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For our final paper of the class I will ask you to adopt ONE Theoretical Frame through which you
will research and analyze Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking
Glass. To this point in the semester we have studied deductive and inductive reasoning utilizing our own
perspectives to identify pertinent evidence in support of our claims as well as cultivated secondary
sources. This essay will require the use of an external perspective, one you will need to wield as if it were
your own, in the service of exploring the Alice novels, and, more specifically, Carroll’s deliberate authorial
choices in the construction of these narratives.
Each prompt below has its own specific theoretical frame and prompt question based on that
frame. Please be sure to read each prompt carefully, and to do your initial research BEFORE committing
to one as once you have submitted a draft you will not be allowed to change your prompt. Also, be warned
that this essay will be a MAJOR undertaking and will require reading outside of what we discuss in class.
It is YOUR job to find useful secondary sources, but I will always help if asked. The prompts are as
follows:
1. Psychoanalysis Frame: Probably the most written about frame surrounding Alice, the
psychoanalytical frame is one that focuses on the works of Jacques Lacan in his application of
Sigmund Freud’s symbolic wish fulfillment found in dreams. Lacan applies the symbolic onto
language in that meaning is derived through metaphor or metonymy. While Carroll wrote the books
before Freud’s theories, Carroll once wrote in a diary entry that “insanity [is] an inability to
distinguish which is the waking and which the sleeping life.” Read Lacan’s “The Mirror Stage”
PDF on Canvas. Then, through an analysis of the imagery and other aspects of the Alice
books that mirror dreams, argue for whether this novel is intended for children, adults, or
(like Pixar has seemingly perfected) able to reach both audiences simultaneously.
NOTE: There will be some overlap in the readings and interpretations regardless of which prompt you
choose – and that’s a good thing. Like Carroll’s work itself, there is no one way to truly figure out this
puzzle. It resists sense, hence the non, but in its resistance the narratives give more than they take.
The essay must contain a minimum of four (4) secondary sources, along with the primary sources
(Alice novels and theorist material) for a total of seven (7) sources minimum. I expect everyone to
use a large amount of your chosen theorist’s actual works (not second-hand summaries of their work). I
have placed the primary source materials for the theorists in the ALICE RESOURCES Module on Canvas.
Use this as a jumping-off point to your research PRIOR TO choosing your prompt. Secondary sources are
completely up to you, just remember that secondary sources must either build knowledge that is required
in your essay that you do not possess on your own OR support your knowledge/analysis with additional
perspective (not to simply repeat what you already wrote/know).
The essay will be around 8 pages in length. You will find that the contextualizing of your chosen theory
and theorist will take up quite a bit of space in your essay, and then you have around 200 pages of
narrative to analyze. Keeping it to around 8 pages WITHOUT sacrificing important content will be a tough
task for passing-quality essays. If you are struggling with the page length, re-evaluate the scope of your
essay (and, of course, communicate with me early and often).
The essay must adhere to MLA Formatting guidelines. As all of our work before, you will need to
format the paper in Times New Roman, 12-point font, double spaced, with a correct heading and header,
as well as a Works Cited page

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