Coursera Unit 2: Lewis Caroll

This is my essay for Unit 2 of the Coursera course I am taking.  This week we read, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass. 

 

Growing Up (and up!)

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a whimsical tale of nonsensical fun. However, if examined deeply, there are elements that seem to speak to the hardships of growing up. In my review, this is seen in three ways: through Alice’s physical appearance, her emotional growth, and what she does with her new knowledge.

At different points, Alice, quite literally, grows up! She finds herself to be the improper height at inconvenient moments, such as when she tries to fit through the door to the garden (26), when she is inside the White Rabbit’s house (41), and while she is in the courtroom (106). Not only is her growth inconvenient, it is mortifying. For example, Alice is repeatedly called a “Serpent” by a pigeon she encounters (55). This shows that growing up is not only physically uncomfortable, but can also be the cause of mockery.

If mockery weren’t enough of a mental struggle for Alice, the emotional understanding of the events around her is also a hardship. Alice finds Wonderland quite frustrating. The way she understands the world is not at all the way Wonderland works. Alice encounters injustice, miscommunications, and misery that leads her to tears. As one grows up, the way we understand the world to be does not always align with the way it actually is.

Although growing up is painful (both physically and mentally), Alice begins to accept these events and starts to learn the ways of Wonderland. She strives to be polite and learns to catch herself before speaking “rudely.” Her greatest strength, however, comes at the end of the book. The courtroom injustice is so great that Alice grows very large and disagrees loudly with the King and Queen. Although nobody agrees with her, she stands up for what she thinks is right.

And that, I think, is the most important lesson in growing up.