Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland is considered the first English
children’s story written purely for entertainment, without attempting to teach
any lessons. Carroll commented, “Words
mean more than we mean to express when we use them; so a whole book ought to
mean a great deal more than the writer means. So whatever good meanings are in
the book, I’m glad to accept as the meaning of the book” (Wheat 113). Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has
been interpreted as a story about being playful in the world, and about
exploring the self. “Who are you?” is a central question throughout the story
(Helle-Valle & Binder, np). Intentionally
or unintentionally, Carroll teaches children about growing up in this wild
fantasy that fascinates children (Russell 11).
This whimsical children’s novel is appropriate for the ages around 12
and 15, during this time adolescents are within the period of formal operations
and identity versus role confusion psychosocial development. In these early teen years, young people are in
a constant state of change, similar to the feelings Alice feels through the
short novel. “I can’t go back to
yesterday because I was a different person then” (Carroll 115). Alice’s adventures in the land of Wonder entertain on
many levels: as humorous dream, as pure fantasy bordering on hallucination, as
a text that reveals nonsense and inconsistency in language and logic, and
through its deeply insightful take on the psychological need to be explorative
and genuinely creative (Halle-Valle & Binder, np). This story allows
readers to find an escape and how to playfully keep exploring their realities
in a world that pressure for conformity.
From the beginning, Alice comes across as a curious and playful individual. As Alice has her first meeting with her new reality, her name is still Alice and she is still a little girl, but things are starting to happen that are changing parts of her reality; animals can speak and her body can shrink and grow by simple means. Alice’s experiences are far from average, but the story comes to show that she is resilient. The theme of the book is not far from what other children must face growing up; changing size and appearance, for instance, is a well-known challenge for children, even though it tends to be more predictable in real life than in Wonderland. Adapting and adjusting to the physical reality does not affect the physical reality itself (Halle-Valle & Binder, np). In this sense, the reader learns that the world is a one-way street.
Alice is a dynamic round protagonist character for the reason that at the end of the novel Alice finds, to her relief, but also perhaps to her frustration and disappointment, that the King, Queen, and royal hosts of Wonderland are "only a pack of cards, after all" and she "needn't be afraid of them". Alice gains a great deal of "courage," insight, and freedom to make her own rules from this realization. Alice has now shed her previous attitude of wonder (Wheat 115). She has not given up on trying to make sense of her Wonderland experience, and “doesn’t believe there’s any atom of meaning in it.”
The other inhabitants of Wonderland are static antagonists characters and do not experience change. The characters of Wonderland are all marked by a lack of understanding and empathy. Alice encounters imitations of guides, which are available to the more conventional allegoric hero. Some, such as the Caterpillar or the Cheshire Cat, provide a bit of practical advice; but on the whole they simply add to Alice's confusion concerning more fundamental questions regarding her identity, purpose, and goal (Wheat 111).
Works Cited:
Carroll, Lewis . Alice's Adventure in Wonderland. New York: Dover Thift, 1993. Print.
Helle-Valle, Anna, & Binder, Per-Einar. "In Wonderland: A Phenomenological, Developmental and Self Psychological Analysis of a Child’s Playful Encounter with a New Reality." Nordic Psychology 61.2 (2009): 16-28. PsycARTICLES. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.
Russell, David L. Literature for children: a short introduction. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2012. Print.
Wheat, Andrew R. "Dodgson's Dark Conceit: Evoking The Allegorical Lineage Of Alice." Renascence 61.2 (2009): 103-123. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.
From the beginning, Alice comes across as a curious and playful individual. As Alice has her first meeting with her new reality, her name is still Alice and she is still a little girl, but things are starting to happen that are changing parts of her reality; animals can speak and her body can shrink and grow by simple means. Alice’s experiences are far from average, but the story comes to show that she is resilient. The theme of the book is not far from what other children must face growing up; changing size and appearance, for instance, is a well-known challenge for children, even though it tends to be more predictable in real life than in Wonderland. Adapting and adjusting to the physical reality does not affect the physical reality itself (Halle-Valle & Binder, np). In this sense, the reader learns that the world is a one-way street.
Alice is a dynamic round protagonist character for the reason that at the end of the novel Alice finds, to her relief, but also perhaps to her frustration and disappointment, that the King, Queen, and royal hosts of Wonderland are "only a pack of cards, after all" and she "needn't be afraid of them". Alice gains a great deal of "courage," insight, and freedom to make her own rules from this realization. Alice has now shed her previous attitude of wonder (Wheat 115). She has not given up on trying to make sense of her Wonderland experience, and “doesn’t believe there’s any atom of meaning in it.”
The other inhabitants of Wonderland are static antagonists characters and do not experience change. The characters of Wonderland are all marked by a lack of understanding and empathy. Alice encounters imitations of guides, which are available to the more conventional allegoric hero. Some, such as the Caterpillar or the Cheshire Cat, provide a bit of practical advice; but on the whole they simply add to Alice's confusion concerning more fundamental questions regarding her identity, purpose, and goal (Wheat 111).
Works Cited:
Carroll, Lewis . Alice's Adventure in Wonderland. New York: Dover Thift, 1993. Print.
Helle-Valle, Anna, & Binder, Per-Einar. "In Wonderland: A Phenomenological, Developmental and Self Psychological Analysis of a Child’s Playful Encounter with a New Reality." Nordic Psychology 61.2 (2009): 16-28. PsycARTICLES. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.
Russell, David L. Literature for children: a short introduction. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2012. Print.
Wheat, Andrew R. "Dodgson's Dark Conceit: Evoking The Allegorical Lineage Of Alice." Renascence 61.2 (2009): 103-123. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.