Wonderland is a queer little universe where a not so ordinary girlis faced with the contradicting nature of the fantastic creatures who live there. AlicesAdventures in Wonderland is a childs struggle to survive in the condescending world ofadults. The conflict between child and adult gives direction to Alices adventures andcontrols all the outstanding features of the work- Alices character, her relationship withother characters, and the dialogue. Alice in Wonderland is on one hand so nonsensicalthat children sometimes feel ashamed to have been interested in anything so silly (Masslich107). The underlying message of Alices Adventures in Wonderland is a rejection ofadult authority. The character of Alice is not at all like what you would find in a typical childrensbook. The character of Alice herself is a bit puzzling, even to the modern child, becauseit does not fit a stereotype. How much more unusual she must have seemed to Victorianchildren, used to girl angels fated for death (in Dickens, Stowe, and others), or toimpossibly virtuous little ladies, or to naughty girls who eventually reform in response toheavy adult pressure... But Alice is neither naughty nor overly nice. Her curiosity leadsher into her initial adventure and most of the latter ones in the book... (Leach 119). AsAlice makes her way through Wonderland , she is faced with many pompous personalities that have their own ways of thinking and do not understand why Alice does not agree withtheir views. Alice takes into consideration what each character says. After becomingquite confused and disgruntled she learns that everyone in Wonderland is in fact mad.