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The main character of the story. In the books, her name is Alice Liddell and she is about nine years old, Alice appears as a schoolgirl with a whimsically logical mind, whose straight hair is “always in your eyes”, she is gentle, courteous, trusting and inquisitive.
Bumalic Hightopp
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Sister of Terrant (Mad Hatter). Daughter of Tyva and Zanik.
Jabberwocky
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In the book it is nothing more than a poem, but what a poem! The Jabberwocky is probably the most famous attempt to introduce non-existent words into the language, which nevertheless obey all the laws of the language. The first quatrain consists almost entirely of non-existent words, with the exception of service words.
In Tim Burton's film, this is a ferocious Dragon who is at the mercy of the Red Queen. A disgusting, slobbering, foul-smelling creature with a huge, scruffy body and a toothy, bulldog-like snout. The blow of his strong paws leaves Alice with rather painful memories of the regime of the Red Queen.
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A hound, an unwitting accomplice of the Red Queen's army, he fears that his wife and pups are in danger because they are in prison, and follows the Knave of Hearts' every command. The Dog supports an underground group that is trying to resist the Red Queen and therefore becomes Alice's ally
Mad Hatter
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Hat maker, one of the participants in the Mad Tea Party. In the words of the Cheshire Cat, Hatter is “out of his mind.”
In the Tim Burton film his name is Terrant Hightopp.
The White Queen
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One of the chess Queens who are going to examine Alice in order for her to become a Queen. In one of the scenes, the White Queen tells Alice about how you can live backwards and remember the future. The White Queen's shawl flies away, and in pursuit of it, she and Alice cross a stream and turn into a Sheep sitting knitting.
White Rabbit
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A talking animal with pink eyes, dressed in a vest and kid gloves. He carries a watch in his pocket and lives in a “clean house” with the inscription: “B. Rabbit". The rabbit is always late for something, and is always a kind of guide for Alice, helping her fall into Wonderland.
In Tim Burton's film, he still worries all the time that he might be late, he is constantly in a hurry to get somewhere. He must find Alice and bring her to Down Under so that she can fulfill her destiny - this is why the rabbit shows up at the garden party, where Alice notices him, and leads her to the rabbit hole. The rabbit is sometimes extremely irritable and strict with Alice. It feels like Time is very important to him and it makes him nervous and catch up.
White Knight
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When the Black Officer tried to capture the pawn Alice, the White Officer saved her and escorted her to the next square.
The White King
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Alice first meets him in the first chapter of "Through the Looking Glass House". She then meets him in chapter seven, "The Lion and the Unicorn". He believes that when you feel sick, you should eat splinters. Has two messengers “one runs there, the other from there.” He loves accuracy (he specifies the number of troops sent) and writes everything down in a book. The king is amazed that Alice sees Nobody and asks to sit down “for a minute.” Has a daughter Lily
Bim Hightopp
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Brother of Terrant (Mad Hatter). Son of Tyva and Zanik.
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Royal Messenger Back (The King explains that he needs two messengers, since "one runs there, and the other from there"). In Through the Looking Glass, he is essentially a Wonderland character, namely the Hatter. Tenniel's illustration shows Chick sipping tea from a cup in the same way as the Hatter did in the first story, confirming the author's references to this character
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A huge monster that serves the Red Queen and guards the Sharp Sword, which can be used to kill the Jabberwocky
Knave of Hearts (Ilosovic_Stayne)
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He first appears in Chapter Eight, "Royal Croquet", where he carries the crown. Shown as a kind character. Knave then appears in the chapter "Who Stole the Pretzels?", where he is the main suspect.
In Tim Burton's film, Knave gets a new name - Ilosovich Stein. He is the Queen's lover and head of her guard.
8 2 0
Guardian of the chronosphere. He not only closely monitors all the inhabitants of the country, but also decides who is about to expire. He hangs a closed clock depicting the lifetime of each inhabitant in the hall of the "Late Citizens of the Underdark".
0 1 0
First mentioned in the second chapter by Rabbit. In chapter six, she rocks a baby, which she later hands over to Alice. Her cook, having prepared the soup, begins to throw everything she can get her hands on at the Duchess. While playing croquet, Alice learns from the Rabbit that the Queen has sentenced the Duchess to death for slapping her. Subsequently, the Queen relented and did not demand that the sentence be carried out. The character has a sharp chin, and Alice herself considers her “very ugly”
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A mythical creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. During conversations, he periodically coughs. Griffin, by his own admission, received a “classical education” - he played hopscotch with his teacher all day long
Caterpillar
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The insect is blue in color and three inches tall. He sits on a porcini mushroom and smokes a hookah.
In Tim Burton's film, the caterpillar is given the name Absolem, and he is the all-knowing guardian of the Oracle, an ancient sacred document that reflects all the major events of the past, present and future of Nizhnekray history.
James Harcourt
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Hamish Ascot's employee.
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In the book, this is a bird that Alice discovers on the shore next to the Sea of Tears. Ed the Eaglet notes that Dodo speaks “not like a human being”: his speech is overloaded with scientific terms.
In Tim Burton's film, he is one of the first inhabitants of the Lower Land, whom Alice meets when she finds herself in a fantasy world.
