Research Paper On Alice In Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland Time Period

Lewis Carroll was known for creating the fantastical story of Wonderland and its inhabitants; the narrative, however, was more closely connected to reality than is commonly believed. Alice’s adventures were highly influenced by both Carroll’s way of life, and his surroundings (such as time period). Born in 1832, Carroll wrote Wonderland in the early 1860’s, the Victorian era. While most of the novel is decipherable nonsense, there are examples of ideas that originated in his lifetime. The Red Queen and Duchess held positions of power over men, stemming from Queen Victoria’s reign over England during this time. Therefore, the fable was highly controlled by 1860’s concepts. Also a reference to the ways of life in England,

Paranoid reactions to being late to important events are grown from the roots of this century's punctuality characteristics, where being on time was a symbol of power and respect. According to the Rabbit’s “She’ll get me executed, as sure as ferrets are ferrets!” arriving after an event's starting time is punishable by death. In addition, the Victorian society’s upper class personality is also in play. Alice appears to be a very temperamental child, easily insulted, and yet doing most of the story’s insulting. Due to her constant changes in size, it is shown that she tends to look down upon the smaller occupants of Wonderland and think of them as less important members of society. On the other hand, she believes the world has clear and explainable rules that govern it as a result of her wealthy upbringing. This causes multiple identity crises as Wonderland doesn’t conform with any logic she was taught, but is shown to be controlled by madness and insanity taken for fact. Many creatures point this out to Alice, most notably the Cheshire cat, calmly stating, “we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.” with no contradictory ideas. Again making her question her