Literary Analysis
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Historical Context of Children's Literature:
- The concept of "childhood" emerged in the 18th century with the rise of the middle class, who valued children's innocence and play.
- Children were rarely mentioned in literature before this period, with occasional appearances in works like Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Emile and William Wordsworth’s The Prelude.
- Charles Dickens brought children to the forefront in his stories, but primarily in books for adults.
- Early literature for children often consisted of adaptations of adult stories or moralistic tales.
- The Brothers Grimm's folktales, initially intended for adults, faced criticism for their sexual and violent content and were later adapted for children.
- Hans Christian Andersen sparked controversy by omitting moral lessons in his Fairy Tales (1835-37), written specifically for children.
Themes and Characteristics of Wonderland:
- Alice in Wonderland subverts natural and societal laws, presenting a world where time and space are unpredictable, animals converse, and unexpected events occur.
- The story captures a child's sense of vulnerability in an adult-dominated world through fantasy.
The Golden Age of Children's Literature:
- The late 19th and early 20th centuries marked a golden age for children's literature due to increasing literacy rates, the growth of commercial publishing, and the recognition of children's creative potential.
- Notable works from this era include:
- Tom Brown’s School Days (1857) by Thomas Hughes, which initiated the school story genre.
- Little Women (1868-69) by Louisa May Alcott, a coming-of-age story.
- Heidi (1880-81) by Johanna Spyri.
- Peter Pan (1911) by JM Barrie.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland as a Masterpiece:
- Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is considered a pioneering masterpiece in English children's literature.
- It departs from the prevailing realism in literature with its fantastical narrative.
Genesis of the Story:
- Charles Dodgson, a mathematics don, created the story on a rowing trip with friends, including Alice Liddell (aged ten), on the Thames in 1862.
- The story first appeared as a handwritten book and was later published under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll.
Plot and Focus:
- Seven-year-old Alice falls down a rabbit hole into a surreal world.
- The story centers on her navigation of this world filled with peculiar creatures, attitudes, events, and linguistic absurdities.
Alice's Logic and Perspective:
- Alice's own unorthodox logic contributes to the book's coherence. For example, wondering about landing in the "Antipathies" (Antipodes) and questioning whether she would appear ignorant if she had to ask about being in Australia or New Zealand.
- Alice's frankness and curiosity are highlighted when she decides not to ask where she is, hoping to find it written somewhere.
Themes of Childhood:
- Alice's bewilderment reflects common childhood issues – questioning identity, understanding rules, and seeking normalcy.
- Her initial anxieties stem from being the wrong size to accomplish her desires.
- Meeting the Caterpillar introduces the challenge of being repeatedly contradicted.
- The Queen’s frequent calls for beheadings introduce the possibility of violence, heightening tension.
Characters and Social Commentary:
- Most characters Alice encounters are animals.
- The only human characters, besides Alice and her sister, are the Mad Hatter and the Duchess (while the King and Queen of Hearts, are playing cards).
- The absence of parents and references to them is notable.
- The inversions of everyday life can be interpreted as liberating for Victorian adults constrained by convention.
Nonsense and Imagination:
- Nonsense provides a space for imagination and the fulfillment of subconscious needs, including escaping social norms.
Alice's Development:
- Alice does not explicitly learn a lesson but becomes more assertive throughout her journey.
- In the trial scene, she confronts the Queen's unfair sense of justice, calling it "Stuff and nonsense!"
- She reasserts reality by declaring the playing cards as mere inanimate objects, causing them to fly away.
- Through her strength of character, she shatters the illusion.
The Coda:
- The story concludes with Alice's sister's dreamlike state.
- Her sister imagines Alice and the characters from Wonderland.
- She envisions Alice growing into a woman who retains her "simple and loving heart," sharing the story of Wonderland with future generations.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Context of American Literature in the 19th Century:
- American writers in the 19th century aimed to reflect the diverse population of their rapidly developing nation due to a lack of literary traditions.
- Mark Twain set his story in the Mississippi Valley, using a poor white boy as the narrator, creating an unprecedented and authentic voice in American literature.
Significance of Huckleberry Finn:
- Ernest Hemingway declared The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as the starting point of American literature because it empowered writers to move away from New England settings and embrace local color and vernacular speech.
- The novel is radical due to Twain publishing after the American Civil War (1861-65) but setting the narrative 40-50 years earlier, when slavery persisted in the South.
- Huck's thoughts reflect the contradictions within American society.
Literary Precedents and Contemporaries:
- Before 1823: James Fenimore Cooper’s The Pioneers from the Leatherstocking Tales presented conflicting views of life on the frontier.
- 1852: Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom’s Cabin used multiple vernacular voices to fuel the anti-slavery debate.
- After 1896: Sarah Orne Jewett's In the Country of the Pointed Firs depicted life in an isolated fishing village in Maine.
- 1939: John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath combined local color with social injustice, portraying a family's journey during the Great Depression.
Narrative and Characters:
- Huck, an established character from Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, provides credibility to social history, introducing himself to the reader.
- Huck feigns his own death to escape societal constraints and his abusive father, embarking on a journey down the Mississippi River with Jim, a runaway slave.
Social Commentary:
- The narrative exposes the brutal reality of backwoods society through encounters in towns, including lynch mobs, gangs, tricksters, and family feuds.
Subversion and Friendship:
- The novel challenges social norms of the time through the relationship between Huck and Jim, despite using the offensive word "nigger."
- Jim's escape from being sold and his declaration of self-ownership highlight the theme of freedom: “Yes – en I’s rich now … I own myself, en I’s worth eight hundred dollars. I wished I had the money.”
- Living on the raft, Huck and Jim develop a friendship away from societal expectations: “we a floating along, talking, and singing, and laughing … somehow couldn’t seem to strike no places to harden me against him… ”
- By the time Tom Sawyer reappears, Huck has undergone significant emotional growth.
Legacy and Impact:
- Despite initial criticism for being “coarse,” Huckleberry Finn injected American writing with new energy, style, and color.
- Its focus on authentic American voices influenced later works, from John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath to Junot Diaz’s Drown (1996).
Mark Twain's Biography:
- Born Samuel Langhorne Clemens on November 30, 1835, in Hannibal, Missouri, which inspired the setting of "St Petersburg" in Huckleberry Finn.
- After his father's death, Clemens left school at 12, working as a typesetter and steamboat pilot.
- He adopted the pen name Mark Twain while working for newspapers after prospecting for silver in Nevada during the Civil War.
- Married Olivia Langdon in 1870 and had four children.
- Despite his success, poor investments led to bankruptcy.
- He restored his finances through lecturing and international celebrity, writing 28 books, numerous short stories, letters, and sketches before his death in 1910.