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Lewis Carroll

Author Project
Ellen Choi

AP English Language and Composition
5/12/2014







Abstract
The symbols and the theme in the novels Alices Adventures in Wonderland and Through
the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There reflect Lewis Carrolls life around children.
Both novels tell the story of Alice and her adventures in Wonderland, and the symbols and theme
relate to the journey of maturity and the obstacles that people face as they mature. As people
mature, they lose their innocence, and find themselves in loneliness, confusion, and a journey of
uncertainties. Not only do the symbols and themes in the Alice books reveal the hardships faced
during maturity, but Alices journey in Wonderland itself also displays a child going through
adolescence.
On the other hand, Sylvie and Bruno is more concerned with the problems in society and
the problems of the Victorian morality. Whereas the Alice books were full of comical passages
and nonsense, the novel Sylvie and Bruno has a more serious tone, even though there are still
elements of nonsense in the novel. The theme and the structure of the novel display the problems
that Carroll understood in society. Through the novel and the rhetorical elements in the novel,
Carroll warns people about the ironies in society and also advises people to pay attention to
societal problems rather than moral behaviors.







Table of Contents
Introduction...1
Symbols....1
Themes..3
Structure6
Conclusion....7
Works Cited..8





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Introduction
Lewis Carroll first created the Alice in Wonderland stories to entertain Alice Liddell and
her two sisters, Lorina and Edith. Henry Liddell, the father, worked at Christ Church as the Dean.
Carroll, who worked at Christ Church as a teacher, became close to Henry Liddell and as a result
also came to know the children. Often, Carroll took the children on boating expeditions and on
one expedition, he told the children the story of Alice in Wonderland. Alice Liddell asked
Carroll to write Alices adventures as a novel, and once Carroll published Alices Adventures in
Wonderland, it gained immediate popularity. Carroll later published the sequel Through the
Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.
Although Carroll had intended to publish the novel Sylvie and Bruno in one volume, it
was published in two volumes because of its length. They were not as popular as the Alice books
but the poem The Mad Gardeners Song, is the most well-known part of the book. Carroll
decided to write Sylvie and Bruno based on two short pieces that appeared in Aunt Judys
Magazine in 1867: Fairy Sylvie and Brunos Revenge. Most of the novel was compiled from
notes of ideas and dialogues that Carroll had collected.
Symbols
In the novel Alices Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll uses a garden to symbolize
peoples loss of innocence and how that affects how they perceive the world. First, Alice desires
to enter the garden that she notices through the keyhole and wants to wander about among those
beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains but she could not even get her head through the
doorway (Carroll 17). The garden is like a paradise, with unending beauty and innocence, like
the Garden of Eden. However, Alice cannot even enter the keyhole due to her height,
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representing the fact that once people mature, they cannot return to the state of innocence. Not
only that, but later, when Alice enters the garden, she discovers that the Queen and the King of
Hearts reside in the center of the garden- a place of chaos. The Queen always yells, Off with
their heads! whenever she does not receive what she wants. Although the garden is first
perceived as a place of innocence, in actuality, there is corruption in the garden in Wonderland
and it is ruled by a malicious and whimsical leader. In addition, several guards paint the white
roses red because the tree ought to have been a red rose-tree, and [they] put a white one by
mistake (Carroll 91). Redecorating the garden, the guards are reconstructing the garden to meet
the needs of humans. Therefore, the garden is not truly a place of innocence and true beauty but
rather, a place of chaos. The garden symbolizes an imaginary paradise that all people wish for.
Young children can enter that imaginary paradise because of their innocence since they cannot
see perceive the evils of the world. Using the garden as a symbol, Carroll wanted to express that
once people lose their innocence, they are able to see the corruption in the world and realize that
a true paradise may not exist. As a result, both Carroll and adult readers grieve their lost
innocence and hope that children remain in their innocence for as long as possible.
Chess, the well-known traditional strategy game, is used to symbolize the final stage in
the process of maturity- leaving adolescence and entering the state of adulthood- in the novel
Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There. Alices journey in the novel, as well as
the entire structure of the novel, represents a game of chess. Alices journey is full of bizarre
events and unexpected results, leading her to her goal. For example, Alice randomly finds herself
on a moving train, which allows her to move closer to her goal, becoming a queen. As a pawn,
Alice has limited power over her outcomes and limited knowledge of the world around her.
Similarly, Carroll reveals that adolescents have limited knowledge of the world around them yet
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they seem to find themselves going towards adulthood. Continuing her journey, Alice repeatedly
