Moral Lessons in Alice in Wonderland

The renowned William Shakespeare had written over thirty seven plays, similarly, Walt Disney has created more than fifty-six films. Both films and plays are different types of written work; one employs visuals to entertain the audience, and the other puts to use words to keep the readers engaged. Students are given the opportunity to attend school and invest in education as well as plan ahead for a bright future. Not only do pupils benefit from reading various types of literature, their writing is significantly affected as well. After all, people like William Shakespeare, Stephen King, Leo Tolstoy, Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Dickens, and many other famous writers, had to learn how to read in order to be labelled as passionate writers during their era (and modern times).

In his reputable book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (commonly known as author Lewis Carroll) expertly utilized the protagonist (Alice) to display the huge impact literature has on its viewers. Many forms of literary text include-but are not limited to-fiction, film, drama and poetry; the power of written work is more evident today, as seen in the increase of the number of highschool graduates attending postsecondary. Many of the improvements and upgrades in society can be credited to literature.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland starts off with a naive little girl sitting with her sister when she encounters an extraordinary sight. Rather than sticking to the traditional male protagonist, Lewis Carroll uses a bright female girl as the main character to teach unforgettable lessons and depict the valuability of literature. Embracing what creative writing has done for mankind many years ago, and what it is still accomplishing, it is easy for one to confirm the benefits of living in a learned environment. Lewis Carroll’s book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, changes perception and one’s view on certain ideas, teaches the audience useful morals and connects the reader to the world at large. The first few chapters of Lewis’ novel introduces the protagonist, Alice, sitting beside her sister close to the river bank when she stumbles across a strange sight: a white rabbit with pink eyes is seen talking to himself “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!”. After impulsively following the white rabbit down the deep hole, Alice encounters a series of strange events that require her patience and knowledge. Curiosity does not kill the main character, but only makes her stronger as she develops over the plot of the story, confidently embraces the rather odd environment and befriends many weird creatures.

Many opportunities arise, as literature opens the mind and perception of people to see clearly and differently. While Alice plummeted down the very deep hole full of cabinets and closets with items in them, she assumed that things were quite odd. However, it did not take long before she quickly adapted to her situation. Paragraph eight of chapter one states, “For, you see, so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible.” All odds were against Alice’s return home. After a few experiences in the room with the glass table, Alice has already opened her mind to her circumstance and the fact that anything was possible. The extraordinary was considered the norm in this strange place that Alice found herself in. Although things were different from what Alice was used to, she was still able to adapt to her situation. In comparison, many are faced with troublesome situations or tiring conditions. Written text allow its audience to escape their current situation and learn how to deal with an overprotective father, battle evil forces from another planet or lead a group of hopeless teenagers from a dire situation.

As depicted above, literary texts have the power to change our situation and take us to different places. Authors, directors, poets and many others can use various media to captivate their viewer's attention and take them from one country to another, hop from planet to planet and even experience different universes. Alice was so distraught that even her identity became a question: “‘Dear, dear! How queer everything is to-day! And yesterday things went on just as usual. I wonder if I've been changed during the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I'm not the same, the next question is, who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle!’”. Being a young gullible girl, Alice acted on instinct and followed the white rabbit. In life, this white rabbit symbolizes curiosity and the willingness to adapt to change; after all, Alice stood up to what she brought on herself. Many forms of literature do not only come in written text; drama, poetry, film and all sorts are displayed all over the media to swiftly reach spectators. They are ways for the author (or whosoever, fabricated the product) to bring recognition to the public eye; awareness of recurring thoughts and experiences in a different manner. Lewis Carroll taught some life lessons through the main character; don’t just dream the impossible-make it happen, people are different everyday, make the best of today, when one falls down, always get back up. The list goes on and on, all the lessons in the novel were taught by the female protagonist. Similar to Alice, literature contains useful and important messages in its context that many can learn from. Learning does not necessarily have to take place at school with an adult at the front of the class writing on the board.

