Lewis Carroll 

Biography

Lewis Carroll was the pen name of Charles L. Dodgson, author of the children's classics
"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking-Glass."

Synopsis
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.

Early Life
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, best known by his pseudonym, Lewis Carroll, was born in the
village of Daresbury, England, on January 27, 1832. The eldest boy in a family of 11 children,
Carroll was rather adept at entertaining himself and his siblings. His father, a clergyman, raised
them in the rectory. As a boy, Carroll excelled in mathematics and won many academic prizes.
At age 20, he was awarded a studentship (called a scholarship in other colleges) to Christ
College. Apart from serving as a lecturer in mathematics, he was an avid photographer and wrote
essays, political pamphlets and poetry. "The Hunting of the Snark" displays his wonderful ability
in the genre of literary nonsense.

Alice and Literary Success

Carroll suffered from a bad stammer, but he found himself vocally fluent when speaking with
children. The relationships he had with young people in his adult years are of great interest, as
they undoubtedly inspired his best-known writings and have been a point of disturbed
speculation over the years. Carroll loved to entertain children, and it was Alice, the daughter of
Henry George Liddell, who can be credited with his pinnacle inspiration. Alice Liddell
remembers spending many hours with Carroll, sitting on his couch while he told fantastic tales of
dream worlds. During an afternoon picnic with Alice and her two sisters, Carroll told the first
iteration of what would later becomeAlice's Adventures in Wonderland. When Alice arrived
home, she exclaimed that he must write the story down for her.

He fulfilled the small girl's request, and through a series of coincidences, the story fell into the
hands of the novelist Henry Kingsley, who urged Carroll to publish it. The book Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland was released in 1865. It gained steady popularity, and as a result,
Carroll wrote the sequel, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871). By
the time of his death, Alice had become the most popular children's book in England, and by
1932 it was one of the most popular in the world.

Photography and Legacy

Besides writing, Carroll created a number of fine photographs. His notable portraits include
those of the actress Ellen Terry and the poet Alfred Tennyson. He also photographed children in
every possible costume and situation, eventually making nude studies of them. Despite
conjecture, little real evidence of child abuse can be brought against him. Shortly before his 66th
birthday, Lewis Carroll caught a severe case of influenza, which led to pneumonia. He died on
January 14, 1898, leaving an enigma behind him.

Lewis Carroll Biography

Born: January 27, 1832 
Daresbury, Cheshire, England 
Died: January 14, 1898 
Guildford, Surrey, England 
English church official, author, and mathematician

The English church official Lewis Carroll was the author of Alice in
Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, famous adventure stories for children that
adults also enjoy. He was also a noted mathematician and photographer.

Early life and education

Lewis Carroll was born Charles Lutwidge Dodgson on January 27, 1832, the eldest son
and third of eleven children born to Frances Jane Lutwidge and the Reverend Charles
Dodgson. Carroll had a happy childhood. His mother was patient and gentle, and his
father, despite his religious duties, tutored all of his children and raised them to be good
people. Carroll frequently made up games and wrote stories and poems, some of which
were similar to his later published works, for his seven sisters and three brothers.

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.
Photography and early publication
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.

Alice books
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.

Unlike most of the children's books of the day, Alice and Through the Looking Glass did
not attempt to convey obvious moral lessons. Nor did they contain what critics have
tried to insist are there—hidden meanings relating to religion or politics. They are
delightful adventure stories in which a normal, healthy, clearheaded little girl reacts to
the "reality" of the adult world. Their appeal to adults as well as to children lies in Alice's
intelligent response to ridiculous language and action.
Later publications
Carroll published several other nonsense works, including The Hunting of the
Snark (1876), Sylvie and Bruno (1889), and Sylvie and Bruno Concluded (1893). He also wrote
a number of pamphlets poking fun at university affairs, which appeared under a fake name or
without any name at all, and he composed several works on mathematics under his true name.
In 1881 Carroll gave up his lecturing to devote all of his time to writing. From 1882 to 1892,
however, he was curator of the common room (manager of the staff club) at Christ Church. After
a short illness, he died on January 14, 1898.