encounters events where she seems to arrive there out of the blue and does not know the outcome.
Alices uncertain and mysterious adventure mirrors the journey that people take as they undergo
the stages of adolescence. The process of maturation is full of uncertainties and mysteries, yet all
adolescents are able to reach their destination- adulthood. Therefore, Carroll uses the chess game
to symbolize the journey from childhood to adulthood: the beginning squares reflects childhood,
the journey towards the last row of the chess board reflects puberty and adolescence, and finally,
the last row of the chess board where a pawn can become a queen represents adulthood. In
conclusion, Carrolls use of symbolism allows him to imitate the process of maturation and
display the outcomes that come from maturation. As Carroll depicts the journey of adolescence,
he allows children and adolescents to understand that maturation will not be a journey where
they encounter predictable events.
Theme
A major theme in the novel Alices Adventures in Wonderland is that the search for an
identity is full of uncertainties and confusion. When Alice first grows into a giant after eating the
cake, she feels unfamiliar with her body. As a result, Alice tries to confirm that she is herself by
testing herself with information that she already knows: Im sure I cant[sic] be Mabel, for I
know all sorts of things (Carroll 25). By comparing herself to Mabel, an ignorant young girl,
Alice tries to find her identity by recognizing what she believes to be her defining characteristics.
However, Alice fails to answer her own questions correctly; she says, four times five is twelve,
London is the capital of Paris, and she recites a poem that she believed she knew but recites it
incorrectly (Carroll 25-26). Eventually, Alice undergoes an identity crisis and panics because she
feels she is not herself. Alices confusion and anxiety reflect the confusion and anxiety most
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people go through as they experience adolescence. Like how Alice tried to find her identity
through who she believed she was, many people want a quick and definite answer as to what
their identity is. After failing to find her true identity, Alice starts to panic even more, showing
that the search for an identity is not an easy task. Carroll is pointing out that people need to take
time to find their true identity, especially since there are many aspects to consider like behavior,
morals, knowledge, etc. Alice learns this lesson throughout the novel as she encounters different
individuals with different identities. Although Carroll is pointing out that the search for identity
is full of anxiety and confusion, he is also indicating out that people should take time to find their
true identity. Therefore, as readers follow Alice on her adventure, they also start to question and
seek their own identity.
Similarly, in Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, Carroll addresses
aspects of growing up but this time, the theme is that loneliness comes as people grow older.
Once Alice enters the world of the Looking-Glass, she constantly meets new individuals. Alice
tries to find companionship and also tries to get people to understand her, yet she is always
disappointed by each persons actions. For example, Alice meets Humpty Dumpty, who
continuously makes rude remarks about Alice like she has no more sense than a baby and
when Humpty Dumpty learns Alices name, he remarks Its a stupid name enough! (Carroll
215). Since Alice was only accompanied by her cats in the real world, she expected better
treatment from the people in Wonderland. However, many of the individuals of Wonderland are
rather rude, which upsets Alice because she does not have any friends. The White Knight,
however, does show Alice compassion; he even helps Alice with her journey to become queen.
In the end, unfortunately, the White Knight must leave Alice when Alice takes the role of queen.
Through Alices encounters with different people, Carroll shows that it is difficult to have
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friends as an adult. The rude people in Wonderland symbolize the people of the world who are
judgmental and rude whereas the White Knight symbolizes the few people in the world who
show kindness and compassion to others. Not only does Carroll show that adulthood is lonely
because of some horrible characteristics of human beings, but Carroll also shows that adulthood
is lonely because of the many responsibilities people have as adults. Once Alice became queen,
the White Knight had to leave her side, reflecting how people must go their separate ways
because of the responsibilities that each person has as an adult. When Carroll shows that
adulthood is lonely, it creates a depressing mood as an effect because people always try to find a
companion. Nevertheless, Carrolls message encourages people to pay more attention to peoples
personalities and the way they treat others.
As Lewis Carroll covers various topics about society in the novel Sylvie and Bruno,
Carroll shows that life and society cannot be perfect. A majority of Victorian novels focus on
teaching a single moral lesson through the journey that the protagonist takes in the novel.
However, Carroll discusses several different topics in Sylvie and Bruno yet does not teach a clear
moral lesson or an answer to any of the problems he discusses. First of all, the station master
accosted an old man and told him to be off, and make way for your betters! (Carroll 33). Soon
after, the station master changes his tone of voice and kindly asks Lady Muriel, if your
Ladyship will take a seat, the train will be up in a few minutes (Carroll 33). Here, Carroll points
out the discrimination done against the poor verses the rich. Although clearly the old man needs