Books are a great way and primary example of learning; they not only improve one’s understanding, but are a great tool in learning how to read and write. During her trip in Wonderland, Alice not only had to learn how to thrive in her circumstance, she was also required to communicate to strange characters for information. The talking rabbit was the first, but definitely not the last. In the room surrounded by closed doors, Alice did not know how to deal with the talking mice or other animals who could verbally express themselves. After encountering strange creatures, Alice does not find it hard to freely express herself towards the queen, who everyone seems to be afraid of. She is not scared of the threats made by the Queen of Hearts to behead her, rather, Alice stands up for herself and makes it known to everyone that she is not to be trifled with. Knowing is beautiful; it gives the hopeless a chance in the future and opens a way for the less privileged. Literature impacts the society in a way that benefits everyone; children are exposed to the written word at a young age and when grown up, they have the power to change laws and impact their community positively.

In comparison to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, this society does not offer many opportunities as Alice had in Wonderland; “‘Come, there's half my plan done now! How puzzling all these changes are! I'm never sure what I'm going to be, from one minute to another! However, I've got back to my right size: the next thing is, to get into that beautiful garden — how is that to be done, I wonder?’”. Here Alice is about to meet the frog footman and has to nibble some mushroom to reduce her height. After expertly maneuvering her stature, she ponders on how bizarre the changes are, but it is pretty obvious how well informed she is from her first entry into Wonderland. All together, many have the opportunity to learn from the experiences and situations penned by famous authors, directors, script writers and poets. Which is why the book is used as a great tool for informing the ignorant. It is not only individuals that benefit from literary texts. Many communities and societies have upgraded and improved after many years of uncovering the truth and power hidden in the context of literature. Both fiction and nonfiction literary works are reflected in the author’s word; which is sometimes used to mirror what is going on in reality.

Although the characters are fictional, the ideas, themes, morals and plot of the story is similar to what is seen in everyday lives. The society is able to broadcast the issues and event going on through different media. It is not only news that carry the world disasters or celebrations around; various forms of literature have the capability to shine light on some issues of this world. In many historical books, films, movies, and poems, authors bring awareness to some of the problems faced during a specific era. Lewis Carroll created this 1865 novel (that was later translated into movies all over the world) so he could teach his lessons to younger kids-and adults, as well as prevent further mistakes from viewers. Alice is a young girl who knows the world for what her teachers and parents tell her. When she is trapped in an unknown world, there is no mention of a knight or prince who is deemed to rescue her. Yet, the protagonist is seen as independent, courageous and develops initiative throughout the plot of the story. Alice was willing to come out of her comfort zone and explore a place unusual to her, although young, she is rather blunt and is not afraid to give her own-sometimes unsolicited-advice. Loopholes are opened for people all over the world to link with the past, make current connections and take a glimpse of the future.

Literature is used to show the relationship between people of today, and those who preceded them. Among all the lessons learnt in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the most recurrent moral is the fact that no one is the same as they were yesterday. When pondering on how she came about her circumstances, Alice came to the conclusion that she was certainly different from yesterday. Similarly, mankind’s thinking patterns are still displayed from one time period to another. In addition to this, social norms that were prevalent in the past have been slightly altered but are another recurrent sign of the foundation of this world; that we are all linked in one way or another. With all this in mind, it is unsophiscated to say that Lewis Carroll's Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, is not the ideal example of the great impact literature has on its viewers. With great examples, idealistic concept and moral lessons, the author applied many elements to enrich readers as well as promote confidence amongst women. Throughout the story, there is no mention of some honorable male; no prince charming or knight is spoken of. What makes Alice brave and courageous is the fact that she is a young girl who is able to find her way out of wonderland without the help of a man. This solidifies the point that women are strong, nevertheless, it was a custom for females to be at the background while the men had the limelight focused on them. Lewis Carroll spoke volumes with this novel by reaching out to young girls (and females in general). Alongside the importance of written work, the discernible information found in the contents of this novel are very much justifiable. Literature alone holds the power to create fantasies, stimulate imagination and creativity, teach its spectators, connect the world to individuals and give authorized access to deep secrets. Thus, one can truly say that without literature how far would the world have gotten?