1 0 0
In the arrangement of the pieces before the start of the game, the Unicorn is classified as a white piece, and the Lion is classified as a black piece. The Lion and the Unicorn, according to the King's first statement, are fighting for his own crown. Lion and Unicorn are quite cute animals. The Unicorn tries to make friends with Alice, and the Lion offers to eat pie in honor of friendship. This is where some complications arise. Looking-glass pies must first be distributed and then cut. Alice tried to do everything normally. Suddenly, a drum roll is heard, and Alice finds herself in the forest.
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Royal Messenger There (The King explains that he needs two messengers, since "one runs there, and the other from there"). In Through the Looking Glass, he is essentially a character from Wonderland, namely the March Hare
Zanik Hightopp
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Father of the Mad Hatter. Featured in the film "Alice Through the Looking Glass". He quarreled with his son, pointedly threw away his first hat, but in fact kept it.
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Alice's Raving Aunt
Iracebeth of Crims
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The reigning Queen of a magical land, the elder sister of the White Queen, popularly nicknamed the "Bloody Witch". A tyrant who rules the country of Nizhnekry. She is helped to rule the country by her exorbitant head, fiery temperament, and habit of shouting orders for her subjects to have their heads cut off. In the struggle for power, she killed many civilians with the help of her "Jabberwocky Bunny". Loses his temper at the slightest provocation or even without it. Her younger sister, the White Queen, plans to take away her throne and crown, which the Red Queen once stole from her by deception.
Queen Elsemere
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Mother of Iracebeta and Mirana
King Oleron
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Father of Iracebeta and Mirana.
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In the arrangement of the pieces before the start of the game, the Unicorn is classified as a white piece, and the Lion is classified as a black piece. The Lion and the Unicorn, according to the King's first statement, are fighting for his own crown. Lion and Unicorn are quite cute animals. The Unicorn tries to make friends with Alice, and the Lion offers to eat pie in honor of friendship. This is where some complications arise. Looking-glass pies must first be distributed and then cut. Alice tried to do everything normally. Suddenly, a drum roll is heard, and Alice finds herself in the forest. Leo can also be seen in the crowd near the carpet
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Lord Ascot's wife
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Business partner of Alice's father and new owner of Kingsley's trading firm
Lowell Manchester
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Unfaithful husband of Margaret Manchester, Alice's sister.
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Alice's older sister, correct in everything and what a real English lady should be
March Hare
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The crazy hare that Alice meets at the Mad Tea Party. He offers the little girl a drink of wine and believes that you should always say what you think. The character was also present at the trial of the Knave of Hearts, where he denied everything. The appearance of the character was influenced by a saying popular in Carroll's time - “Mad as a March hare”.
In the Tim Burton film, the March Hare invites the Mad Hatter to a tea party at his hare house. The hare looks like a paranoid person, he is constantly in a state of anxiety, he is a little crazy, he has the habit of shaking his paws and ears all the time, and also throwing teapots, spoons and other things. He loves to cook and is the only resident of the Lower Region whom the Red Queen has not reached.
Mirana of Marmoreal
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The Red Queen's younger sister, and although she looks white and fluffy, in reality her character is not so flexible. She came from the same place as the Red Queen. She likes the dark side, but is so afraid of going too far that she tends to show everyone only her bright side. When Alice returns to Down Under, the White Queen takes her under her wing, offering her protection, but her motives are not nearly as altruistic as they seem.
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A strange creature from the poem: “It was barking. Squishy little shorts were darting across the nave.
And the Zelyuks grunted like mumziks in a movie."
The Sheep
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The White Queen tells Alice about how you can live backwards and remember the future. The White Queen's shawl flies away, and in pursuit of it, she and Alice cross the stream. The White Queen turns into an old sheep, sitting knitting behind the counter of a shop where “various curiosities” are sold [note 3]. Alice is trying to buy something, but as soon as she approaches one or another shelf, the shelf immediately becomes empty, although the neighboring shelves remain full. The Sheep gives Alice the knitting needles, which turn into oars, and Alice discovers that she and the Sheep are floating in a boat on the river. Soon Alice and the Sheep find themselves in the shop again, and Alice buys one egg, which in the Sheep's shop costs more than two eggs. Alice tries to take the egg she bought from the shelf, crosses the stream, and the egg turns into Humpty Dumpty sitting on the wall
Paloo Hightopp
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Younger sister of Terrant (Mad Hatter). Daughter of Zanik and Tyva.
This essay will focus on the prototypes of "Alice", and will also touch upon the problem of the perception of child nudity in art and photography of the Victorian era.
And about fairies, of course, where would the 19th century be without them!
There are several prototypes of the character of two "Alices" - "Alice in Wonderland" and "Alice Through the Looking Glass". The first of the books is undoubtedly dedicated to the daughter of the dean of Christ Church College, Henry Liddell.
The acquaintance with the Liddell sisters took place on April 25, 1856, when the future author of the cult book about adventures in Wonderland was photographing the cathedral; at that time Alice was almost four years old. Charles Dodgson* wrote in his diary: “The three girls were in the garden almost all this time, and we easily became friends; we tried to put them in a group in the foreground, but they turned out to be very restless. I mark this day with the sign of a stone." With this sign he marked only meetings with outstanding people or events of exceptional importance.
