Alice In Wonderland - Nonsense? :: essays research papers

Lewis Carrolls works Alices Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking glassful and What Alice Found There argon by many people considered nonmeaningful books for children. Of course, they are, unless they are also much more. Lewis Carroll had a great giving of intertwining bunk and logic, and therefore creating sense within nonsense. If you look past the nonsense you can find a new meaning other than the whizz you found completing your third grade book report. You find that the books are full of references and parallel aspects of Victorian Society such as topics of etiquette, education, and prejudice, and by these topics is shown a childs ability to depart in a hostile world. By this last statement I am referring to Cohens comment that Wonderland (published in1865) captures the disappointments, fears, and bewilderment that all children encounter in their dealings with authoritarian, pompous and mystifying adults which Wonderland envisionms to have no deficiency of.throu ghout the story Carroll portrays his linear perspectives on the education of the times. He makes ethics and tales of obedience(Brown,May Lee) seem nonsensical by the theatrical role of the Duchess and Alices preoccupancy with her lessons. The Duchess keeps insisting to Alice that E precisethings got a moral, if only you can find it(Wonderland, 70), but with morals like mustard and dogs both bite(Wonderland, 70) you can see this rule is not quite right. The absurdity of such a character(Brown,May Lee) trying to teach Alice anything is a parody of what Carroll thought about the lessons children were creation taught. Also Alice refers to her lessons and her education, ordinarily very proud of the learning that she has acquired. It seems, however, that the information that she remembers from her lessons is usually either wrong or completely useless.(Brown, May Lee)All of Alices knowledge seems to consist mainly of maxims and morals about obedience and safety, which Carroll conside rs very limited. In the books Carroll also inserts many verses that were parodies of former verses for children. He rewrites them in comminuted nonsense having no moral or meaning other than pure amusement. This rejection of typical Victorian manners and education of children supports one of the themes in his Alice books, the vagary that a childs imagination has value.(Brown, May Lee)Another view Carroll shows through the eyes of Alice is his thoughts on prejudice. In a scene from Alice in Wonderland the cook is violently hurling saucepans, plates, dishes and what ever else she can get her give on at the Duchess and the baby.