LEWIS CARROLL

1832-1898

EARLY LIFE

Originally named Charles Lutwidge Dodgson

Born in Daresbury in Cheshire

The third of seven children

Father was an Anglican minister

SCHOOL YEARS

Grew up to become a smart, intelligent child

Educated at home for seven years

Sent away to Rugby School when he reached the

age of twelve

Took a distaste for athletics, but excelled in

mathematical studies.

LATER EDUCATION

Later, Carroll withdrew from Rugby School and

briefly attended Oxford.

Not long after his first day, his mother died, and he

once again left school.

Finally, Carroll got a more solid position at Christ

Church as a mathematical lecturer.

EARLY WORKS

A great deal of his works were mathematical

treatises.

He also enjoyed making math riddles and logic

puzzles.

The most popular of these creations were called “

Doublets.”

DOUBLETS

The object of couplets is to, by altering one letter

at a time, change one word into its antonym.

Example:

PHOTOGRAPHY

In addition to teaching math, Lewis Carroll was also

an avid photographer.

The primary focus of his photographs were children.

Today, this is somewhat controversial because they

are often presented in the nude.

However, that was simply the Victorian culture. In fact

many of his child nudes appeared on Christmas cards.

PHOTO GALLERY

LITERATURE

Above photography and mathematics, Carroll is

revered for his children’s literature.

His two most famous works are Alice’s Adventures

in Wonderland (1865) and its sequel, Through the

Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871).

Both novels center around a girl named Alice and

her trips into strange make-believe worlds.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland concerns Alice’s

first trip into the strange world and her standing up

to the Queen of Hearts, ultimately prevailing and

flooding justice throughout the land.

One of the greatest examples of literary nonsense

Appeals to children and adults generations later

POEMS

Carroll always kept things interesting in his works.

“The Mouse’s Tale,” as found in Alice’s Adventures

in Wonderland proves itself a perfect concrete poem.

“THE MOUSE’S TALE”

THE LOOKING-GLASS

Lewis Carroll’s second major novel, Through the

Looking-Glass and What Alice Found, is perhaps the

more prolific of the two.

The novel begins after Alice falls into her mirror

and finds herself in an opposite dimension.

MORE FROM THE MIRROR

“How Doth the Little Crocodile” is a parody of “How Doth the littlie Busy Bee”

One of Carroll’s most recited poems

How doth the little crocodile

Improve his shining tail,

And pour the waters of the Nile

On every golden scale!

How cheerfully he seems to grin,

How neatly spreads his claws,

And welcomes little fishes in

With gently smiling jaws!

JABBERWOCK!

“Jabberwocky” is another of Carroll’s beloved

poems.

“Jabberwocky” also comes from Through the

Looking-Glass

Twas bryllyg, and the slythy toves

Did gyre and gymble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogroves;

And the mome raths outgrabe.

MIX-UPS

Tweedledum and Tweedledee make their first

appearance in Through the Looking-Glass.

The card theme in Alice in Wonderland is replaced

by a chess theme in Through the Looking-Glass.

The Queen of hearts rules in the first novel.

The Red Queen is the antagonist in the sequel.

ALICE

Lewis Carroll’s protagonist, Alice, was based of

Alice Liddell.

Her father was the new dean at Christ Church.

A strong bond quickly formed between them.

A VERY IMPORTANT DATE

As Carroll grew older, he became more recognized

and more wealthy.

He wrote a few more books, but none came close to

Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.

He held his job as a lecturer until 1881.

Died of pneumonia and influenza on January 14, 1898

Buried at Guilford in Surrey, England.

INTERESTING FACTS

Carroll invented the world “Chortle” as a

combination of the words “Chuckle” and “Snort.”

Invented “Nyctography,” a type of shorthand that

could be used in total darkness

Suffered from stammering, epilepsy, partial

deafness and ADHD.

THE END

By

Troy Black