Alice at age 8, 1860, photo by Lewis Carroll
Years passed, friendship with the girls grew stronger, and on July 4, 1862, an entry dear to all Alisomaniacs appeared in the diary of Charles Dodgson: “With Duckworth and the three Liddell girls, we went up the river to Godstow, drank tea on the shore and got home only at a quarter past eight, we arrived came to me and showed the girls a collection of photographs, and at about nine they were delivered to the dean’s apartment.”
It was on this day, at Alice’s request, that a fairy tale was invented about the adventures of a little girl in the Underground Country, where you can get by successfully falling into a rabbit hole.
The first manuscript of Alice's Adventures Underground (approximately eighteen thousand words) was handwritten by Carroll and decorated with thirty-seven drawings made by himself. The author completed the manuscript in February 1863 and sent it to Alice's home in November 1864.
Soon, at the insistence of friends, Carroll begins negotiations to publish the fairy tale at his own expense. In the new version of the manuscript, the number of words increased to thirty-five thousand. Tom Taylor, the future editor of Punch, introduces the writer to the artist John Tenniel. But this is already material for the next post.
In the original handwritten copy of the tale, Alice's Adventures Underground (which was published in facsimile more than thirty years later), the author pasted a photograph of little Alice Liddell on the last page.
But if we look at Carroll's drawings, we see a completely different Alice. Before us appears a girl with slightly curly hair below her shoulders, her hair color is much lighter than that of Alice Liddell, and there is no similarity in her facial features.
The collaboration between Tenniel and the author of Alice was not easy, the artist complained of “tyranny.” Carroll outlined the desired image of Alice in words and jealously watched its execution. It is believed that he pointed to photographs of three girls as a prototype -
Mary Hilton Badcock
Mary Hilton Babcock
Beatrice Henley
and Alice's younger sister, Edith Liddell.
After much wrangling over the appearance and details of the heroine’s costume, the writer approved the following image:
Alice by John Tenniel
later version in color:
Alice by John Tenniel
Indeed, the heroine of the fairy tale bears no resemblance to the real Alice. Carroll often photographed not only the Liddell sisters, but many of his friends' children, especially girls.
Edith (left), Lorina (center) and Alice (right)
Lewis Carroll, Fine Art Photography, Liddell-Sisters (Alice right), 1858
About 3,000 photographs by Charles Dodgson (Carroll) have survived, just over half of them depict children, and only 30 photographs depict naked or semi-nude children. Now, in the 21st century, such images may be shocking, but by Victorian standards they were something quite common. In those days, childhood was considered the epitome of innocence and grace.
Evelyn Hatch, 29 July 1879
I want to make it clear right away that we are talking only about children from middle and upper class families. Little hard workers from poor families were forced to work almost equally with adults; they were deprived of childhood, and many of them died early, breaking under the yoke of unbearable worries and trials; girls were often sold to brothels. But they preferred not to notice the life of the “bottom”; wealthy people existed in another world.
All photographs were taken only with permission and in the presence of parents. In one of Carroll's letters to the mother of an eight-year-old girl, discussing plans to photograph the child, he insists that there must be no delay, since by next year Annie might already be "too old" to be photographed as "the daughter of Eve" (nude).
“It is a chance not to be lost, to get a few good attitudes of Annie's lovely form and face, as by next year she may (though I much hope won't) fancy herself too old to be a 'daughter of Eve. '"
It wasn't just Carroll who took photographs of naked children. Take a look, for example, at a photograph of little Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, the third son of Queen Victoria of Great Britain.
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connau by photographer Leonida Caldesi, 1857
Or another striking example. Perhaps the most famous photograph of Frank Sutcliffe, “The Water Rats,” was taken in 1886. It became so popular that the Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VII, ordered a large copy of this photograph for himself.
Water Rats by Frank Meadow Sutcliffe, 1886
Children were considered the embodiment of innocence, purity and beauty. But the period of childhood was short. From the age of 13, it was unacceptable for a girl to be alone with a man, wear short dresses and behave spontaneously; from the age of 15-16 she was considered an adult. Although it was possible to marry without parental consent only after reaching the age of 21, parents often gave consent to marriage or engagement much earlier, for example, Queen Victoria's eldest daughter was engaged at the age of fourteen.
It should be noted that in 1875, the age of sexual consent in Great Britain was raised to 13 years (hard to believe, but previously it was only 10-12 years old!), and after a series of sensational exposés about child prostitution, the age of consent was raised to 16 years. this only happened in 1885.
Therefore, it was important for the photographer to photograph children who had not yet entered puberty.
Portrait of Edith (left), Lorina (center) and Alice (right) Liddell, 1860
“Lewis Carroll was unbearable as a photographer, there was no sweetness with him, he was not aware of the end of the world he was causing in someone else’s house. He stopped at nothing, pursuing two goals: to get either a celebrity or lovely children.The photographs that have survived to this day certainly justify his zeal.
