by Lewis Carroll
reviewed by Genevieve Zix
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a well-known fantasy novel, is an old English story published in 1865 that raises curiosity and highlights nonsense throughout its plot. Charles Dodgson, better known by his pen name, Lewis Carroll, told his strange tales of adventure to a young girl named Alice Liddell in early 1860s England. After being told these whimsical tales whilst boating down the Thames, Alice persistently insisted that Carroll write down his stories and publish it as a book. Now, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’s story has become a nationwide success, as it’s story has been portrayed in several movies and television programs from as early as 1903 to as recent as 2015.
In the novel, Lewis Carroll introduces us to Alice, a young girl with a long for adventure, opposed to her older sister’s views, who prioritizes education and complicated literature. Alice grows tired of her sister’s constant lectures, and her mind wanders off into the field around them. Suddenly, she sees a most peculiar rabbit, as it was wearing a coat and carrying a pocket watch, shouting “‘Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!’” (Carroll 2). She decides to follow it, as it sparked her curiosity, and hastens after it. As determined as she was, she could not stop the rabbit, and it had burrowed down a large rabbit-hole. “In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again.” (Carroll 2) As she plummets down the dark hole, she notices even more questionable sights. Shelves decked all along the sides of what seemed like a bottomless pit holding books, maps, and marmalade jars surround her. After her long, slow decent, she eventually finds herself in a strange, unfamiliar wonderland. Carroll proceeds to describe all the curiosities Alice experiences in Wonderland, including swimming in a pool of her own tears, taking care of a pig-baby, and listening to a crying Mock Turtle sing.
Lewis Carroll’s parody writing style is reflected in his novel, as the story appears to be in a serious literary format, but incorporates it to a childish topic. This method is used to create ironic humor to entertain readers. Because Carroll intended to write this only as a fun story for his friend, Alice Liddell, this book is the first published novel without a significant moral. This reason may contribute as to why it is such a popular novel. Its carefree sense and disorganized fashion appeals to almost all readers. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Carroll’s unique, whimsical, and nonsensical storytelling in this beloved, timeless novel.
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