The Complete Alice in Wonderland (53 page)

Rabbit and Esquire:
The brass name-plate on White Rabbit’s home reads “W. Rabbit, Esq.,” instead of simply “W. Rabbit.” This tells us not only that the Rabbit regards himself as holding some importance, but also that he may aspire to nobility, without being noble himself! This interesting detail tells us much about the White Rabbit’s personality. The reason for its removal is unknown.

Servants to the Rabbit:
Carroll’s illustration shows the Rabbit and the Guinea Pigs administering “healing” to poor Bill. The Rabbit’s other servants are shown as well; we can see (white) mice, a squirrel, and small birds of various kinds. The mysterious Pat is likely shown here, but his species remains unknown. (Some say that Pat is a goose, due to the White Rabbit’s admonition, but this is simply a term of derision and no actual goose—beside Father William’s meal—is mentioned in Carroll’s “Alice” stories.)

Magic Without a Source:
When Alice shrinks in White Rabbit’s house, it is not because she eats anything. She simply begins to shrink for no reason at all. Carroll may have decided that this was inconsistent with the “magical laws” he later set forth for Wonderland, and so the version with the little cakes was re-written for publication.

Chapter III

The Little Terrier:
Carroll’s illustration makes it appear that the enormous puppy is in fact a terrier, which coincides interestingly with Alice’s earlier musings about the farmer’s dog. Sir John Tenniel’s illustration, however, makes the breed of the puppy much more ambiguous.

The Color of a Caterpillar:
The Caterpillar is traditionally regarded as green, but Carroll makes clear here that it is a blue one.

What Are You Smoking?:
The illustration Carroll uses for the Caterpillar appears to show a long opium pipe. In Victorian times, opium was an extremely popular drug, and even in some circles accepted among “poets and dreamers.” Tenniel’s later illustration, showing the Caterpillar with the hookah but not a pipe, is not quite so direct (although it is still suggestive of an “opium eater.”)

Father William and Son:
Carroll’s illustrations for Father William and William the Younger appear to show a middle-aged, retired barrister, and a well-to-do son in an urban context. Tenniel’s later illustrations changed the son into more of a country bumpkin.

The Missing Chef:
Carroll’s illustration reveals a chef character, who has served Father William a goose and is now sitting at table. Tenniel’s picture omits this detail.

Which Way of the Mushroom?:
The original manuscript has Alice partake of the
top
of the mushroom, and the
stalk
. The published version, however, has her take pieces from the
left
and
right
instead. The original version makes more sense, with the top making Alice taller, and the stalk making her smaller (and closer to the ground). Also, the episode of Alice’s neck turning serpentine makes more sense in the original, with her head being much like the mushroom’s top, and her neck like the stalk.

Chapter IV

The Nature of the Cards:
Tenniel’s illustrations depict the cards (with one exception) as normal people in various regalia, which causes some of Carroll’s passages to become confusing. We have a harder time visualizing the danger of cards becoming wet, or moving, or having two sides, when we have only Tenniel’s guide to go by! Carroll’s illustrations, however, reveal that the lower suits (Spades and Clubs) are actual cards, with arms and legs sticking out at the edges. This makes such events as the Clubs bending themselves into croquet-hoops much more visual and comprehensible.

All Hail the King and Queen!:
Carroll’s capitalization of “THE KING AND QUEEN OF HEARTS” is a slight jest which often goes unnoticed (or un-reproduced, for that matter). Generally speaking, inscriptions for royal Victorian figures were capitalized on first instance, regardless of context.

The Magic Pocket:
Somehow, when Alice is protecting the three Spades from the Queen, they change size and are able to leap into her pocket. For the published version, this was changed so that Alice hid them in a large flower pot.

Who Is the Marchioness?:
In the original manuscript, the White Rabbit explains to Alice that the Queen is the Marchioness! This is a reasonable matter, since a Queen would be a noblewoman of some kind prior to taking the throne. In the published version, however, the new character of the Duchess was introduced, and the Marchioness became the
Duchess
. Indirectly, this leaves open the implication that the Duchess may be related to the Queen by blood!

The Marchioness of Mock Turtles:
This wonderful title is sadly lost in the published version, since “Duchess of Mock Turtles” carries none of the amusing gravity of the original.

What Species is Your Mallet?:
The croquet mallets in the original are ostriches, which became flamingoes in the published edition. We can only assume that Carroll reasonably decided that a flamingo would be easier to heft and carry!

A Curious Pair of Beasts:
Carroll’s Mock Turtle is a bizarre creature, with a porcupine-like face and a shell made out of shingles. Tenniel’s later illustration is much more accurate and revealing. Similarly, Carroll’s Gryphon is wingless, while Tenniel’s is far more classical and comprehensible.