He tried through third parties to obtain permission to photograph Queen Victoria, but to no avail. He addressed the Prince of Wales personally, and the story about this leaves a sad aftertaste. The prince (the future Edward VII) had just returned from America and, like everyone else, was completing his education at Christ Church College. In December 1860, Queen Victoria unexpectedly visited the college, and in the evening a reception was held at the dean's. Carroll seemed to feel uncomfortable there: “I chose the moment to remind General Bruce of his promise to introduce me to the Prince, which he did as soon as there was a pause in the conversation between His Royal Highness and Mrs. Fellows. He graciously extended his hand to me, and I began by apologizing for my importunity about taking photographs. He commented on the weather not being favorable for this activity, and I asked if photographers had bothered him in America; he replied that they bothered him, but he did not really give in to them. I talked about a new American method in which you can take 12 thousand pictures per hour.
Alice, Ina, Harry & Edith Liddell, spring 1860
At that moment Edith Liddell passed by, and I noticed that you can make lovely compositions with children; he agreed with me, said that he had seen my photographs of children and he really liked them. Then I expressed my desire to get his autograph on a postcard with his portrait. He promised. Thinking it was time to end the conversation, I assured him that he would do me honor if he wished to receive copies of any of my photographs. He thanked me, and I walked away because I didn’t notice any desire on his part to continue the conversation.”
In November of the same year, he photographed the Crown Prince of Denmark and certified him (not without some vulnerability) as “undoubtedly a brighter representative of the monarchy than his relative,” the Prince of Wales: the memory of the refusal must still have tormented him. The following year, the queen’s own praise reached him in a roundabout way: “I received a letter from Mrs. Reed, in which was enclosed a note from Lady A. Stanley (the wife of the rector of Westminster Abbey) to Lady A. M. Dawson, where she says that she showed me photographs the queen and she was instructed to convey that “Her Majesty admires them.” Such photographs are in the taste of the Prince Consort and would give him great pleasure." **
Photography at that time was often inspired by painting. Carroll adored Gertrude Thompson’s drawings, he invited the artist to illustrate his book “Three Sunsets and Other Poems,” Thompson agreed and later even became a friend of the writer.
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 80
It must be said that Gertrude Thompson became famous for her images of fairies and little folk. It is illustrative to cite here some of her illustrations for Carroll's book in the context of the perception of child nudity in the Victorian era. It seems that the little people happily shared the happy privilege of the children, since these drawings did not shock anyone, on the contrary, they were touched and admired.
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 51
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 32
It is surprising that there was a surge of interest in the magical world in the 19th century - the century of the heyday of scientific knowledge and rationality, which we often associate with steampunk aesthetics. Yes, Victorians had a passion for fairies!
In 1922, Arthur Conan Doyle, the famous writer and certified physician, published the book “The Phenomenon of the Fairies”, here is an excerpt from this work: “There is a whole people who can be as numerous as the human race, which leads its own life and separated from us by some difference in vibrations."
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 46
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 40
The surge of interest gave rise to numerous images of the small people, which delighted Lewis Carroll. There are several known poems by the writer dedicated to magical creatures, the first of them, written by the 13-year-old author, depicts a very strict and forbidding fairy - My Fairy. An adult writer sent poetic greetings to his child friends on behalf of the fairies - Christmas-Greetings from a Fairy to a Child (Christmas greetings for a child from a fairy).
“When in London, Carroll often visited Gertrude Thomson in her studio, where she drew her “fairies” from life. Carroll also drew children who came to her; she corrected his drawings and explained things to him.
Soon Carroll invited her to come photograph “living fairies.” In her memoirs, written after Carroll's death, Gertrude talks about his spacious studio on the roof of the college, where there were costumes everywhere in which Carroll photographed the children (they loved these disguises). During frequent breaks, all the young models had a snack and listened to the fairy tales that he told them, and toys were taken out of the huge cabinet in the studio - clockwork wrestlers, rabbits, bears, etc. “We sat on the floor, Lewis Carroll, fairies, animals , I... How we had fun during these hours! How loudly his laughter rang out! And what wonderful nonsense he told! It was like entire pages from “Alice,” only much more delightful, because his voice and smile enchanted us all. I tried more than once to remember his stories and write them down. It was impossible - just as impossible as catching a flash of color on sunlit water or catching a passing rainbow. It was something mysterious, elusive, like an autumn cobweb, and to capture it in the words that we use would mean to deprive everything of life and grace, to completely destroy everything ... "
They saw each other often during these years and often worked together. Sometimes Carroll would bring his camera equipment to Gertrude's studio and photograph the children while she painted them. Sometimes Gertrude came to Oxford and spent the day there; he took photographs, she sketched his young friends for him. ***
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 70
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 84
“Well, secondly, the following question arises: when is the best time to see fairies and other magical folk? I, perhaps, can answer this question for you.
The first rule here is this: the day must be very hot - there’s no point in arguing about that; and you should be slightly sleepy - but not too much, so don’t forget that your eyes shouldn’t close. And, of course, you should be in an “otherworldly” mood - the Scots call such a mood “ghostly”, or even “otherworldly” - maybe this sounds better; Well, if you don’t know what this means, I’m unlikely to be able to explain it to you, wait until you see the fairy, then you’ll understand.”
It seems that a large part of Victorian society shared the idea expressed in the quote by D.M. Barry: “Every time you say you don”t believe in fairies, a fairy dies” - As soon as someone says: “Nonsense, there are no fairies,” one of them immediately falls dead.
