Evolution in Wonderland
By Sydney Sanders
Animals are often used in children’s literature in place of human characters. These characters have human traits, but do not assume human features. Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland differs from others in its genre by using anthropomorphism, a practice in which animals are given human traits. Inspired by the 1859 publication On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin, Carroll fashions a world where animals, not humans, are the superior race. Carroll’s animal characters exemplify the harsh Victorian attitude towards the recent discovery of evolution and similarly harsh treatment towards seemingly lesser creatures. By using animals as human-like figures, Carroll depicts an upside down world where humans may be obsolete figures and their rules become meaningless.
Victorian era England housed multiple animal rights programs including the first Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), created in 1824. Along with the discoveries of new species of animals came increased awareness of how animals were treated in modern society. Activists were not always greeted positively by their compatriots as Victorians viewed themselves at the top of many chains; food, social, and industrial. Coupled with Charles Darwin’s recently published theory of evolution by natural selection, many Victorians fought the belief that anything nonhuman could be sentient, completely disregarding their peers’ beliefs to the contrary. To these Victorians, animals served as entertainment and food, and were unable to be anything different based on God’s will. Many refused to give any credit to the theory because they were scared by Darwin’s direct challenge of traditional theological beliefs and interpreted it to mean that one day humans could be inferior to animals as they progressed to become stronger than their predators. Carroll tapped into this fear and turned it into a fantastical adventure.
Carroll uses size to draw contrast between human and animal encounters with the world. In chapter two of Alice, Alice meets a mouse that she assumes to be French. Recalling the only French phrase she knows, 'Ou est ma chatte?’ Alice scares the mouse by mentioning its natural predator, a cat. (Carroll 9). Alice is unable to understand the mouse’s fear because her relationship with cats has never been a battle for survival. However, in chapter four, Alice faces a giant puppy. While puppies had never been a threat to her outside of Wonderland, the massive size difference worries Alice and causes her to want to defend herself much like prey would do against a predator. These encounters humanize the predator/prey relationship that occurs in nature. Humans take pride in being so superior that they are predators and able to prey upon the weaker species, but by being able to sense Alice’s fear when she comes across the puppy, the reader is better able to understand the fear of prey animals and draw sympathy for these creatures.
Children’s literature scholar, Dr. Rose Lovell-Smith points to Alice’s continual struggle with the animals of Wonderland as evidence of Darwinist ideology in Alice. Alice unwittingly imposes upon population of Wonderland the idea that one is either predator or prey. She scares the mouse with talk of her cat, tells the pigeon that she eats eggs, and converses with the Duchess about making soup out of the Mock Turtle. Her narrow ‘eat or be eaten’ world view suggests that one must be superior to their competition in order to survive.
The hierarchical order of Wonderland is evidence that Social Darwinism belief existed before it was officially noted in the 1870s. Social Darwinists believe that it was their duty to assist evolution by keeping a strict hierarchy and making sure that everyone had a place in it with little room for movement. Dr. Rose Lovell-Smith cites Denis Crutch who “points out that there is in Alice a hierarchy of animals similar to the Victorian class structure but also suggesting a competitive model of nature” that would be present in a Social Darwinist society. (Lovell-Smith 386). The animals of Wonderland report to the King and Queen of Hearts. There appears to be an upper-class gentry composed of the Duchess, White Rabbit, and Caterpillar are figures of lesser authority, but get respect from the general populace and are serviced by the Frog and Fish footmen. Bill the Lizard, the hedgehogs, and the flamingos are undoubtedly of lesser status. Bill is used for the jobs no one else wants much like the Victorian working class. The flamingos and hedgehogs, used as tools to play croquet, represent the artisan class Victorians who slaved away to entertain their employers for little to no reward. Alice’s treatment of the flamingos during croquet symbolizes the Social Darwinist readiness to assist evolution by rushing the extinction of ‘unworthy’ creatures. It is not her duty to question if what she is doing is humane, but enforce the strictness of social position. She aids this by taking her class position under the King, Queen, and gentry, following their orders dutifully.
Alice, as a powerless minority, is subjected to following the rules of the creatures of Wonderland much like animals in Victorian England are subjected to the whims of the dominant humans. The March Hare criticizes her use of figurative language in place of literal terms. The pigeon makes Alice identify herself, asserting itself as the dominant race. The Fish-Footman plays a logic game with Alice, never truly answering her question. Even though she is confused and unable to follow all of Wonderland’s rules, she follows along as any good citizen would, and often reinforces the hierarchy. Alice treats the White Rabbit with more respect than she shows Bill and the footmen, and gives the King and Queen her highest regards. Her interactions with these characters contribute to the Social Darwinist idea that everyone has a fixed place in society.
