Alice's Adventure in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll (1865) - How does the author manage to criticize the Victorian era with what seems to be a simple childish fantasy tale?

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Alice's Adventure in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll (1865) - How does the author manage to criticize the Victorian era with what seems to be a simple childish fantasy tale?

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Alice's Adventure in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, Victorian literature, Victorian Era, child abuse, nonsense literature, time management, language criticism, anthropomorphism, social rules, British society

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Abstract

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a story written by Lewis Carroll in 1865. It tells the bizarre adventures of Alice, a little girl living in the Victorian Era. If there is no concrete storyline, still, the bunch of eleven strange stories gives us a great panorama of symbols allowing interpretation and debates.
This book takes the reader into a completely offbeat and improbable universe where the impossible becomes possible, and also confronts him with the timeless question of identity to which Alice is subjected from the beginning to the end of her adventures.There is a myriad of double meanings, especially regarding the criticism of the Victorian Era thanks to the fact that most of the characters are anthropomorphic animals.
We will focus on three main critics: children considered little adults in the world of work ; The critic of language that serves 19th century British society rules of decorum and morals; the obligation always to be on time.

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[...] Finally, through the criticism of time, the author allows people to think again their way of living. We can thus respond to our thesis by saying that through the use of different anthropomorphisms (animals, time, process, the author produces a masterful work with two levels of reading that leads to a profound reflection on Victorian society. This book thus leads to a reflection on the proper functioning of our current societies and our habits whose real usefulness should be questioned. [...]

[...] Alice's Adventure in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll (1865) - How does the author manage to criticize the Victorian era with what seems to be a simple childish fantasy tale? Introduction Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a story written by Lewis Carroll in 1865. It tells bizarre adventures of Alice, a little girl living in the Victorian Era. If there is no concrete storyline, still, the bunch of eleven strange stories gives us a great panorama of symbols allowing interpretation and debates. [...]

[...] 'It tells the day of the month, and doesn't tell what o'clock it is ' 'Why should muttered the Hatter. 'Does your watch tell you what year it is?' » (chapter VII) : in this passage, the March Hare plays with words and win this kind of battle, even if he is telling a very strange story. Thus, the tea party is a good point for setting up a reflection on the strength of language and the weight of words. The criticism on the obligation of being always on time. [...]

[...] The supreme injustice occurs when Alice, during the trial of the pies theft, is condemned to have her head cut off even if she has done nothing nor the juror have given their verdict: « Sentence first, verdict afterwards,» orders the Queen (chapter XII) By detaching herself from the world of childhood, Alice physically grows up and thus takes on insurance on the adult world: « she had grown so large in the last few minutes that she wasn't a bit afraid of interrupting him,» (chapter XII). She refuses the Queen's omnipotence and this travesty of justice. The unfair trial illustrates the arbitrary nature of punishment from a child's perspective and strongly critics the kinf of education given during this period. [...]

[...] If in the other chapters, time seems to have a classical course, it is not personified. The Rabbit is late, and time seems to be suspended during Alice's fall. Thus, this analisis give us a good reflexion about the necessity of reconsidering the importance of time in our societies. Conclusion We saw that Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a book that serves many goals. First of all, it makes it possible to denounce child abuse during the Victorian era through the mock trial to which Alice is the subject. [...]

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