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 65
Lewis Carroll, "Three Sunsets, and other poems ... With twelve fairy-fancies by E. Gertrude Thomson", London, 1898, page 76
Carroll's tender feelings for Alice Liddell waned after the publication of the book, it degenerated into reserved politeness. "Through the Looking Glass" already had a different Alice - Alice Theodora Raikes, at that time she was eight years old. She later recalled:
“One day, hearing my name, he called me over and said: “So you are Alice too. This is very good. Come to me, I’ll show you something very mysterious.” We went with him to a house with the same door to the garden as ours and ended up in a room filled with furniture, with a tall mirror in the corner. “Come on,” he said, handing me an orange, “in which hand are you holding it?” “On the right,” I answered. “Now,” he continued, “go to that mirror and tell me in which hand the girl you see there is holding the orange.” After some thought, I answered: “On the left.” “Right,” he said, “how do you explain it?” I couldn’t explain, but something had to be said, and I decided: “If I were on the other side of the mirror, then, probably, the orange would be in my right hand again, right?” I remember he laughed: “Well done, Alice.” Your answer is the best so far"
We didn't talk about it anymore; However, several years later I learned that, according to him, this conversation gave him the idea of “Through the Looking Glass,” a copy of which he sent me at one time along with his other books.” **
And "The Hunting of the Snark" was inspired by his friendship with the "little barefoot girl" Gertrude Chattaway.
Gertrude Chataway about 9 years old, photographed by Lewis Carroll
In December 1891, fifty-nine-year-old Carroll wrote in his diary: “Since Mrs. Hargreaves, the first “Alice,” is now visiting her father, I invited her to tea. She couldn’t make it, but she did me the honor of stopping by briefly during the day with Rhoda.” And a completely different tone in a letter to Gertrude, a few days later:
“My dear old friend! (Friendship is old, but a child never grows old.) I wish you a happy New Year and much, much happiness in the future to you and your loved ones. However, first of all - to you: I know you better and love you more. I pray for your happiness, dear child, on this joyful New Year and for many years to come.” **
It turns out that little Alice Liddell was the first lucky enough to become Carroll’s child-friend; she and the other girls simply embodied the ideal image of a “child friend.” This was also served by the ideal image of “Alice”, which the writer tried to capture in his photographs - a thoughtful look, slightly curly hair from light brown to chestnut shade below the shoulders, age up to nine years.
This is especially noticeable in photographs colored according to the clear instructions of the author.
Beatrice Hatch, 30 July 1873
Photograph taken by Lewis Carroll, then colored by Anne Lydia Bond on Carroll's instructions
Henderson Annie and Frances, July 1879
Photograph taken by Lewis Carroll, then colored on Carroll's instructions
The question is: how to achieve the perfect photo?
Carroll: "Just put Xie Kitchin in front of the lens."
"The Prettiest Doll in the World", Alexandra "Xie" Rhoda Kitchin by Lewis Carroll July 5, 1870
Carroll described his heroine in the article “Alice on the Stage” (“The Theatre”, April, 1887):
“What were you, Alice, in the eyes of your adoptive father? How should he describe you? Loving first of all; loving and tender - loving like a dog (forgive the prosaic comparison, but I don’t know any other love that would be as pure and beautiful), and tender as a doe; and then courteous - courteous towards everyone, whether high or low, majestic or funny, King or Caterpillar, as if she herself were a royal daughter, and her dress was pure gold; and also trusting, ready to accept all the most incredible things with that conviction that is familiar only to dreamers; and finally, inquisitive - inquisitive to the extreme, with that taste for Life that is available only to a happy childhood, when everything is new and good, and Sin and Sadness are just words - empty words that mean nothing!
It seems that the writer was sure that children (especially girls) live in a special, wonderful world, but they inevitably grow up and leave Wonderland. Carroll himself managed to avoid this.
P.S. Unfortunately, Gertrude Thompson's fairy illustrations do not excite me. If you want to see images of the wonderful people, I recommend the following posts.
"" (distributor - BVSPR company). We invite you to take a closer look at such characters in the film as the Red Queen (role), Knave of Hearts (Crispin Glover), Sonya the Mouse (in the original version of the film - the voice of Barbara Windsor), the White Rabbit (voice) and the Caterpillar (voice).
Iracebetha, the RED QUEEN() – the tyrannical ruler of the Dungeon. This hot-tempered creature, with a disproportionately large head and a manic desire to cut off the heads of his subjects, keeps the entire kingdom in fear. “She’s not all right mentally,” says Bonham Carter. - She breaks down over the smallest trifles. Annoyed like a two-year-old.” Her younger sister, the White Queen, claims the crown that Iracebeth once stole from her.
ILOSOVICH STEIN, JACK OF HEARTS(Crispin Glover) - Warlord of the Red Queen. A giant (2m 30cm tall) with a scarred face and a heart-shaped patch over his left eye. An insidious and arrogant character, always ready to carry out any order of the Red Queen. Only he can calm her down and pacify the attacks of royal rage. “I am responsible for order under the Red Queen,” says Glover. “The Red Queen reacts very violently to other people’s actions, and my character has to be more diplomatic.” But in the dark corridors of the castle hides its dark side.
