MIRROR IMAGE AND ALICE IN WONDERLAND Text Comparison

NOTES FROM LENA COAKLEY…  She admittedly claims she chose the name Alice after Alice from Alice in Wonderland

ALICE IN WONDERLAND  Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (commonly shortened to Alice in Wonderland) is an 1865 novel written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll.  It tells of a girl named Alice falling through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world populated by peculiar, anthropomorphic creatures.  The tale plays with logic, giving the story lasting popularity with adults as well as with children.  It is considered to be one of the best examples of the literary nonsense genre.  Its narrative course and structure, characters and imagery have been enormously influential in both popular culture and literature, especially in the fantasy genre.

ALLUSION  An Allusion is a figure of speech, in which one refers covertly or indirectly to an object or circumstance from an external context. It is left to the audience to make the connection; where the connection is detailed in depth by the author, an allusion is often called a reference.  In Mirror Image Alice is an allusion to Alice in Wonderland’s main character Alice who explores a fantasy world feeling lost as to who she is and confused by her own emotions.

ALICE VERSUS ALICE  The Alice who went though the brain transplant in the short story “Mirror Image” had to go through a lot of tough times not knowing who she really is. This was when most of her body was Gail’s and the only thing left that was left to her was her own brain. The reason why Alice felt that she had changed and would never be the same was because of her twin sister Jenny. She rubbed it in Alice’s face which made Alice think twice about who she really is. This was during their birthday, when Jenny said “Sometimes I think my sister is dead”(pg,17). Alice tried convincing Jenny by saying “My brain is still me”(pg,13). Even though Alice’s mother was supporting her, Alice felt that her mom was just lying to help her fit in. Since Alice’s mother could not even look in her daughters eyes.

ALICE VERSUS ALICE  In the same situation Alice from Alice in wonderland is going through a whole life changing experience in one day. Due to this journey she experiences difficulty in articulating and understanding who she as a person. In an interaction she then did not know who she was and when the Caterpillar asked her “Who are you”(pg,19). Alice stood there thinking while saying “I-- I hardly know, sir,just at present-- at least I know who I WAS when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times…

A REFERENCE POINT   Alice in the film is greatly confused as her exterior is changed throughout the course of her journey. She questions whether or not her intrinsic self has changed due to the external changes that occur to her body over the course of this adventure.   When Alice receives her new body she experiences difficulties adapting that are similar to those experiences by Alice of Alice in Wonderland once she experiences the effects of the potions.   The conflict she experiences when conversing with the Cheshire cat mirrors the interaction with her sister in how he poses his questions creating an inner conflict in Alice much like Jenny does for Alice in the Mirror Image.

IN YOUR OWN WORDS…  Respond to the comparison of these two texts in your own words, do you see similarities or is this Alice versus Alice comparison too far fetched? Use details from the story and the three clips to inform your answer. Aim for 250 words and ensure you applying proper spelling and grammar with your writing.