Lovell-Smith also discusses John Tenniel’s illustrations for the book and their Darwinist themes. She suggests that Tenniel exaggerated size and the animals’ human traits in his illustrations in order to emphasize the humanity of the animals. While Carroll does not explicitly state that his characters are more human than animal, Tenniel’s illustrations give that impression. Lovell-Smith points out Tenniel’s illustration of the White Rabbit’s upright posture, human eyes, hands, and clothing. Wilma Cruise compares the rabbit to “a modern corporate executive… forever rushing off somewhere lamenting his lateness.” (Cruise 75). Cruise, like Lovell-Smith believes that Carroll’s characters are Darwinist representations of humans in the upside down world of Wonderland.
There are no humans in Wonderland. The most powerful inhabitants are card figures. Their subjects are all animals. Victorians could not see themselves as subordinate to any other creature. Charles Darwin’s discovery of evolution caused Victorians to wonder if they could be the powerless minority. Lewis Carroll created a world to purpose an answer to this question. The characters that possess mostly human characteristics are of greater social standing, and are therefore deemed more intelligent beings. Characters like the flamingos and hedgehog who are purely animal are deprived of social standing. Human characters, like Alice, are curiosities to Wonderland. She is able to assume an intermediate place in the hierarchy due to her understanding of status in her world. Alice gravitates toward characters that more closely resemble humans as figures of authority. At first, she is confused by her lack of power, but quickly learns that she has a role in this society just as she does at home. In Wonderland, the Victorian ideal of the all-powerful British is nonexistent.
References:
Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ; Through the Looking-glass, and What Alice Found There. London: Octopus, 1978. Print.
Cruise, Wilma. "Revisiting Alice." Journal Of Literary Studies/Tydskrif Vir Literatuurwetenskap 30.4 (2014): 71-90. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 11 May 2015.
George, Jodi-Anne. "Rossetti's Menagerie: The Condition Of Animals In Victorian Britain." Journal Of The Scottish Society For Art History 17.(2012): 19-23. Art & Architecture Complete. Web. 11 May 2015.
Lee, Michael Parrish. "Eating Things: Food, Animals, And Other Life Forms In Lewis Carroll's Alice Books." Nineteenth-Century Literature 68.4 (2014): 484-512. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11 May 2015.
Lovell-Smith, Rose. "The Animals Of Wonderland: Tenniel As Carroll's Reader." Criticism 45.4 (2003): 383-415. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11 May 2015.
Victorian era England housed multiple animal rights programs including the first Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), created in 1824. Along with the discoveries of new species of animals came increased awareness of how animals were treated in modern society. Activists were not always greeted positively by their compatriots as Victorians viewed themselves at the top of many chains; food, social, and industrial. Coupled with Charles Darwin’s recently published theory of evolution by natural selection, many Victorians fought the belief that anything nonhuman could be sentient, completely disregarding their peers’ beliefs to the contrary. To these Victorians, animals served as entertainment and food, and were unable to be anything different based on God’s will. Many refused to give any credit to the theory because they were scared by Darwin’s direct challenge of traditional theological beliefs and interpreted it to mean that one day humans could be inferior to animals as they progressed to become stronger than their predators. Carroll tapped into this fear and turned it into a fantastical adventure.
Carroll uses size to draw contrast between human and animal encounters with the world. In chapter two of Alice, Alice meets a mouse that she assumes to be French. Recalling the only French phrase she knows, 'Ou est ma chatte?’ Alice scares the mouse by mentioning its natural predator, a cat. (Carroll 9). Alice is unable to understand the mouse’s fear because her relationship with cats has never been a battle for survival. However, in chapter four, Alice faces a giant puppy. While puppies had never been a threat to her outside of Wonderland, the massive size difference worries Alice and causes her to want to defend herself much like prey would do against a predator. These encounters humanize the predator/prey relationship that occurs in nature. Humans take pride in being so superior that they are predators and able to prey upon the weaker species, but by being able to sense Alice’s fear when she comes across the puppy, the reader is better able to understand the fear of prey animals and draw sympathy for these creatures.
Children’s literature scholar, Dr. Rose Lovell-Smith points to Alice’s continual struggle with the animals of Wonderland as evidence of Darwinist ideology in Alice. Alice unwittingly imposes upon population of Wonderland the idea that one is either predator or prey. She scares the mouse with talk of her cat, tells the pigeon that she eats eggs, and converses with the Duchess about making soup out of the Mock Turtle. Her narrow ‘eat or be eaten’ world view suggests that one must be superior to their competition in order to survive.