MACTWISP, WHITE RABBIT(voice) - always late, always in a hurry, always rushing headlong somewhere. He is tasked with finding Alice and returning her to the Dungeon, where she will fulfill what is destined for her. He shows up at Alice's reception and tries to lure her down the rabbit hole. “He’s a nice character,” says Shin, “but at the same time he can be strict with Alice – all because of his nerves, of course. He is constantly on pins and needles, he doesn’t have enough time for anything. Time is vital for him, but at the right moment he can show remarkable courage.”
MOUSE-SONYA(voice of Barbara Windsor) - a desperate mouse in breeches who lives in the Underground. She refuses to believe that the White Rabbit has found the right Alice - the one who can return the Dungeon to its former glory - and is only too happy to poke Alice with a pin when she assures herself that she is only dreaming. But in difficult times, when Alice is threatened by the clawed Bandersnatch, the daring mouse immediately comes to the rescue. She is recklessly loyal to the Hatter and is always willing to sacrifice her life for him.
ABSOLUTE, CATERPILLAR(voice) - the all-knowing and unquestioning keeper of the Oracle, an ancient document in which all the important events in the history of the Dungeon are recorded, past and future. The White Rabbit, Tweedledee and Tweedledum take Alice to Absolem so that he can make sure whether this is the same Alice who ended up in the Dungeon as a child and who is destined to save them. They encounter a plump blue caterpillar on a mushroom cap, in a cloud of tobacco smoke. Absolem helps Alice better understand herself, forcing her to answer the difficult question: “Who are you?”
The life of a modern person is such that he is constantly running somewhere, worrying about something and wanting to do something as quickly as possible. But he completely forgets about miracles. But there are people who notice them, love them, and they certainly happen to them! The girl Alice is a living example of this.
There is probably no other kinder, more fascinating and instructive story than Alice in Wonderland. Let's tell you how a curious girl became convinced that Wonderland existed, and heroically helped its good inhabitants defeat the evil Queen.
We will tell a short plot of the fairy tale "Alice in Wonderland". The characters will also not be left out of attention.
Lewis Carroll - the one who invented Wonderland
A mathematician and a man with a unique imagination is the Englishman Lewis Carroll. "Alice in Wonderland" is not his only work. Soon he wrote a continuation of the adventures - “Alice Through the Looking Glass”.
“The Logic Game” and “Mathematical Curiosities” are Carroll’s books generated by his second calling - the profession of a mathematician.
Was Alice a real girl?
It is known that the fairy-tale Alice had a prototype in real life. She was quite a pretty and funny girl, and her name was the same as the main character.
It was Alice Liddell, the daughter of one of Carroll's friends, who gave the writer the idea for his main work. The girl was so sweet and capable that Carroll decided to make her the heroine of a fairy tale.
Alice Liddell lived a happy and long life: she gave birth to three sons and died at the age of 82.
In general, Lewis Carroll was distinguished by his funny attitude towards women: he called (considered) them girls until he was 30 years old. However, there is some truth in his words... Scientists have long noticed that there is a category of girls that matures very slowly (at 25, such people look 16 years old).
The plot of the fairy tale. How did the main character get to Wonderland?
Alice was sitting with her sister on the bank of the river. She was bored, frankly speaking. But then a cheerful rabbit ran nearby with a clock in its paws.
The curious girl ran after him... The rabbit was not at all simple - he carried her into the hole, which turned out to be quite deep - Alice flew for too long. She landed in a hall with many locked doors.
Alice was faced with the task of getting out of the room. She dares to eat height-altering items. First Alice turns into a giant, then into a little one.
And finally, almost drowning in her own tears (the author very epically shows the absurdity of a woman’s cry), she climbs out through a small door. A bottomless Wonderland stretches out before Alice...
The Mad Tea Party and the finale
Next, the girl meets interesting characters with whom she has to have tea. On the way, Alice sees the Caterpillar. She advises her to eat mushrooms in order to regain her normal height. Alice follows her advice (even this can’t be done in a dream): after various metamorphoses, normal growth returns to the girl.
During the Mad Tea Party, Alice learns about the evil Queen she must defeat. This happens to the accompaniment of the Hatter's arguments about the nature of time.
Characters from the book "Alice in Wonderland"
Many interesting creatures inhabited Wonderland, let's give a brief description of them:
- The non-growing girl Alice - a separate chapter of our article is dedicated to her.
- The Mad Hatter is one of the participants in the Mad Tea Party and Alice's friend.
- The Cheshire Cat is a magical animal with a charming smile.
- Queen of Hearts - obviously
- The White Rabbit is a positive hero who gave news to Alice about the misfortune that happened in Wonderland.
- The March Hare is a participant in the Mad Tea Party. Carroll gave him the epithet crazy: he lives in a house where all the furnishings are shaped like a hare's head.
- Sonya the Mouse is another participant in the Mad Tea Party. It is distinguished by its ability to suddenly fall asleep and wake up. During his next rise, he gives out some interesting phrase. For example: “I breathe when I sleep” is the same as “I sleep when I breathe!”
- The Blue Caterpillar is a wise character from Wonderland. Asks Alice difficult questions; tells how you can change the size of your body by biting into a mushroom from different sides.