Assessment of the man

The Reverend C. L. Dodgson was a reserved, fussy bachelor who refused to get
wrapped up in the political and religious storms that troubled England during his lifetime.
Lewis Carroll, however, was a delightful, lovable companion to the children for whom he
created his nonsense stories and poems. Biographers and historians have long been
confused that one man could have two completely different sides.

One solution is that he had two personalities: "Lewis Carroll" and "the Reverend Mr.
Dodgson," with the problems that go along with having a split personality. There were
peculiar things about him—he stammered ever since he was a child, he was extremely
fussy about his possessions, and he walked as much as twenty miles a day. But
another solution seems more nearly correct: "Dodgson" and "Carroll" were parts of one
personality. This personality, because of happiness in childhood and unhappiness in the
years thereafter, could blossom only in a world that resembled the happy one he knew
while growing up.

For More Information

Cohen, Morton N. Lewis Carroll: A Biography. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1995.

Greene, Carol. Lewis Carroll, Author of Alice in Wonderland. Chicago: Children's Press,

1992.

Stoffel, Stephanie Lovett. Lewis Carroll in Wonderland: The Life and Times of Alice and
Her Creator. New York: H. N. Abrams, 1997.

Thomas, Donald S. Lewis Carroll: A Biography. New York: Barnes & Noble Books,
1999.
Wood, James P. The Snark Was a Boojum: A Life of Lewis Carroll. New York:
Pantheon Books, 1966.

Alice in Wonderland Themes

Growth into Adulthood

This theme is central to both books. Alice's adventures parallel the
journey from childhood to adulthood. She comes into numerous new
situations in which adaptability is absolutely necessary for success.
She shows marked progress throughout the course of the book; in the
beginning, she can barely maintain enough composure to keep herself
from crying. By the end of the novel, she is self-possessed and able to
hold her own against the most baffling Wonderland logic.
Size change
Closely connected to the above theme, size change is another
recurring concept. The dramatic changes in size hint at the radical
changes the body undergoes during adolescence. The key, once
again, is adaptability. Alice's size changes also bring about a change
in perspective, and she sees the world from a very different view. In
the last trial scene, her growth into a giant reflects her interior growth.
She becomes a much stronger, self-possessed person, able to speak
out against the nonsensical proceedings of the trial.
Death
This theme is even more present in the second Alice book, Through the
Looking Glass. Alice frequently makes references to her own death
without knowing it. Childhood is a state of peril in Carroll's view:
children are quite vulnerable, and the world presents many dangers.
Another aspect of death is its inevitability. Since the Alice books are at
root about change (the transition from childhood to adulthood, the
passage of time), mortality is inescapable as a theme. Death is the
final step of this process of growth. While death is only hinted at in the
first book, the second book is saturated with references to mortality
and macabre humor.
Games/ Learning the Rules
Every new encounter is something of a game for Alice; there are rules
to learn, and consequences for learning or not learning those rules.
Games are a constant part of life in Wonderland, from the Caucus
race to the strange croquet match to the fact that the royal court is a
living deck of cards. And every new social encounter is like a game, in
that there are bizarre, apparently arbitrary rules that Alice has to
master. Learning the rules is a metaphor for the adaptations to new
social situations that every child makes as she grows older. Mastering
each challenge, Alice grows wiser and more adaptable as time goes
on.
Language and Logic/Illogic
Carroll delights in puns. The Alice books are chockfull of games with
language, to the reader's delight and Alice's confusion. The games
often point out some inconsistency or slipperiness of language in
general and English in particular. The books point out the pains and
advantages of language. Language is a source of joy and adaptability;
it can also be a source of great confusion.
Just as baffling is the bizarre logic at work in Wonderland. Every
creature can justify the most absurd behavior, and their arguments for
themselves are often fairly complex. Their strange reasoning is
another source of delight for the reader and challenge for Alice. She
has to learn to discern between unusual logic and utter nonsense.

Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll’s distinguished place in literary history

was firmly established with the publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
and Through the Looking-Glass. While the Alice books have captivated and
excited children ever since their first publication, they have also stirred a wide
range of fictional, philosophical, and psychological discussion from twentieth-
century writers. For intellectuals, reading Alice's Adventures and Through the
Looking-Glass as surrealist dream books, Freudian case studies, or political
parable, they have become texts crammed with deep insights. Alice's adventures
begin on an idle summer day when a "White Rabbit with pink eyes" races by her.
While it was typical for a rabbit to run by her, it was not "very much out of the
way" to hear the Rabbit talk, she hurried after the White Rabbit when it "actually
took a watch out of its waistcoat pocket." Alice scrambled to her feet and
followed it, without a thought, down a large rabbit-hole. Similarly, in Through the
Looking-Glass, Alice unwisely goes through the glass over the mantel and into the
Looking-Glass room. Later, in both stories, this initial rashness becomes tempered
through experience. Although Alice learns from her experiences, the stories were
neither moralistic nor written for the purpose of teaching lessons. Instead, they
were, and still are, two of the most highly imaginative fairy tales ever visualized.
Both were extemporaneous stories, were later polished and infused with a wealth
of allusions to both his own experiences and of his friend Alice's. Carroll, his friend
Robinson Duckworth, and Alice Liddell all alluded to this day as the origin of
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Get your custom term papers and research
papers for as low as $9.95 per page In her travels through Wonderland and the
chessboard world behind the Looking-Glass, Alice come across a multitude of
curiosities, many traceable to experiences in her own life. In chapter II of Alice,
"The Pool of Tears," she encounters a Duck, a Dodo, a Lory, and an Eaglet. This
entire episode in the pool alludes to a trip that Carroll referred to in his diary for
June 17, 1862. On this day, during a trip, the traveling party was drenched in a
downpour. The animals who appear in the "Pool" chapter represent the trip's
participants: the Duck is Carroll's friend Robinson Duckworth, the Dodo is Carroll
(a stutterer all his life, Carroll would often pronounce his real name Dodgson as
"Do-Do-Dodgson"), and the Lory and the Eaglet are Alice's sisters, Lorina and
Edith. Growth into Adulthood: This theme is central to both books. Alice's
adventures parallel the journey from childhood to adulthood. She comes into
several new situations in which adaptability is absolutely necessary for success.
She shows marked progress throughout the course of the book; in the beginning,
she can hardly keep enough composure to keep herself from crying. By the end of
the novel, she is self-possessed and able to hold her own against the most baffling
Wonderland logic. Size change: Closely connected to the above theme, size
change is another recurring concept. The dramatic changes in size hint at the
sweeping changes the body undergoes during adolescence. The key, once again,
is adaptability. Alice's size changes also bring about a change in outlook, and she
sees the world from a very different view. In the last trial scene, her growth into a
giant reflects her interior growth. She becomes a much stronger, self-possessed
person, able to speak out against the ridiculous procedures of the trial. Death:
This theme is even more present in the second Alice book, Through the Looking
Glass. Alice repeatedly makes references to her own death without knowing it.
Childhood is a state of peril in Carroll's view: children are quite susceptible, and
the world presents many dangers. Another feature of death is its certainty. Since
the Alice books are at root about change (the transition from childhood to
adulthood, the passage of time), mortality is inevitable as a subject. Death is the
ultimate step of this process of growth. While death is only hinted at in the first
book, the second book is flooded with references to mortality and deathly humor.
Games/Learning the Rules: Every new encounter is something of a game for Alice;
there are rules to learn, and penalty for learning or not learning those rules.
Games are a regular part of life in Wonderland, from the Caucus race to the
strange croquet match to the fact that the royal court is a living deck of cards. And
every new social encounter is like a game, in that there are weird, apparently
random rules that Alice has to master. Learning the rules is a symbol for the
adaptations to new social situations that every child makes, as she grows older.
Mastering each challenge, Alice grows wiser and more adaptable as time goes on.
Language and Logic/Illogic: Carroll takes pleasure in puns. The Alice books are full
of games with language, to the reader's delight and Alice's confusion. The games
time and again point out some discrepancy or vagueness of language in general
and English in particular. The books point out the pains and advantages of
language. Language is a source of joy and compliance; it can also be a source of
great confusion.

