Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Group

Question:

danaraern
danaraern

In Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,why would Carroll frame the story as a dream that might not be a dream to present his overall message?

Think about what adults do and say that seem to be “nonsense” to children even though adults often see what children do as “nonsense.”

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Posted by danaraern on Wednesday May 9, 2007 at 6:07 PM and tagged with alice's adventures in wonderland.

Answers:


  1. gbeatty Teacher
    College - Freshman

    eNotes Editor

    There are several reasons why Carroll might frame his story this way. One is formal: it fits with many of the themes in the story, such as mistaking appearance for reality, words for physical reality, and so on. This is one more occasion of mirroring/doubling in the work.

    Another major reason is psychological. Any apparent social critiques in the work can be dismissed as wisps of a dream. It is a way to say difficult or painful things and taking the sting away, like saying, "Just kidding!"

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/alices-adventures/

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    Posted by gbeatty on Wednesday May 9, 2007 at 8:52 PM