Carroll, Lewis, was the pen name of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), an English author. Carroll wrote two of the most famous books in English literature—Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and its continuation, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There. People throughout the world read these books. Alice in Wonderland, as the first book is usually called, has been translated into dozens of languages, including Arabic and Chinese.
Carroll wrote both books to give pleasure to children. But adults also enjoy the humor, fantastic characters, and adventures in the stories. Scholars study the books to find meanings in what seems to be nonsense.
Life.
Carroll was born in Daresbury, in northwest England, on Jan. 27, 1832. He graduated from the Christ Church, Oxford University, in 1854. Carroll began teaching mathematics at Christ Church in 1855 and spent most of his life at the school. He became a deacon (officer) in the Church of England in 1861. He died on Jan. 14, 1898.
The Alice books.
Carroll enjoyed being with children. He created the character of Alice to amuse a little girl named Alice Liddell, the daughter of the dean of Christ Church. On July 4, 1862, Carroll went rowing on the River Isis with Alice Liddell and two of her sisters. He began to tell the story of Alice that day. Later, he wrote the story down, and called it “Alice’s Adventures Underground.” Carroll enlarged the story into its present book-length version, which was published in 1865.
Alice in Wonderland
tells about the adventures of a little girl in a make-believe world under the ground. Alice lands in this “wonderland” after she falls down a hole while following a rabbit. She meets many strange characters, including the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and the Mock Turtle. Alice in Wonderland became so well known that the names of some of its characters are part of everyday speech. For example, we hear about people who “grin like a Cheshire Cat” or who are as “mad as a March Hare.”
Through the Looking-Glass
(1872) introduced new characters, including the frightening Jabberwock dragon, the silly twins Tweedledum and Tweedledee, and the Walrus and the Carpenter. Sir John Tenniel illustrated both books. His pictures became nearly as famous as the story. See Tenniel, Sir John.
Loading the player...Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll
Other works.
Carroll also wrote Sylvie and Bruno, a fairy tale in verse and prose (two parts, 1889 and 1893). The poem “The Hunting of the Snark” (1876) tells the story of the Banker, Baker, Beaver, Bellman, and other amusing characters in search of a Snark, an animal that does not exist. Carroll wrote many works on mathematics under his real name. They include “Notes on the First Two Books of Euclid” (1860) and Curiosa Mathematica (two parts, 1888 and 1894). Carroll also was a fine photographer.
See also Alice in Wonderland; Jabberwocky.