Alice in Wonderland Summary

Alice is sitting with her sister outdoors when she spies a White Rabbitwith a pocket watch.
Fascinated by the sight, she follows the rabbit down the hole. She falls for a long time, and finds
herself in a long hallway full of doors. There is also a key on the table, which unlocks a tiny
door; through this door, she spies a beautiful garden. She longs to get there, but the door is too
small. Soon, she finds a drink with a note that asks her to drink it. There is later a cake with a
note that tells her to eat; Alice uses both, but she cannot seem to get a handle on things, and is
always either too large to get through the door or too small to reach the key.
While she is tiny, she slips and falls into a pool of water. She realizes that this little sea is made
of tears she cried while a giant. She swims to shore with a number of animals, most notably a
sensitive mouse, but manages to offend everyone by talking about her cat's ability to catch birds
and mice. Left alone, she goes on through the wood and runs into the White Rabbit. He mistakes
her for his maid and sends her to fetch some things from his house. While in the White Rabbit's
home, she drinks another potion and becomes too huge to get out through the door. She
eventually finds a little cake which, when eaten, makes her small again.

In the wood again, she comes across a Caterpillar sitting on a mushroom. He gives her some
valuable advice, as well as a valuable tool: the two sides of the mushroom, which can make
Alice grow larger and smaller as she wishes. The first time she uses them, she stretches her body
out tremendously. While stretched out, she pokes her head into the branches of a tree and meets a
Pigeon. The Pigeonis convinced that Alice is a serpent, and though Alice tries to reason with
her the Pigeon tells her to be off.
Alice gets herself down to normal proportions and continues her trek
through the woods. In a clearing she comes across a little house and
shrinks herself down enough to get inside. It is the house of
theDuchess; the Duchess and the Cook are battling fiercely, and they
seem unconcerned about the safety of the baby that the Duchess is
nursing. Alice takes the baby with her, but the child turns into a pig
and trots off into the woods. Alice next meets the Cheshire cat (who
was sitting in the Duchess's house, but said nothing). The Cheshire
cat helps her to find her way through the woods, but he warns her that
everyone she meets will be mad.
Alice goes to the March Hare's house, where she is treated to a Mad
Tea Party. Present are the March Hare, the Hatter, and the Dormouse.
Ever since Time stopped working for the Hatter, it has always been six
o'clock; it is therefore always teatime. The creatures of the Mad Tea
Party are some of the must argumentative in all of Wonderland. Alice
leaves them and finds a tree with a door in it: when she looks through
the door, she spies the door-lined hallway from the beginning of her
adventures. This time, she is prepared, and she manages to get to the
lovely garden that she saw earlier. She walks on through, and finds
herself in the garden of the Queen of Hearts. There, three gardeners
(with bodies shaped like playing cards) are painting the roses red. If
the Queen finds out that they planted white roses, she'll have them
beheaded. The Queen herself soon arrives, and she does order their
execution; Alice helps to hide them in a large flowerpot.
The Queen invites Alice to play croquet, which is a very difficult game
in Wonderland, as the balls and mallets are live animals. The game is
interrupted by the appearance of the Cheshire cat, whom the King of
Hearts immediately dislikes.
The Queen takes Alice to the Gryphon, who in turn takes Alice to the
Mock Turtle. The Gryphon and the Mock Turtle tell Alice bizarre
stories about their school under the sea. The Mock Turtles sings a
melancholy song about turtle soup, and soon afterward the Gryphon
drags Alice off to see the trial of the Knave of Hearts.
The Knave of Hearts has been accused of stealing the tarts of the
Queen of Hearts, but the evidence against him is very bad. Alice is
appalled by the ridiculous proceedings. She also begins to grow
larger. She is soon called to the witness stand; by this time she has
grown to giant size. She refuses to be intimidated by the bad logic of
the court and the bluster of the King and Queen of Hearts. Suddenly,
the cards all rise up and attack her, at which point she wakes up. Her
adventures in Wonderland have all been a fantastic dream.