- The Duchess is an ambiguous rather boring young lady who participated in the Royal Croquet tournament.
The first four characters are the main characters from the fairy tale “Alice in Wonderland”. These heroes will be examined in detail.
The ungrown girl Alice
“This strange girl just loved to split herself into two, becoming two girls at the same time.”
Without the main character, the fairy tale “Alice in Wonderland” is unthinkable. The characters are masterfully created, but some still become forgettable over time. It is impossible to forget Alice, she is so unusual and intellectually developed for her age. What is she like, this girl?
The book itself says nothing about Alice's appearance. An illustrator who draws pictures for a children's fairy tale gave the girl blond hair. Carroll, in his drafts, endowed the heroine with a beautiful head of brown hair, the same as that of the aforementioned Alice Liddell. In all other respects, the main character was just a nice child. But with personality traits everything is much more interesting.
Alice is an eternal dreamer. She is never bored: she will always invent a game or entertainment for herself. At the same time, the main character is extremely polite to everyone, regardless of the person’s origin and personal qualities. Well, she is moderately naive - this is due to her young age and dreaminess.
Another integral feature of Alice is curiosity. It is thanks to him that she gets into all sorts of troubles and adventures. In the team she plays the role of an observer: she definitely needs to see how the matter ends. But if she becomes interested, she will go to the end to satisfy her curiosity. And he will get out of any situation unharmed, thanks to his inexhaustible ingenuity.
Alice's friend is the Mad Hatter (Hatter)
“Nowadays everyone travels by rail, but hat transportation is much more reliable and pleasant.”
He is one of the key characters in the fairy tale.
The Hatter and Alice became friends. In Wonderland, the heroes are very different, but the gallant Hatter is one of a kind. This slender young man has a great eye for hats. Expertly makes wigs for every taste.
He delivered Alice to the Queen's palace in his wonderful hat (of course, the main character did not have any problems with reducing her height).
Cheshire Cat
Carroll turned out to be resourceful. "Alice in Wonderland" is full of various fairy-tale characters, but this hero has a special charm.
The fairy tale would not be so funny if it were not for the Cat. Alice in Wonderland interacts with this character and finds him to be a very intelligent animal.
It is notable for its ability to move in space - to suddenly disappear and appear. At the same time, the Cat himself disappears, but his amazing smile continues to float in the air. When Alice began to be “stupid,” the character annoyed her with philosophical arguments.
In the 2010 film, the Cat confirmed that he is a positive character: he helped avoid the execution of the Hatter.
Queen of Hearts
“Cut off the head” or “Head off the shoulders” are the sorceress’s favorite phrases.
An obvious anti-hero or just a witch (as she was called in the film) is the Queen of Hearts. Alice appeared in Wonderland for a reason, but with the goal of defeating the evil sorceress and restoring justice.
The Queen is a very powerful and cruel woman: she mocks the cute creatures of Wonderland. Believes he has the right to carry out mass executions. Also commands cards and the monstrous Jabberwock. Feeds on people's positive emotions. But she is powerless against the smart and inventive Alice.
The plot of the 2010 film
We will look at the film adaptation of Tim Burton's fairy tale, which took place 4 years ago. The film turned out to be successful, so we recommend watching it.
Alice is initially shown as a little girl who is tormented by the same nightmare. She comes to her dad, he loves her very much and calms her down, saying the phrase “Mad men are smarter than everyone else.”
Next, the main character is shown as an adult 19-year-old girl. She has to marry a man whom she does not love, moreover, he is boring to her to the point of nausea. But then a funny White Rabbit appears on the horizon, waving at Alice for a watch. Of course, the girl runs after him, falls into a hole and ends up in Wonderland...
Various events happen to the main character, quite similar to the plot of the fairy tale. We will not describe them verbatim (if anything, there is a film) and will immediately move on to describing the roles.
Film "Alice in Wonderland", characters
- Alice - Mia Wasikowska. The actress became world famous after playing the role of the main character. She fit into the image one hundred percent.
- Mad Hatter - Johnny Depp. Made up, gallant and extravagant - this is how we know the Hatter. At the end of the film, the actor masterfully dances the Jig-Dryga.
- Red (Red, Evil) Queen - Helena Carter. This actress is great at playing negative roles.
- The White Queen - Anne Hathaway. Kind, thoughtful, affectionate, knows how to prepare various medicinal potions.
Much more than just a children's story
Almost every line of the book has a double meaning associated with mathematics and metaphysics. The Hatter indulges in philosophical discussions about the nature of time during the Mad Tea Party. There is an example of verbal recursion when Alice dreams of chess, and the black king (from the game) dreams of the main character.
“Alice in Wonderland” is a most interesting fairy tale that does not allow us to forget that miracles happen in this world. She is loved not only by children, but also by adults, because she is filled with kindness, subtle humor and optimism. Its characters are also charming. “Alice in Wonderland” (photos of the main characters are in the article) remain in the memory for many years.
Alice in Wonderland, the main characters of Lewis Carroll's fairy tale, are internationally popular.