the seat more than Lady Muriel, the station master quickly kicks the man out of the seat to make
room for Lady Muriel. Not only that, but the change in the tone of the station masters voice also
shows that the old man is mistreated because of his poor and weak status in society. Carroll
reveals that even in a society where writers write novels teaching moral lessons, discrimination
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against social classes is still evidently existent. Moreover, Arthur, Lady Muriel, and the narrator
discuss the ritualization of religion, Arthur angrily exposes the irony of charity, as preachers
display it: the preacher wound up with and, for all you give, you will be repaid a thousandfold!
(Carroll 139). Arthur mentions an important aspect that may be quite often overlooked: the
preacher implies that people should give to charity since they will be repaid later. In other words,
people should give to charity to satisfy their greed and insure that they will have wealth in the
future. While other Victorian novels praise and encourage the characteristics of hard work,
perseverance, and generosity, Carroll points out that people still contain evilness inside of them.
Through all of Carrolls discussions of human flaws, Carroll reveals the irony of the Victorian
era: although people are encouraged to be ideal human beings, society still contains its flaws and
evils. Therefore, Carroll also illustrates that life cannot be perfect as the Victorians wanted it to
be.
Structure
In Lewis Carrolls Sylvie and Bruno, the narrator continually transitions back and forth
from the real world and the imaginary world, Fairyland, which contradicts the writing styles of
other Victorian authors. Yet, he does not always quite understand why or how he ends up in the
imaginary world. Not only does the narrator have trouble determining which world he is in, but
the reader also has trouble keeping track of where the narrator is, due to the smooth transitions in
and out of Fairyland. For example, as the narrator imagines Arthur and Lady Muriel together
peacefully and happily as a couple, the narrator suddenly shifts into the dream world:
I pictured them to myself walking togetherand welcomed back by their faithful gardener, on
their return from some brief excursion.
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It seemed natural enough that the gardener should be filled with(Carroll 44).
Transitions like this make it difficult for the reader to differentiate between the two worlds
because both describe a gardener and neither paragraph have a distinctive characteristic that can
help separate the two worlds. Through the subtle transitions between the real world and the
dream world, Carroll reveals that life cannot be clearly defined between reality and dreams. In
other words, one idea cannot be defined as a real and true idea whereas one is flawed,
idealistic, and blurred. Carroll wanted to suggest this idea to society because most Victorian
novels focused on teaching a moral lesson to all readers. Victorian literature is also viewed by
some as narrow minded and strict in conforming to social rules. Therefore, Carroll wanted to
break from that strictness and narrow-mindedness and show the Victorian people that life is not
solely about following definite rules of life. Carroll even calls his own novel litterature, which
means that even Carroll could not definitely claim that what he wrote was the correct way of life.
The structure of the novel, as the narrator shifts from the dream world to real world without a
clear plot, emphasizes the idea that reality cannot be clearly separated from the imaginary world.
Escaping from the harshness of reality, Carroll wants readers to know that the dream world
allows people to explore life without having to follow certain rules of conduct and should thus,
not be disregarded and ignored.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Alice novels display the journey of adolescence while Sylvie and
Bruno mirrors the problems in society through the rhetorical elements in each novel. The garden
symbol and the theme that adolescence was a journey of uncertainty and confusion helped
illustrate troubles of the beginning of maturation in Alices Adventures in Wonderland, where
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Alice felt confused, lost, and uncomfortable like other people do when they reach adolescence.
Not only did the rhetorical devices in Alices Adventures in Wonderland assure both adolescents
and adults that everyone felt insecure as they matured, but it also showed the adult readers the
corruption in society that children readers may not understand. Likewise, the sequel, Through the
Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There depicts the journey of maturation, yet the sequel
illustrates the end of the process. As people start to enter adulthood, they realize, like Alice did,
that the life of an adult is truly lonely and still filled with uncertainties- which are revealed
through the theme of the novel. Readers realize from reading the sequel that life cannot be as
humorous as the novel suggests upon first glance. Finally, Sylvie and Bruno discusses social
problems but also shows that life cannot be about strict Victorian morals. Although Sylvie and
Bruno has a more serious tone than the Alice novels, it forces readers to question society and the
amount of time each reader spends in an imaginary world, away from the seriousness of reality.
Works Cited
Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. New York
City: Barnes and Nobles Classics, 2004. Print.
Carroll, Lewis. Sylvie and Bruno. N.p.: CreateSpace, 2014. Print.
Pettinger, Tejvan. "Biography of Lewis Carroll", Oxford, UK www.biographyonline.net, 22nd
Jan. 2011

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