Grow Up Alice: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass Read as a Bildungsroman
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Authors
White, Asia
Issue Date
2021-11
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Academic theses , Alice (Fictitious character from Carroll) , Alice's adventures in Wonderland (Carroll, Lewis) , Bildungsromans , Through the looking-glass (Carroll, Lewis)
Alternative Title
Abstract
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871) have been continuously read and analyzed since their publications. Critics have done a considerable amount of research on the novels, yet that research has not fully recognized the growth of Alice as a Bildungsroman over the course of both novels. Critics have emphasized Carroll's ability to satirize the era, Alice's contribution to feminism, and a plethora of other critical analysis; yet very little emphasis has been put on the development of Alice through the course of the novels. Some critics have mentioned Alice's identity development, or the lack thereof, which fails to fully accept the Alice novels as a Bildungsroman due to her young age. However, Alice's development throughout both novels, while including identity development, also includes social skills, self-confidence, and a plethora of other defining traits that make these novels interesting candidates for a Bildungsroman. In three chapters, this paper explicitly identifies the characteristics of Bildungsroman used to analyze Alice, followed by an analysis of her development in both imaginary worlds of Wonderland and Looking-Glass.
Keywords: Bildungsroman, Alice, Wonderland, Looking-Glass, Coming of age
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This dissertation is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law 94-553, revised in 1976). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgement. Use of the materials for financial gain with the author's expressed written permissions is not allowed.