Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
and Through the Looking-Glass
Discussion and Test Questions
Mrs. Wiley’s English IV & Accelerated English IV
Alice’s Adventuresin Wonderland
(9) Why didn’t Alice find her sister’s book interesting? (no pictures or conversations)
(10) When Alice goes down into the rabbit hole without thinking of how she’ll exit, this is an example of what? (foreshadowing)
(11) Who is Dinah? (Alice’s cat)
(13) “For you see, so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think very few things indeed were really impossible.” Do children typically believe in impossibilities?
(28-29) Notice the play on words with homophones- tail/tale, not/knot (purpose/porpoise 90-91, horse/hoarse and would/wood in Through the Looking-Glass)
(29) Is the mouse easily offended, as Alice believes or is she offensive? Remember, the birds end up leaving, too.
(31) How does Alice respond when the white rabbit mistakes her for Mary Ann? Why doesn’t she clarify the situation? What might this reveal about her personality, self-esteem, and identity?
(31-32) Alice recalls the interesting and “curious” day that she has had, and she remarks that she never believed in fairy tales, but now thinks that one should be written about her. How does that conflict with the characteristics and personality traits displayed by Alice up to this point?
(36) In Wonderland, cakes and candies make Alice grow smaller. The author remarks that cakes and candies usually keep one the same size. How are these two things ironic when considered in real life?
(40) What does the caterpillar ask Alice repeatedly? What is the significance of this question? Why does Alice have such difficulty defining herself? (Remember how much you struggled with the journal prompt asking you to describe yourself from someone else’s perspective.)
(46) When the caterpillar leaves Alice, he tells her that one side of the mushroom will make her grow smaller and the other will make her grow larger. However, he gives her no indication as to which is which. What kind of conundrum does this present for Alice? How does she respond? What are your opinions on the way she handled the situation? Would you have reacted differently? If so, how?
(48)The bird in the trees that is accusing Alice of being a serpent tells her that if girls eat eggs like serpents do, then girls are a kind of serpent. Is that a fair or accurate judgment for her to make? Consider this as it would relate to your own life, by pondering the adage, “You are who you hang out with.” Is that true in your particular case? Is it fair to reach that conclusion in every case? (In one of the most widely read literary works in history, Jesus hung out with liars, thieves, and whores, but became none of these things.)
(52) Alice claims that it is really dreadful that all of the creatures argue in Wonderland. Is it fair of Alice to make that generalization? Have all of the creatures argued with her? Do they really argue, or do they question Alice on her opinions, statements, and beliefs?
(55) The duchess’s male baby turns into a pig as Alice is caring for it, what statement is being made about little boys here? (they are dirty and pig-like) (The author didn’t like boys)
(56-57) The discourse that takes place between Alice and the Cheshire Cat is the most famous in the book, and one of the most famous in all of literature. The Cheshire Cat is often regarded as the “deepest” character in the story. What evidence from their conversation could be used to support this claim? What is so poignant about his statements?
(60) Why is a raven like a writing desk? (Both are used by Poe and included in Poe’s poem, “The Raven.”)
(61) The March Hare scolds Alice, saying, “Then you should say what you mean.” Alice responds, “I do, at least—at least I mean what I say—that’s the same thing, you know.” The Mad Hatter disagrees with Alice, saying that it is not the same thing at all. Who is correct, Alice or the Mad Hatter? Explain your reasoning.
(65) The Mad Hatter tells Alice that she can’t take less than nothing, but it’s very easy to take more than nothing. What is the significance of this statement?
(67) When Alice says, “I don’t think…” the Mad Hatter responds that she shouldn’t talk if she doesn’t think. She becomes very offended at this. Is she justified, or is the mad hatter right?