"Alice in Wonderland" main characters
Alice
Alice is the main character of the fairy tale, who is about seven years old. It is believed that the prototype of the protagonist's image was the author's friend, Alice Pleasence Liddell, although Dodgson himself mentioned several times that the image of his “little heroine” was not based on a real child and was completely fictional. In the novel, Alice appears as a schoolgirl with a bizarrely logical mindset, whose straight hair “always gets into her eyes.”
White Rabbit
White Rabbit White Rabbit) is a talking animal with pink eyes, dressed in a vest and kid gloves. He carries a watch in his pocket and lives in a “clean house” with the inscription: “B. Rabbit". In the first chapters, the Rabbit is late for somewhere, in the fourth he tries to get into his house, and in the finale of the work he accompanies the royal couple and acts as a herald. The author notes that the Rabbit was created to contrast with the main character. In contrast to her “youth,” “purposefulness,” “courage,” and “strength,” it corresponds to such traits as “advanced age,” “fearfulness,” “dementia,” and “nervous fussiness.”
Dodo
Dodo (English) Dodo) is a bird that Alice discovers on the shore next to the Sea of Tears. Ed the Eaglet notes that Dodo speaks “not like a human being”: his speech is overloaded with scientific terms. He suits Running in circles, after which he announces the winners of everyone who participated in the race. As a result, Alice has to give everyone a candied fruit, and she herself has to receive her own thimble from Dodo. The Dodo bird is a reflection of Carroll himself. When the writer stuttered, he pronounced his name as "Do-Do-Dodgson."
Caterpillar
Caterpillar Caterpillar) is a blue insect, three inches tall, found in chapters 4 and 5. He sits on a porcini mushroom and smokes a hookah. The Caterpillar's advice that one should always control oneself expressively parodies the main technique of moralizing literature for children of the early 19th century.
Cheshire Cat
Cheshire Cat (English) Cheshire Cat) - Duchess's cat who smiles often. The character looks good-natured, but he has many teeth and long claws. Alice affectionately called him Cheshik and considered him her friend. The cat himself thinks that he is out of his mind, because (unlike dogs) he grumbles when he is happy and wags his tail when he is angry. He knows how to disappear - both completely and partially - leaving only a smile or a head.
Duchess
Duchess Duchess) - first mentioned in the second chapter by Rabbit. In chapter six, she rocks a baby, which she later hands over to Alice. Her cook, having prepared the soup, begins to throw everything she can get her hands on at the Duchess. While playing croquet, Alice learns from the Rabbit that the Queen has sentenced the Duchess to death for slapping her. Subsequently, the Queen relented and did not demand that the sentence be carried out. The character has a pointed chin, and Alice herself considers her “very ugly.”
Hatter
Hatter Mad Hatter, lit. "Mad Hatter") - hatmaker, one of the participants in the Mad Tea Party. When meeting Alice, he behaves tactlessly, so the main character asks him “not to get personal.” He asks her riddles and periodically tries to wake up Dormouse. In the words of the Cheshire Cat, Hatter is “out of his mind.” In addition to the fact that the character constantly drinks tea, he sells hats and sings songs at a concert. At the trial, he became the first witness, describing himself as a "little man" who was as round as his hats.
March Hare
March hare March Hare) is a crazy hare whom Alice meets at the Mad Tea Party. He offers the little girl a drink of wine and believes that you should always say what you think. The character was also present at the trial of the Knave of Hearts, where he denied everything.
Sonya
Sonya (English) Dormouse) - Sonya, participant of the mad Tea Party. Most of the time he sleeps; Hatter and Hare use it as a pillow. Sometimes in his sleep he starts to sing, then they pinch his sides to make him stop. During the court hearing, Sonya reprimands Alice for growing too fast.
Griffin
Griffin (English) Gryphon) - a mythical creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. The character first appears in Chapter 9, in which he accompanies Alice, and for the last time at the trial. During conversations, he periodically coughs. Griffin, by his own admission, received a “classical education” - he played hopscotch with his teacher all day long.
Turtle Quasi
Quasi Turtle Mock-Turtle) - a turtle with a calf's head, tail, large eyes and hooves on its hind legs. Kwazii said that he was once a real Turtle and went to a school at the bottom of the sea, where he learned French, music, arithmetic, dirty writing and other sciences. Throughout Chapter 10, Kwazii talks about a sea quadrille with lobsters and sings songs. The Queen reveals that it is from this character that the quasi-turtle soup is prepared. This dish, which is usually made with veal, is an imitation of real green sea turtle soup. In the fairy tale, the character constantly cries. This is justified from a biological point of view. Sea turtles do often shed tears - this is how they remove salt from their bodies.
Queen of Hearts
Queen of Hearts Queen of Hearts) - in the fairy tale appears as a cruel antagonist who, with a certain periodicity, tries to cut off the heads of many other characters. She is often in an irritated or furious state. Has a loud, shrill voice. Alice has an antipathy towards the Queen. In the article “Alice on Stage,” Carroll imagined the Queen of Hearts as the embodiment of unbridled passion, absurd and senseless rage. Gardner stated that the royal execution orders outraged many children's literature specialists, who believed that fairy tales should not contain any violence. He ironically noted that a normal child is amused by these scenes and such books should not be given only to adults who have undergone a course of psychoanalysis.
