Alice in Wonderland and Literary Devices for Latent Communication - Essay Example

Alice in Wonderland (1865) was written by Lewis Carroll (1832 – 1898). It is deceptive to perceive it as a piece of children’s literature as it contains many themes and the language play gives rise to miscommunication. This essay argues that Carroll deliberately used language devices not to cause miscommunication but to communicate even more effectively. The essay will explore how miscommunication is actually more communication by examining Carroll’s use of jokes, puns, parodies, riddles and satires. At a casual reading, Alice in Wonderland seems to be a novel about literary nonsense. This essay questions the controversial use of literary nonsense as literary devices. Are they deliberately written to communicate greater truths or are they are actually mere literary devices incorporated to include humor and make the story more interesting? By examining Carroll’s use of language to communicate his ideas, one might derive at a conclusion. In Chapter 1, one may question the use of an anthropomorphic. The purpose is t examine if this is a literary device. The sleepy Alice is jolted into action to follow the white Rabbit because it is an anthropomorphic of the shared assumption of what a normal rabbit is. The narrative says; ‘There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did Alice think it so very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to itself, 'Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be late!' (when she thought it over afterwards, it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the time it all seemed quite natural); but when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to take out of it, …….’ What is the purpose of the Rabbit who parodies the human discourteous behavior of unpunctuality? This behavior is so common place that it has been accepted as part of the way of life by Alice and thus she did not think it unusual. By drawing attention to the lack of surprise at the Rabbit commenting that he is late communicates these meanings to the reader. The reader is drawn into the world of anthropomorphism where animals live parallel lives. The normality of Alice’s reaction assures that whatever is happening is acceptable. Alice understands that the Rabbit is late for an appointment, as if rabbits in general can talk and keep appointments. Alice equates animal chatter as the equivalent to human speech and she does not marvel that it can speak the human language nor does she wonder that she can comprehend him. Carroll did not communicate all these implications directly. His genius lies in his use of literary devices that communicate volumes while speaking less. Alice follows the Rabbit because she has never seen a rabbit with a waistcoat-pocket or a watch. This anthropomorphic parody of human attire violates her assumption of what a rabbit should be wearing. Carroll’s use of puns is examined to determine if they contribute positively towards conveying a latent message. In Chapter 2, Alice cries; 'Curiouser and curiouser!' to pun on the word curious and suggest the increasing deviance from the norm. Carroll used this literary device to alert the reader to anticipate an extraordinary event. Alice speaks about a satire to send a pair of boots as a present to her feet. Now, they are so huge and far apart that she fears that there will be difficulties delivering her boots to their respective feet. This is another literary device that Carroll used to show how enormous Alice has grown into. Alice is in an excited state for the narrative says; ‘(she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English); …….’ Alice communicates her curiosity and current circumstances well. The pun on the word curious shows that Alice is able to communicate meaningfully even as she is frustrated by her lack of success to enter through the door. Carroll uses punning effectively to convey indirectly his intended message. Does Carroll infuse the literal use of emotions to communicate or is this another language play at literary nonsense? It seems that Carroll uses Alice’s emotionally upset state to write in a double play at the shared assumptions of the predator and prey animosity. She forgets that the Mouse does not like its natural enemy, the cat. The narrative illustrates this point; 'Oh, I beg your pardon!' cried Alice hastily, afraid that she had hurt the poor animal's feelings. 'I quite forgot you didn't like cats.' Alice makes this slip when she speaks in French. Carroll meant to satirize educators who insisted on learning French which then produced children who have half-baked French literacy. On the other hand, this may simply mean that Alice communicates better in English. What is Carroll’s purpose of writing in a flat refusal to give a requested piece of information? He shows that the communication breaks down. In Chapter 3, the narration says; ‘Indeed, she had quite a long argument with the Lory, who at last turned sulky, and would only say, 'I am older than you, and must know better'; and this Alice would not allow without knowing how old it was, and, as the Lory positively refused to tell its age, there was no more to be said.’ Communication breaks down between Alice and the Lory. The Lory could have meant to pose a riddle on the question of his age. What happens when a literary device is insufficient to serve a purpose? Then, action speaks louder than words. The evidence to support Carroll’s use of action to achieve a purpose is found when the Dodo proposes a Caucus-race. The Dodo uses practical common sense to carry out his race. The purpose and value of his communication is for the understanding of how to participate in a Caucus-race but since he cannot or does not speak to elaborate, he demonstrates what to do. When verbal communication is ineffective, the universal body language is used. Carroll uses puns again to exploit the humor and confusion. In Chapter 3, Alice asks the Mouse why he hates cats and dogs. She unwittingly picks up the wrong pun on the tale / tail. The narration says: ‘ 'Mine is a long and a sad tale!' said the Mouse, turning to Alice, and sighing. 'It is a long tail, certainly,' said Alice, looking down with wonder at the Mouse's tail; 'but why do you call it sad?' ‘ Alice does not pay attention to the Mouse telling his tale because she is overwhelmed by his first message that his tale is long and sad. She puzzles over why the Mouse’s tail is sad. Alice does not understand herself that she is confused over the malapropism. The reader has the advantage of the written word to catch onto the witticisms. Carroll not only uses punning but also malapropism in this double frame of literal confusion. This shows how calculated and deliberate his writing is. Are the characters themselves to blame for the literal nonsense that runs this adventure? In Chapter 4, Alice seems to be at fault when she does not communicate to the Rabbit that he has mistaken her for his housemaid named Mary Ann because she is afraid of him. However, she is unafraid to drink from an unlabeled bottle in Rabbit’s house because her curiosity got the better out of her. The child in her was also bored with her present small size. The unlabeled bottle has a lack of communication because its contents are unstated. When the Rabbit came to look for her, Alice is afraid to communicate because she is a child. The narration says; ‘Alice knew it was the Rabbit coming to look for her, and she trembled till she shook the house, quite forgetting that she was now about a thousand times as large as the Rabbit, and had no reason to be afraid of it.’ Alice’s lack of communication is intentional because of her fear of the Rabbit. Carroll shows that in this short episode, the lack of communication has caused these two major acts to happen to Alice. Can communication be possible without shared assumptions? In Chapter 5, Carroll explores how communication uses shared assumptions. In a short conversation, Alice contradicts the Caterpillar because her sizes have changed several times within the course of a day and she cannot define herself. Her old assumption that she is Alice, of a definite size and physical entity has changed. The narrative in reference says; ‘ 'What do you mean by that?' said the Caterpillar sternly. 'Explain yourself!' 'I can't explain myself, I'm afraid, sir' said Alice, 'because I'm not myself, you see.' 'I don't see,' said the Caterpillar.’ Carroll wants to show that the Caterpillar’s lack of shared understanding makes Alice short tempered and irritable. He makes communication difficult because he contradicts Alice and has no shared understanding of her assumptions of being understood. The Caterpillar asks for Alice’s identity twice to place her in order to know what basic assumptions to anticipate inn order to understand Alice. Alice cannot define herself properly and thus the Caterpillar cannot categorize her and understand her terms of references in her communication. Carroll uses the juxtaposition of their different identities and lack of assumptions to highlight how important shared assumptions are for effective communication. One example is in this narration: ‘'Well, perhaps you haven't found it so yet,' said Alice; 'but when you have to turn into a chrysalis - you will some day, you know - and then after that into a butterfly, I should think you'll feel it a little queer, won't you?' 'Not a bit,' said the Caterpillar.’ Here, Alice tries to bridge the gap by referring to the Caterpillar’s pending metamorphosis into a butterfly. She tries to evoke the empathy of feeling queer but the Caterpillar deliberately crosses her by refusing to acknowledge such feelings. On the other hand, he is trying to imply that he does not feel the human emotion of queer because he is not a human. In conclusion, Alice in Wonderland contains too many deliberate literary devices to be simply dismissed as a nonsense story. Carroll tells more by telling less because he uses these literary devices for latent communication The end. Works Cited. The Literature Network. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. 2000. The Literature Network. 18 May 2007. < http://www.online-literature.com/carroll/alice/ >. Read More