Comparing Frank Baum’s Dorothy Gale of the Oz series and Lewis Carroll’s Alice of Alice in Wonderla

Comparing Frank Baum’s Dorothy Gale of the Oz series and Lewis Carroll’s Alice of Alice in Wonderland

Lewis Carroll’s Alice and Frank Baum’s Dorothy are two of the most well-known and well-loved heroines of all time. At first glance, both Alice and Dorothy appear to be rather accurate renditions of actual little girls who embark on their own adventures in strange and fantastical lands. However, closer scrutiny reveals that only one of these characters is a true portrayal of what a little girl is really like, while the other is but a fulfillment of what most girls would only dream of being like.

Like many young girls across the world, both today and in centuries past, it seems that Alice was taught the etiquette that all proper young ladies should follow. Throughout the novel, we see Alice in conflict with certain societal rules – there are several occasions when she is frustrated with what others say and do to her. But only those privy to her innermost thoughts (i.e., the readers) are capable of seeing her true feelings on any matter, for she remains, with the exception of an episode at the end of the text, extremely courteous to all those she meets. One of the passages that clearly describes this general acquiescence is when Alice sees the Duchess after meeting the King and Queen on the croquet-ground:

“Tut, tut, child!” said the Duchess. “Every thing’s got a moral, if only you can find it.” And she squeezed herself up closer to Alice’s side as she spoke.

Alice did not much like her keeping so close to her: first, because the Duchess was very ugly; and secondly, because she was exactly the right height to rest her chin on Alice’s shoulder, and it was an uncomfortably sharp chin. However, she did not like to b...

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...relate to a child’s need for escape from the educational system, even if only through a book.)

While both Alice and Dorothy are meant to be portraits of typical young girls, I believe that they represent two different facets of a young girl’s nature. Carroll’s Alice undoubtedly portrays the true image of what real young girls are like, possessing some qualities that may not be considered extremely attractive but are nevertheless present in the lives of young women. On the other hand, Baum’s Dorothy is more fantastic, a heroine who encompasses all the qualities that any young girl would like to have but cannot always attain. Together, then, the two characters make up everything that a young girl is — the influences and restrictions that society places on her, the unspoken thoughts that she has when speaking to others, the dreams that she wishes to aspire to.