“Salmon Come Up!”:
This song, quite different from that in
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
, is a parody of “Sally Come Up”—a song quite popular with the Liddell children. Carroll may have changed this for publication, either because it was an American folk song (perhaps ill-suited to English children), or because some of the lyrics are racially offensive. The relevant chorus is as follows: “Sally come up! Oh, Sally go down! / Oh, Sally come twist you heel around, / Thee old man he’s gone down to town, / Oh Sally come down de middle.”

Farewell to an Ancient City:
At the end of the original manuscript, Carroll makes reference to “an ancient city,” by which he means Oxford (and specifically, Christ Church College). This is omitted in the published version, which obscures the Oxfordshire nature of the personal story for a more general English audience.

Introduction

FOLLOWING THE sensational success of
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
, Lewis Carroll (and his publishers) perceived the need for a shorter, clearer and gentler version of the story for very young children. Late in life, Carroll took it upon himself to carefully revise the text explicitly for this purpose. Tenniel’s beautiful illustrations were enlarged and colored, contemporary fashion updates were made to Alice’s wardrobe, and the text focused on showing the details of the drawings for the benefit of a child. The text is written in such a way that the tale is clearly meant to be read aloud by a parent, nurse or governess. The beautiful book was published in 1890 for the then-exorbitant price of four shillings.

In many ways
The Nursery “Alice”
is an inferior copy of the original tale, since many key pieces of dialogue are missing (along with their adult wit and often morbid or dire amusements). However, since the story was rewritten by Carroll himself, there are some fascinating
added
instances of detail which enrich our understanding of the original. These are elaborated upon in the Reflections on
The Nursery “Alice,”
following the main text.

(The prefatory poem follows.)

A Nursery Darling

A Mother’s breast:

Safe refuge from her childish fears,

From childish troubles, childish tears,

Mists that enshroud her dawning years!

See how in sleep she seems to sing

A voiceless psalm—an offering

Raised, to the glory of her King,

In Love: for Love is Rest.

A Darling’s kiss:

Dearest of all the signs that fleet

From lips that lovingly repeat

Again, again, their message sweet!

Full to the brim with girlish glee,

A child, a very child is she,

Whose dream of Heaven is still to be

At Home: for Home is Bliss.

Preface

(Addressed to Any Mother.)

I HAVE reason to believe that “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” has been read by some hundreds of English Children, aged from Five to Fifteen: also by Children, aged from Fifteen to Twenty-five: yet again by Children, aged from Twenty-five to Thirty-five: and even by Children—for there are such—Children in whom no waning of health and strength, no weariness of the solemn mockery, and the gaudy glitter, and the hopeless misery, of Life has availed to parch the pure fountain of joy that wells up in all child-like hearts—Children of a “certain” age, whose tale of years must be left untold, and buried in respectful silence.

And my ambition now is (is it a vain on?) to be read by Children aged from Nought to Five. To be read? Nay, not so! Say rather to be thumbed, to be cooed over, to be dogs”-eared, to be rumpled, to be kissed, by the illiterate, ungrammatical, dimpled Darlings, that fill your Nursery with merry uproar, and your inmost heart of hearts with a restful gladness!

Such, for instance, as a child I once knew, who—having been carefully instructed that one of any earthly thing was enough for any little girl; and that to ask for two buns, two oranges, two of anything, would certainly bring upon her the awful charge of being “greedy”—was found one morning sitting up in bed, solemnly regarding her two little naked feet, and murmuring to herself, softly and penitently, “deedy!”

—
Easter-tide
, 1890

Chapter I.

The White Rabbit

ONCE upon a time, there was a little girl called Alice: and she had a very curious dream.

Would you like to hear what it was that she dreamed about?

Well, this was the first thing that happened. A White Rabbit came running by, in a great hurry; and, just as it passed Alice, it stopped, and took its watch out of its pocket.

Wasn’t that a funny thing? Did you ever see a Rabbit that had a watch, and a pocket to put it in? Of course, when a Rabbit has a watch, it must have a pocket to put it in: it would never do to carry it about in its mouth—and it wants its hands sometimes, to run about with.

Hasn’t it got pretty pink eyes (I think all White Rabbits have pink eyes); and pink ears; and a nice brown coat; and you can just see its red pocket-handkerchief peeping out of its coat pocket: and, what with its blue neck-tie and its yellow waistcoat, it really is very nicely dressed.

“Oh dear, oh dear!” said the Rabbit. “I shall be too late!” What would it be too late for, I wonder? Well, you see, it had to go and visit the Duchess (you’ll see a picture of the Duchess, soon, sitting in her kitchen): and the Duchess was a very cross old lady: and the Rabbit knew she’d be very angry indeed if he kept her waiting. So the poor thing was as frightened as frightened could be (Don’t you see how he’s trembling? Just shake the book a little, from side to side, and you’ll soon see him tremble), because he thought the Duchess would have his head cut off, for a punishment. That was what the Queen of Hearts used to do, when she was angry with people (you’ll see a picture of her, soon): at least she used to order their heads to be cut off, and she always thought it was done, though they never really did it.