Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja

CULTURE AND LITERATURE IN

ENGLISH SPEAKING COMMUNITIES
ASSEGMENT

PROJECT: ANALYSIS OF A TEXT

NAME: Andrea De Los Ángeles Granda

Campoverde

TEACHER: David Parsons

Loja-Ecuador
1. Select a Text (from our textbook, or another well-known text)
a. Could be a short story, portion of a longer text, poem, speech or other text, a minimum
of 250 words in length or more.

BOOK: Alice’s adventures in Wonderland

CHAPTER I.
DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE.
Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the
bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped
into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or
conversations in it, “and what is the use of a book,” thought Alice,
“without pictures or conversations?” So she was considering in
her own mind, (as well as she could, for the hot day made her feel
very sleepy and stupid,) whether the pleasure of making a daisy-
chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the
daisies, when suddenly a white rabbit with pink eyes ran close by
her. There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did Alice
think it so very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to
itself, “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” (when she thought
it over afterwards, it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the
time it all seemed quite natural); but when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its
waistcoat-pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet, for it
flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-
pocket or a watch to take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she ran across the field
after it, and was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge. In
another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she
was to get out again. The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way, and
then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice had not a moment to think about
stopping herself before she found herself falling down what seemed to be a very deep
well. Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of time as
she went down to look about her, and to wonder what was going to happen next. First,
she tried to look down and make out what she was coming to, but it was too dark to see
anything: then she looked at the sides of the well, and noticed that they were filled with
cupboards and bookshelves: here and there she saw maps and pictures hung upon pegs.
She took down a jar from one of the shelves as she passed; it was labelled “ ORANGE
MARMALADE,” but to her great disappointment it was empty: she did not like to drop
the jar for fear of killing somebody underneath, so managed to put it into one of the
cupboards as she fell past it. “Well!” thought Alice to herself, “after such a fall as this, I
shall think nothing of tumbling down stairs! How brave they’ll all think me at home!
Why, I wouldn’t say anything about it, even if I fell off the top of the house!” (Which was
very likely true.) Down, down, down. Would the fall never come to an end? “I wonder
how many miles I’ve fallen by this time?” she said aloud. “I must be getting somewhere
near the center of the earth. Let me see: that would be four thousand miles down, I think—
” (for, you see, Alice had learnt several things of this sort in her lessons in the schoolroom,
and though this was not a very good opportunity for showing off her knowledge, as there
was no one to listen to her, still it was good practice to say it over) “—yes, that’s about
the right distance—but then I wonder what Latitude or Longitude I’ve got to?” (Alice had
not the slightest idea what Latitude was, or Longitude either, but she thought they were
nice grand words to say.) Presently she began again. “I wonder if I shall fall right through
the earth! How funny it’ll seem to come out among the people that walk with their heads
downwards! The Antipathies, I think—” (she was rather glad there was no one listening,
this time, as it didn’t ’t sound at all the right word) “ —but I shall have to ask them what
the name of the country is, you know. Please, Ma’am, is this New Zealand or Australia?”
(And she tried to curtsey as she spoke—fancy curtseying as you’re falling through the
air! Do you think you could manage it?) “And what an ignorant little girl she’ll think me
for asking! No, it’ll never do to ask: perhaps I shall see it written up somewhere.”...

2. Do a Biography on the Author and Summarize the Historical Importance of the text that
you selected. (Use internet and other resources)

Lewis Caroll Born on January 27, 1832 in Daresbury, Cheshire, England, Charles
Dodgson wrote and created games as a child. At age 20 he received a studentship at Christ
Church and was appointed a lecturer in mathematics. Dodgson was shy but enjoyed
creating stories for children. His books including "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
were published under the pen name Lewis Carroll. Dodgson died in 1898. Although his
years at Rugby School (1846–49) were unhappy, he was recognized as a good student,
and in 1850 he was admitted to further study at Christ Church, Oxford, England. He
graduated in 1854, and in 1855 he became mathematical lecturer (more like a tutor) at the
college. This permanent appointment, which not only recognized his academic skills but
also paid him a decent sum, required Carroll to take holy orders in the Anglican Church
and to remain unmarried. He agreed to these requirements and was made a deacon in
1861. Among adults Carroll was reserved, but he did not avoid their company as some
reports have stated. He attended the theater frequently and was absorbed by photography
and writing. After taking up photography in 1856, he soon found that his favorite subjects
were children and famous people, including English poet Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809–
1892), Italian painter and poet D. G. Rossetti (1828–1882), and English painter John
Millais (1829–1896). Helmut Gernsheim wrote of Carroll's photographs of children, "He
achieves an excellence which in its way can find no peer." Though photography was
mostly a hobby, Carroll spent a great deal of time on it until 1880. In the mid-1850s
Carroll also began writing both humorous and mathematical works. In 1856 he created
the pseudonym (assumed writing name) "Lewis Carroll" by translating his first and
middle names into Latin, reversing their order, then translating them back into English.
His mathematical writing, however, appeared under his real name.
About the book:
In 1856 Carroll met Alice Liddell, the four-year-old daughter of the head of Christ
Church. During the next few years Carroll often made up stories for Alice and her sisters.
In July 1862, while on a picnic with the Liddell girls, Carroll recounted the adventures of
a little girl who fell into a rabbit hole. Alice asked him to write the story out for her. He
did so, calling it Alice's Adventures under Ground. After some changes, this work was
published in 1865 as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with illustrations by John Tenniel.
Encouraged by the book's success, Carroll wrote a second volume, Through the Looking
Glass and What Alice Found There (1872). Based on the chess games Carroll played with
the Liddell children, it included material he had written before he knew them. The first
section of "Jabberwocky," for example, was written in 1855. More of Carroll's famous
Wonderland characters such as Humpty Dumpty, the White Knight, and Tweedledum and
Tweedledee appear in this work than in Alice in Wonderland.
3. Complete an Initial Analysis of the Text Refer to the textbook, Unit 2.1 and listen to the
Video Conference for instructions on how to do this analysis.

