ALICE IN WONDERLAND December 21, 2013.
A young child -- a playful Elf
Chases a rabbit to
catch herself.
A fairy maiden with
rosy red cheeks
She talks politely
before she speaks. **
ALICE'S
ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND written by Lewis Carroll is a Victorian children's
tale. It is the comical story of a girl that disappears down a rabbit hole to a
fantastic place full of adventures. A surreal story of ever shifting ground
rules where nothing is what it seems.
From the very beginning of the heroine's journey into Wonderland, Alice
is confronted with a series of unplanned challenges and illogical events. Her
dream world of distorted realities, and comical companions is a glimpse into a
young girl's journey through adolescence. In a recent issue of Prospect
magazine, Richard Jenkyns, professor of the classic tradition at Oxford
University, called ALICE IN WONDERLAND, probably the most purely child-centered
book ever written."* The
timeless story of ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND has proven relevant to
audiences of all ages. The book is a constant source of academic debate over
meanings and the context of its creation. It is a literary masterpiece that
defies its own scope, and is pervasive because it pushes the boundaries of
space, time, and logic in a paradigm shifting manner.
Lewis
Carroll's fairytale universe is a "land of wonder." Things change
from one form to another. The physical
transformations Alice experiences throughout her journey are a magical retreat
from the boring world of everyday life. "Alice was beginning to get tired
of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do."(325) She falls asleep and escapes into the magic
kingdom of Lewis Carroll's abstract, existential creation. Alice's experiences
in Wonderland are free from most of the norms and expectations that exist in
real life, and for that reason is both marvelous and enchanting. Magic is not
conjured up with a "Fairy Godmother's" magic wand. Instead,
Wonderland is magic encapsulated. A universe of body altering beverages, cakes,
and other edible delights. The temporary physical changes Alice experiences
throughout the novel seem to insist on, or point towards some sort of scholarly
metaphor. Here in lies Lewis Carroll's true genius. The reader is kept
guessing, and searching for the true meaning in the author's use of magical
transformations. Wonderland is a theatre of ever changing landscapes and
powerful props. For example, the magic keys that open passageways into
enchanted gardens mysteriously appear and disappear at will. Magic works in
Carroll's Wonderland by exerting its influence over Alice. Its purpose is to
entertain a young girl's imagination as much as confound the sophisticated
intellect of a rational adult.
Magic
can be seen in the language and dialogue employed in the novel. Conversations in Wonderland are conducted in
a language that sounds like English, yet is controlled by a very different
logic. Common sense conversations are transformed. Words magically escape their
dictionary-defined boundaries, and patterns of accepted speech and
communication are manipulated and inverted. The Mad Hatter speaks of time as if
"Time" were someone to be known. "If you knew Time as well as I
do, you wouldn't talk about wasting it..., I dare say you never even spoke to
Time."(350) The soaking wet Mouse reasons that the story of William the
Conqueror would be best since this story is the driest thing it knows. "I'll
soon make you dry enough," said the mouse. (332)These are a few examples
of "Cross-Talk Comedy," Lewis Carroll skillfully employs to create a
fantastical inversion of logic. The comical conversations unlock words from
their context and give them an identity of their own. In Wonderland, a word is
as much a condition as a thing, no matter what other words form a sentence
around it. The significance of the magical transformation of words in
Wonderland's society stress the unique social skills Alice must develop. The
ever shifting playground rules allow Alice to demonstrate her growing power as
an individual, and her adaptability to new forms of communication. In essence,
"learning the game means more than learning the rules."
Alice's
good sense and the brilliant nonsense of the animals in Wonderland create a
unique fairytale world. The animals she encounters are of the typical domestic
pet variety. They are not unlike the cartoon characters of modern children's cinema.
Other than the Gryphon that might seem foreign, and visually frightening to
Alice, the host of characters are non-threatening and entertaining in their own
unique ways. They are magically endowed with consciousness equal to that of
humans. The nervous white rabbit wears a waste-coat and carries a pocket
watch. The sluggish Caterpillar smokes a
hookah. The Cheshire Cat flashing it's sharp teeth, claws, and enormous grin. The
Mad Hatter, March Hare, and the Dormouse having a perpetual tea party. The Duchess
has a sneezing baby that turns into a pig. The Dodo, Duck, and Lory are three
of the many birds that gather on the bank with Alice after falling into a pool
of her tears. These animals and many more establish Wonderland as a mystical
community. They are the collective
consciousness assisting young Alice in her personal growth, and development of
social skills.
The
Cheshire Cat is the most magical character in Wonderland's community. The cat
has the ability to appear and disappear at will. The perpetually grinning feline displays a
detached, clearheaded logic and explains Wonderland's madness to Alice. The
Cheshire Cat is not the only cat mentioned in the story. Alice's cat, Dinah, is
never present in Wonderland but becomes part of the story when Alice explains
her pet's many talents to an audience of horrified birds, and on another
occasion, the Mouse. The Cheshire Cat is unique because it has insight into the
workings of Wonderland as a whole. The sagacious cat is able to explain to
Alice that Wonderland is ruled by nonsense. Thus, Alice's normal behavior is inconsistent
with its operating principles. The significance of the Cheshire Cat's role in
Alice's adventures is important. It is a counterbalance to all the unsocial,
bad-mannered eccentrics Alice meets in Wonderland. The cat shares Alice's
common sense in contrast to the other quarrelsome creatures. In general, the
basic condition common to all the creatures is ignorance --- for which there
seems to be no remedy. It is the duty of the bodiless cat to remind the
executioner and the King that it is mathematically impossible to behead a
detached head. With a smile on his face, the Cheshire Cat reminds the
authorities governing Wonderland, "they are not playing with a full deck
of cards."
In
conclusion, wonderland's magical influence on Alice breaks down her beliefs
about her identity and replaces those beliefs and understandings of the world
with a new set of nonsensical rules. Alice understands this crisis of identity
in terms of a fairytale. "When I
used to read fairytales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now
here I am in the middle of it."(326)The world that she thinks she knows,
which she defines logically through cause and effect and that she seeks to tame
through definition is subverted and replaced by a mad rush of haphazard and
inexplicable events. ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND parodies these human
efforts to create an organized universe in which our experience can be rendered
rational. In chapter 11, Alice begins to magically grow again. She barely
notices it. Her growth is a metaphor for gradual growth into an adult. She
enters wonderland as a tiny version of herself able to race down a rabbit hole,
but she emerges wiser, more grown up, and with a more integrated personality
than before. Her magical Wonderland adventure slowly dissolves back into
everyday experience, as seen through the eyes of her older sister."...all
would change to dull reality---the grass would be only rustling in the wind,
and the pool ripple to the waving of the reeds---the rattling tea-cups would
change to tinkling sheep-bells, and the Queen's shrill cries to the voice of
the shepherd boy---and the sneeze of the baby, the shriek of the Gryphon, and
all the other queer noises, would change to the confusing clamour of the busy
farm yard---while the lowing of the cattle in the distance would take the place
of the Mock Turtle's heavy sobs."(374)
The end has come to
greet the beginning.
Reward the losers
for they are winning.
Ask young Alice what
she thinks of this...
As Lewis Carroll
leans in to steal a kiss. **
* www.prospectmagazine.co.uk
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, September 21, 2012.
** Lars Hansen (12/21/2013)
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