The hierarchical order of Wonderland is evidence that Social Darwinism belief existed before it was officially noted in the 1870s. Social Darwinists believe that it was their duty to assist evolution by keeping a strict hierarchy and making sure that everyone had a place in it with little room for movement. Dr. Rose Lovell-Smith cites Denis Crutch who “points out that there is in Alice a hierarchy of animals similar to the Victorian class structure but also suggesting a competitive model of nature” that would be present in a Social Darwinist society. (Lovell-Smith 386). The animals of Wonderland report to the King and Queen of Hearts. There appears to be an upper-class gentry composed of the Duchess, White Rabbit, and Caterpillar are figures of lesser authority, but get respect from the general populace and are serviced by the Frog and Fish footmen. Bill the Lizard, the hedgehogs, and the flamingos are undoubtedly of lesser status. Bill is used for the jobs no one else wants much like the Victorian working class. The flamingos and hedgehogs, used as tools to play croquet, represent the artisan class Victorians who slaved away to entertain their employers for little to no reward. Alice’s treatment of the flamingos during croquet symbolizes the Social Darwinist readiness to assist evolution by rushing the extinction of ‘unworthy’ creatures. It is not her duty to question if what she is doing is humane, but enforce the strictness of social position. She aids this by taking her class position under the King, Queen, and gentry, following their orders dutifully.
Alice, as a powerless minority, is subjected to following the rules of the creatures of Wonderland much like animals in Victorian England are subjected to the whims of the dominant humans. The March Hare criticizes her use of figurative language in place of literal terms. The pigeon makes Alice identify herself, asserting itself as the dominant race. The Fish-Footman plays a logic game with Alice, never truly answering her question. Even though she is confused and unable to follow all of Wonderland’s rules, she follows along as any good citizen would, and often reinforces the hierarchy. Alice treats the White Rabbit with more respect than she shows Bill and the footmen, and gives the King and Queen her highest regards. Her interactions with these characters contribute to the Social Darwinist idea that everyone has a fixed place in society.
Lovell-Smith also discusses John Tenniel’s illustrations for the book and their Darwinist themes. She suggests that Tenniel exaggerated size and the animals’ human traits in his illustrations in order to emphasize the humanity of the animals. While Carroll does not explicitly state that his characters are more human than animal, Tenniel’s illustrations give that impression. Lovell-Smith points out Tenniel’s illustration of the White Rabbit’s upright posture, human eyes, hands, and clothing. Wilma Cruise compares the rabbit to “a modern corporate executive… forever rushing off somewhere lamenting his lateness.” (Cruise 75). Cruise, like Lovell-Smith believes that Carroll’s characters are Darwinist representations of humans in the upside down world of Wonderland.
There are no humans in Wonderland. The most powerful inhabitants are card figures. Their subjects are all animals. Victorians could not see themselves as subordinate to any other creature. Charles Darwin’s discovery of evolution caused Victorians to wonder if they could be the powerless minority. Lewis Carroll created a world to purpose an answer to this question. The characters that possess mostly human characteristics are of greater social standing, and are therefore deemed more intelligent beings. Characters like the flamingos and hedgehog who are purely animal are deprived of social standing. Human characters, like Alice, are curiosities to Wonderland. She is able to assume an intermediate place in the hierarchy due to her understanding of status in her world. Alice gravitates toward characters that more closely resemble humans as figures of authority. At first, she is confused by her lack of power, but quickly learns that she has a role in this society just as she does at home. In Wonderland, the Victorian ideal of the all-powerful British is nonexistent.
References:
Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ; Through the Looking-glass, and What Alice Found There. London: Octopus, 1978. Print.
Cruise, Wilma. "Revisiting Alice." Journal Of Literary Studies/Tydskrif Vir Literatuurwetenskap 30.4 (2014): 71-90. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 11 May 2015.
George, Jodi-Anne. "Rossetti's Menagerie: The Condition Of Animals In Victorian Britain." Journal Of The Scottish Society For Art History 17.(2012): 19-23. Art & Architecture Complete. Web. 11 May 2015.
Lee, Michael Parrish. "Eating Things: Food, Animals, And Other Life Forms In Lewis Carroll's Alice Books." Nineteenth-Century Literature 68.4 (2014): 484-512. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11 May 2015.
Lovell-Smith, Rose. "The Animals Of Wonderland: Tenniel As Carroll's Reader." Criticism 45.4 (2003): 383-415. Humanities Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11 May 2015.