In
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, there are two
queens that play a substantial role for the main character of Alice. The two
queens are the Queen of Hearts in Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland and the Red Queen in Through the Looking-Glass. Both of the queens are considered
authority figures in Alice’s eyes until Alice finally realizes that they both
aren’t making much sense. In both of these stories, the queens say things that
they don’t necessarily mean, but they both strike up a fear in Alice.
The one thing that Alice observes so
much of the Queen of Hearts is that when she doesn’t particularly care for
something one of her “subjects” is doing she shouts, “OFF WITH HIS/HER HEAD!”
Alice thinks that the queen is actually going to take off that person’s head
until she realizes that the queen is shouting that phrase to make everyone in
Wonderland fear her and gain more power. It isn’t until Alice realizes that the
queen may shout about executing certain people, but that does not mean she will
actually do it. I think that the queen is unintentionally showing Alice that
there is a built up fear in the real world that one must overcome to succeed in
life. Alice might fearful for something in her life that she just needs to
overcome like she did with the Queen of Hearts.
On the contrary, the Red Queen in Through the Looking-Glass is seen more
as a governess who pays attention to every little detail and yells at Alice
when her manners are not up to par. The Red Queen is seen more as someone who
knows how to control her anger and not show her annoyance. She sees what people
have done wrong and instead of shouting at them she quietly scolds them until they
get it right. The Red Queen also makes statements that don’t necessarily have
logic in them. I feel like the Red Queen represents how Alice feels that
everyone that is older than her has authority over her even though they don’t
necessarily.
Gabi,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post! You pointed out things that I never have noticed reading the novels, and I like how you paid specific attention to how the characters that Alice encounters reflect upon her, and her growth within Wonderland. I really think that your ideas are shown within the 2010 film, for the Red Queen holds lots of power at the beginning of the movie, but once her facade is noticed by Alice, she is able to defeat the Jabberwocky and overcome her fear of the Red Queen's authority. I have began to notice how every character Alice encounters affects her in some way, and I really enjoy how your blog paid attention to that!
Thanks!
Erin Vogt