 OPENING MOVES
 Notice:
The first notice about the text was the adventures that the author include since the first
chapter until the end of the book. It is something that stands out for me, that it is the
author didn’t use his real name.
 Pattern:
There were some patterns on of them was that the author introduced in each chapter
a new or different place, where the story was developed.
 Contrast:
Many people believe that the character of Alice is in fact Alice Liddell, the young girl
to whom Dodgson originally told and dedicated the story, but this is not exactly true.
The character was indeed inspired by Liddell, but is not an authentic representation
of her; the many thoughts, values and emotions described in the narrative are strictly
those of the author Carroll expressed himself through the character of Alice and
imposed his own personality upon her, particularly an inquisitive nature and
bemusement at the peculiar ways of adult society
 Feeling:
This book express many feeling who reads it. Through the story makes me think how
big is loving heart of the childhood.
 CORE QUESTIONS
 What, basically, is it about?
Alice in the paradise Alice’s adventures in Wonderland is a fantasy book where the
author describe the adventures of the girl and other characters.
 What you would like to know more about?
I would like to know why he changed his real name and used a pen name.
 What kind of text is it?
It is a fantasy novel.
 Who is addressing to whom?
The story has an omniscient narrator. The narrative is focused entirely on Alice; she's
never offstage, so we don't see any action that she doesn't know about
 Where and when:
Alice's space is not stable. Carroll is dedicated to taking us on a journey through his
own interior, through the world of dreams, with which the physical space is
unpredictable. The reading leads us to imagine many places: fairytale houses, ancient
forests, royal gardens, rocky shores.
  How precisely it is done?
Carroll begins to narrate the history a history warm in the summer evening to finish
with the boredom. For request of the same Alice, the author copied the history. His
provisional title was Alice's Adventures under Ground, was written to hand, with
illustrations of the own Carroll and had only 18.000 words. Later, for suggestion of
two friends, it rewrote and lengthened the work for his publication.
 Why it seems to have been written?
The idea that Alicia transmits is that of transmitting and reflecting a dreamlike and
surreal world, that we achieve that all of us have inside of us and that many times we
are ashamed completely simple and crazy. In short, Alice in Wonderland is a story
made with the idea of entertaining the real Alice Liddell, the Alice for whom Carroll
felt a deep friendship

 What if the text were changed, in some way similar yet different?
If the text were changed it could be possible that the children readers didn’t be
engaged with the novel.

5. Write a summary of the story. 250 words minimum

Alice’s adventures in Wonderland

Alice sits drowsily by a riverbank, bored by the book her older sister reads to her. Out of nowhere,
a White Rabbit runs past her, fretting that he will be late. The Rabbit pulls a watch out of his
waistcoat pocket and runs across the field and down a hole. Alice impulsively follows the Rabbit
and tumbles down the deep hole that resembles a well, falling slowly for a long time. As
she floats down, she notices that the sides of the well are covered with cupboards and
shelves. She plucks a marmalade jar from one of the shelves. The jar is empty, so Alice
sets it down on another shelf. With nothing else to do, she speaks aloud to herself,
wondering how far she has fallen and if she might fall right through to the other side of
the earth. She continues to speak aloud, daydreaming about her cat Dinah. In the midst of
imagining a conversation the two of them might have, she abruptly lands. Unhurt, Alice
gets up and catches sight of the White Rabbit as he vanishes around a corner. Alice
approaches a long corridor lined by doors. The doors are all locked, so Alice tests them
with a key that she finds on a glass table. After searching around, Alice discovers a small
door behind a curtain. She tests the key again and finds that it opens up to a passage and
a garden. Since the door is much too small for Alice to squeeze through, she ventures
back to the table with the hope that she might find something there that would help her.
A bottle marked “DRINK ME” sits on the table. Alice drinks the contents of the bottle
after inspecting it to be sure it does not contain poison. Alice immediately shrinks, and
though she can now fit through the door, she realizes she has left the key on the tabletop
high above her. She alternately cries and scolds herself for crying before catching sight
of a small cake with the words “EAT ME” underneath the table. Alice eats the cake with
the hope that it will change her size, but becomes disappointed when nothing happens.
 6. Write a Final Reflection of your work on this project. Discuss how your understanding of the
Literature Selection has changed or deepened during this project. How have you changed as a
reader of Literature during this process?

In my opinion at the end of this project, I learnt a lot about Analysis of a text. Through
this project it helped me to analyze and respond to any short piece of text that I choose.
It helps me to identify several aspects for a literature selection as notice, patterns, contrast
and other aspects. I also could identify the purpose of reading and the point of view of the
author.

Bibliography:
- Lewis Carroll. (2017, April 28). Retrieved November 17, 2017, from
https://www.biography.com/people/lewis-carroll-9239598

- Lewis Carroll Biography. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2017, from

http://www.notablebiographies.com/Ca-Ch/Carroll-Lewis.html