(Throughout) Alice describes everything in Wonderland as being curious. What is this an example of? (personification)
(70) In Wonderland, a deck of cards is used to represent a number of characters surrounding the queen. The spades serve as gardeners, the hearts are the queen’s family, the clubs were soldiers, and the diamonds were the courtiers (upper class.) Explain why each of these cards is an accurate representation of the character it represents. (spade-shovel-gardener, club-weapon-soldier, diamond-wealth/luxury-courtiers/upper class, hearts-love-family)
(71-72) When the queen sees three of the cards face down and asks, “Who are these?” She can’t tell them from anyone else in society because they all look the same face down. What is the significance of them all looking the same? How does this help satirize monarchy and society?
(83) Puns in education- the teacher is called tortoise because he taught us. Subjects- uglification, reeling, writhing
(85) Why are lessons called lessons in Wonderland? (because they lessen in length over time)
(93) What is ironic about the Mock Turtle’s soup song? (He sings about loving turtle soup)
(95-6) Describe the jurors in the court case that takes place in Alice in Wonderland. (They are stupid. They write down their names in case they forget them. They write down everything that is said, even things that don’t make sense. When Alice takes Bill the Lizard’s pencil away, he tries to write with his finger.)
(96-107) What else is wrong with the court in Wonderland? (The king doesn’t want to hear any evidence. The queen wishes to sentence the defendant before reaching a verdict. The jury is incompetent.) What do you think Lewis Carroll is trying to say about the English justice system?
(107) Alice repeatedly says, “Nonsense and stuff,” to the queen. Why would the author use a little girl as the voice of reason against the queen? Why couldn’t the main character be a grown man like himself?
(107) What is Alice’s response when the queen directs her to hold her tongue? (“I won’t!)
Through the Looking-Glass
(Throughout) What board game is Through the Looking-Glass based on? (chess)
(124) What is the looking-glass? (mirror)
(137) What could the tree in the garden do in case of danger, according to the flowers? (bark)
(137) Alice asks the flowers why they can talk. She says that she has seen many flowers, but none of them could talk. What explanation is she given? (Most beds are too wet and soft, so the flowers are sleepy. If the flower bed is hard, then the flowers will stay awake and talk.) Why is that explanation ironic in reality? (Because a dry, hard flowerbed would only host dead flowers)
(141-143) The instance where the white queen grabs Alice and begins running, but goes nowhere could represent what struggle in life? (working hard to no avail)
(144)What chess piece does Alice begin as? (pawn) What piece does she end up as? (queen)
(145) What animal was making honey like a bee? (an elephant)
(149- 155) What is the significance of the forest with no names? What could it represent in Alice’s life? Hint: Think of her exchange with the caterpillar in Wonderland. What could that possibly be saying about society? What might it represent in real life?
(157) “I know what you’re thinking about,” said Tweedledum; “but it isn’t so, nohow.” “Contrariwise,” continued Tweedledee, “if it was so, it might be; and if it were so, it would be but as it isn’t, it ain’t. That’s logic.” Explain these sentiments.
(Ch IV) What phrase is repeated by Tweedledee and Tweedledum? (“contrariwise”)
(159) What is the gender of the sun and moon in Tweedledee and Tweedledum’s poem? (sun-male, moon-female)
(163) The Walrus and the Carpenter befriend a bunch of oysters and walk and talk with them for quite some time. What do they do to betray their friends? (eat them)
(164-5)Tweedledee and Tweedledum make an upsetting and nonsensical revelation to Alice. What is it? (that she is not real, she is just a character in the red king’s dream)
(165) When Alice asks if it is going to rain, Tweedledee and Tweedledum pull out an umbrella and claim that it is not going to rain in there. Is their statement truth or fallacy? Since the two feel that they will be protected from a downpour, they are apathetic to Alice’s concerns. Is this a problem in the world that we live in? What do you think that the Carroll was trying to say about indifference? Elie Wiesel, a very famous Holocaust survivor once said that the biggest problem in the world was the evil of indifference. Do you agree or disagree with these statements. Explain.
(171) The white queen tells Alice, “The rule is jam tomorrow, and jam yesterday—but never jam today.” What is significant about this rule?
