'Alice in Wonderland' and the Victorian Age. A Portrayal of the Female Characters in Lewis Carroll's Novel

Seminar paper from the year 2021 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Literature, grade: 1,3, University of Education Ludwigsburg, language: English, abstract: In recent times, 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' became known through the film adaptation by Tim Burton. However, the following work revolves around the original, the novel published by Lewis Carroll in 1856. This period is known as the Victorian age, during which Queen Victoria reigned and expanded Britain's sphere of power. Various influences and numerous inventions changed people's lives. A keyword in this regard is the Industrial Revolution, the foundations of which were laid several decades earlier but came to full realization in the nineteenth century. These achievements transformed British society in a way that had never happened before. People increasingly moved to the cities, and new professions developed. The situation of children also changed because until then, they were seen more as miniature adults who had no needs or desires. What Rousseau had initiated decades earlier was now being implemented in the Victorian era: children were granted a world of their own. Although one cannot compare this understanding with the view of childhood today, it nevertheless represented progress for adolescents of Victorian Britain. In this time of change, Lewis Carroll wrote his fairytale-like children's novel, in which a Victorian girl named Alice dives into a dream world and experiences all kinds of adventures. Throughout the story, she faces many characters and creatures that are still strongly reminiscent of the patriarchal system of that time. This process is significant since, during that period, the understanding of childhood evolved, and the role of girls, in particular, started to transform. This term paper deals with the expectations placed on women and girls in the Victorian era and examines how female characters behave in the novel. The question to be addressed is: How does Lewis Carroll portray the female characters, especially Alice, in his novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and to what extent are these literary figures shaped by the Victorian age?