Lewis Carroll and the Victorian Era: The Historical Context of Alice in Wonderland BY: SACHEN PILLAY

Welcome!• Central Ideas

• The Non-binary

• Celebrating self-acceptance and self-discovery

• How do these ideas inform Carroll's works and our script?

• Purpose • To provide for the students

• Follow in Carroll's footsteps: embracing the absurd

The World of the Production • What is the Victorian Era?

• The 60-year reign of Queen Victoria 1837-1901• Is the height of the British Imperial era

• Victorian society and culture • Industrialization of the western world • The colonization of the global south and east• The rise of modern writing cultures • Changes to western understandings of gender and

sexuality• The liberalization of the western world

• Lewis Carroll• Carroll’s works and his obsession with the absurd• The discourse surrounding his personal life

The Context and Wider History • Karl Marx helps us understand the Victorian era

• Marx explains that history flows in different stages • Ancient, Feudal, and Industrial • The Victorian era is significant because it makes

Britain's transition from the feudal to the industrial stage i.e capitalism

• The development of capitalism is evident in Victorian era social changes

• Such changes are: • British political power shifting to the

emergent capitalist class • The separate spheres of gender• Scientific challenges to old ways of thinking

Victorian Society and Culture

• Evolution of Gender roles and sexuality • Victorian era viewed Gender as binary

• Men: Public Sphere, strong, independent, sex for pleasure

• Women: Private Sphere, weak, dependent, sex for reproduction

• Victorian Culture• London the English-speaking capital of the world • Mass printing creates printing culture

• Rise in modern reporting and novels that all classes enjoy

• These changes come from capitalism • New classes: Lower, Middle, and Upper classes

Lewis Carroll and His Works • Early life

• Born as Lewis Dodgson in 1832 • Carroll grew up raising/entertaining his 11 siblings• His background nurtured his talent for storytelling

• Education • In 1852 Carroll attended Oxford University to become a

priest• He met and befriended the Liddell children while at Oxford

• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland• Carroll’s first book was originally a story he made with Alice

Liddell• Book was published in 1865 at the behest of the Liddells

and saw gradual success• Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There was

published in 1871 and 72

The Discourse on Carroll’s Personal Life • Carroll has been scrutinized since the 1930s

• Some biographers accuse him of having ill intentions for the Liddell children

• Evidence includes his personal shortcomings and nude photographs

• These accusations are sensationalized

• Critics take photographs out of historical context

• Accusations stem from A.M.E Goldschmidt- a sensationalist tabloid writer

• Primary evidence contradicts accusations

• Carroll’s personal letters

• Letters between Lorina and Alice Liddle

The Fascination with the Absurd• Carroll’s works are rooted in the absurd

• The absurd is a tool for self discovery and self acceptance

• Carroll’s status as a shy bachelor influenced his work • Telling children stories was an outlet to express himself

• Relation to animals • Animals with human qualities was a way to represent

himself and how he viewed the world• Animals were an outlet for self-discovery • Modern day comparison- the furry fandom

• Influences productions representation of animals

The Production’s Relation to the Non-binary

• Production is a celebration of Non-conforming identities

• Alice’s story is a microcosm for self-acceptance and self-celebration • We aim to celebrate all identities and

the absurdity of art• The Non-Binary exists outside of mainstream

rigidity • To celebrate this is to embrace the

escapism the self acceptance that Carroll intended to provide with the original story

Works Cited

► Slides 3-4: ► “An Introduction To Victorian England (1837-1901).” English Heritage,

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/victorian/. Accessed 12 December 2020.

► Slides 5-6:► “Victorian Era.” Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/event/Victorian-era.

Accessed 12 December 2020.► Slide 7:

► “Lewis Carroll.” Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lewis-Carroll. Accessed 12 December 2020.

► Slide 8: ► “Lewis Carroll’s Shifting Reputation.” Smithsonian Magazine

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/lewis-carrolls-shifting-reputation-9432378/. Accessed 12 December 2020.