(174) In Through the Looking-Glass, we find out that Alice is seven and a half. At this age, could she possibly be considered a reliable narrator? Also, are the vocabulary, intelligence, logic, and thought processes given to Alice by the author appropriate? Is she too mature or immature for her age?
(179) What does Alice purchase at the shop run by the sheep? (an egg) What or whom does it turn out to be? (Humpty Dumpty)
(183) How does Humpty Dumpty respond when Alice knows about the promises that were made to him by the king? Just because the king has made these promises to Humpty Dumpty, he feels secure enough to take big risks, like sitting on the narrow wall. However, the king doesn’t fully keep his word to Humpty Dumpty, does he? He fails to send the horses and the messengers. What is the author satirizing about having blind faith and trusting another person, or even putting your life in his or her hands, just because he or she has made a promise to you?
(184) When Alice tells Humpty Dumpty how old she is, he says that he would have advised her to stop aging at seven, and that with proper help, she could have stopped. This was a very offensive part of the book at the time of it’s publishing. Why do you think that is? (he is suggesting that she could have been murdered in order for her to stay young and fortunate.) (or innocent)
(184) Humpty Dumpty speaks of pride more than once. How is this foreshadowing for the doom that his character faces? (pride comes before a fall.)
(185) Who introduces Alice to the concept of unbirthdays? (Humpty Dumpty) What are unbirthdays?
(186) Humpty Dumpty claims that whenever he uses a word it means whatever he chooses for it to mean. Alice questioned whether or not one actually could make a word mean something, and Humpty Dumpty responded by saying that it only mattered which of them was going to be the master. Can this philosophy be applied to words in our life? Can it be applied to other things in life?
(192) Why does Humpty Dumpty tell Alice that he wouldn’t remember her if they were to ever meet again? (she looks so much like all other people) He says that she would be better if she were different, having two eyes on one side, or something like that. Alice remarked that she wouldn’t be pretty, and Humpty Dumpty said, “Wait until you’ve tried.” What is the author satirizing here? What statements is he making about the beauty of individuality? Is this still a problem in the world you live in? Is individuality beautiful?
(196) Why does the king need two messengers? (one to come and one to go)
(198) Who fights over the crown? (the unicorn and the lion)
(201) Who refers to Alice as a fabulous monster? (the unicorn)
(Ch. VIII) What is significant about all of the White Knight’s inventions? The box to hold clothes and sandwiches… they can’t get wet, but they fall out. The new pudding that no one will ever make… a way to tumble over a gate instead of going through it… a way to send hair up to keep it from falling down and falling off. They are all preposterous, difficult, and unnecessary.
(222) According to the queens, you get bread and butter when you divide a loaf by a knife and if you take a bone from a dog, the dog’s temper remains. Are the queens very intelligent or very ridiculous? Is the author criticizing the monarchy’s intelligence?
(223) What do queens never do? (make bargains) What does this revelation criticize about the queens? (they are unfair, uncompromising, unyielding)
(235-6) Alice gets angry and starts shaking the queen, but eventually realizes that she is shaking what? (a kitten)
(240) The book ends with Alice pondering a question. Whose dream was she in, hers or the red king’s? Choose an answer and justify it.
(241) The last line in the book is as follows, “Life, what is it but a dream?” Respond to this question.
Interesting notes on the stories:
They take places exactly six months apart, but were published six years apart.
The queen, described by the flowers as the kind with nine thorns, was inspired by Alice’s mean governess, Mrs. Prickett, who the kids called Mrs. Prick behind her back.
When on the railway, the men decide that Alice “must go by post as she’s got a head on her,” they are referring to Queen Victoria’s head, which was on all the postage stamps.
The forest of no names represents a real disease, called aphasia, which is the inability to remember the names of things.
The concluding poem in the book serves as a dedication. It is an acrostic poem that spells out the full name of the Alice that inspired the stories. Alice Pleasance Lidell. It also refers back to the golden afternoon mentioned in the poem that starts the first book.