Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy: Curiouser And Curiouser by Richard Brian Davis

Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy: Curiouser And Curiouser Reviews

• 
  Belhor Crowley

  A truly one star book. Not because I didn't like it (I didn't like it, not one bit) but because the book is just bad.
  This book has nothing to do with the philosophy of Alice in wonderland. It is basically using the story to talk about philosophy and the topics are truly boring, they have nothing new or in depth to offer. And somehow in the process of writing these dull articles, the writers have managed to ruin the beauty and mystic of this wonderful book.
  This has been a very disappointing introduction to the series.
• 
  Angelc

  This collection of essays is a fantastic addition to any "Alice in Wonderland" fan's collection. These are scholarly essays, and even though they are easy to read, don't expect fluff stories that were thrown together to feed off of the recent Tim Burton movie release. These are highly researched and well thought out studies of the original book.
  
  Some of the essays, I loved and would give 5+ stars to, but my rating is for the book as a whole, which did sometimes seem repetitive. The book is separated into four parts, each with essays that related to each other in topic. There are 14 essays in all, and reading all the essays back to back made the content seem repetitive to me. I think I would have enjoyed this book much more if I had only read a few at a time.
  
  My favorite essay was "Unruly Alice: A Feminist View of Some Adventures in Wonderland" by Megan S. Lloyd. Lloyd gives strong examples of how Alice can be seen as a feminist icon. Some of her examples I had noticed before, but some were new to me and fascinating.
  
  Another essay that stood out was "Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, but Never Jam Today: On Procrastination, Hiking, and...the Spice Girls?" by Mark D. White. Not only was the content of this essay strong, but the way that it was written was so appealing! I feel like White really embraced the nonsense that is Wonderland and he wrote the entire essay in that style.
  
  I also enjoyed the comparisons of Carroll's work to Socrates. The authors point out that Carroll did study Socrates so these nods to his philosophy were no accident. I learned another biographical fact of Carroll that I hadn't known, that he suffered from migraines and that contributed to his writing about distorted reality (from the Scott F. Parker essay).
  
  I would definitely recommend this book to a fan of Alice in Wonderland. The book helped me understand the book in ways that I never did before. I only would have preferred to read the essays over a longer period of time so that the content wouldn't overlap so much. I'm eager to read some of the other titles in the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series.
  
  I received this book from the publisher for review.
  
  reviewed for
  http://inthehammockblog.blogspot.com/
  
  
• 
  Rachel

  So unbearably inane. This book felt to me as though all it did was laboriously, and with a large number of pop-culture references, explain each crystalline, brilliant joke in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass until their luster faded. I admit to reading it quickly after a certain point, skimming because I didn't want its mindlessness to detract from the delicate perfection of the original books, which I love beyond belief. Literary criticism of Lewis Carroll is dubious at the best of times, and this was a particularly bad example, written for people used to reading nothing but magazines, who either struggled through or (more likely) didn't read Carroll's books at all. I don't mean to sound snobbish about it (and theoretically, I suppose, the idea of the "Philosophy and Pop Culture" series to which this volume belongs is an admirable one, making cultural analysis and criticism accessible to a larger group, but this book, notably, was the only one in that series to analyze a classic work of literature rather than a film or television show, and they at least could hire better authors), but, honestly, it was just bad.
• 
  April

  Reading philosophy and literary theory related to books I've already read is like being given a key. I feel like I've unlocked some secrets within the text and have been given a better view of what deeper meanings Alice In Wonderland may contain.
  
  Read the rest of my review here
• 
  Amanda

  I'm afraid I lemmed this at page 67. Not enough of the original text in the essays. None of the topics gave me fun thoughts to think about. Just not what I was looking for in this and I don't want to waste any more time on it.
• 
  lucy♡

  This collection of scholarly essays was an absolute pleasure to read.
  
  I was given this delightful little book off of my favourite auntie for my birthday last week and was absolutely ecstatic as I am a huge fan of the Alice stories. Utterly obsessed, really.
  
  The entire book was incredibly intriguing and I found it so amazingly unique. I spent the day annotating it also, challenging myself to expand my knowledge and even add my own sociological and psychological perspectives into the philosophy.
  
  My favourite was definitely “Unruly Alice” which questions if Alice is a female icon in literature that young girls can look up to. It was so fascinating! I recommend just reading that one if you’re going to skip the book because it gave me a fresh perspective on the classic. Remarkable.
  
  This book was brilliant and imaginative as well as informative and I recommend to anyone who likes Alice too!
  
  Love, Lucy x
• 
  Coos Burton

  Hay dos cosas que para mí resultan obvias: que Alice in Wonderland es uno de los libros más clásicos, extraños y sin sentido del mundo, y por otro lado, que es uno de mis libros favoritos de todos los tiempos. Todo indica que cualquier libro que esté estrechamente relacionado con la historia de Lewis Carroll es digno de ser leído. Conocí "Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy" gracias a una de mis profesoras del lugar donde estudio, y me entusiasmó muchísimo la idea de leerlo ya que me daba curiosidad ver de qué forma ubican a Alice en un plano más realista. Hay mucho por interpretar, especialmente por el divague, el delirio que derrocha la historia de la pequeña que descubrió un mundo disparatado donde las plantas cantan, los gatos hablan y los conejos blancos corren y se lamentan por llegar tarde.
  
  Lo que me gustó del libro es que realmente agarra la historia y la mueve por todos lados para encontrarle una relación con cosas de índole filosófico, por ende todo esta cuestionado y planteado bajo mil posibilidades, y eso ayuda a que uno comience a ver el libro original con otra mirada. A mi me encanta la idea de poder ver desde otra perspectiva algo así de ambiguo y tan libre a la interpretación, porque considero que para eso se hicieron esos libros, para que uno deje correr la imaginación y se entretenga y le dé rienda suelta a la creatividad. Cuando leí sobre este libro me encontré con gente que hablaba sobre cómo éste libro le había "quitado la magia al original" ya que lo traslada a un ámbito más cotidiano, lo racionaliza y es justo lo que Carroll intenta evitar. Creo firmemente que nadie puede quitarle la magia y la aventura a Alice. Lo que fue creado de una forma así queda, y no hay cosa que pueda contrarrestarlo. Es como decir que un remake de una película arruinó la versión original. Lo que fue base, quedará así, sin importar lo que más tarde hagan con relación a eso. Hay que abrirse a estas cosas, eso es lo que me parece a mí. Al momento de disfrutar la historia, dejarse llevar por lo extraño, lo curioso y lo bizarro. Al momento de buscar otras opciones, apreciar la mirada del otro. De caso contrario, no podrán disfrutar de éste libro. Si realmente temen que Alice se vuelva muy "corriente", o les aburre ponerle momentáneamente un velo más realista, sigan de largo, no les recomiendo "Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy" en lo absoluto.
  
  Por otro lado, creo que a veces se dispersa demasiado y por momentos uno olvida de que es un libro sobre Alice in Wonderland. Me gusta que haya apoyo con parte teórica, pero lo aborrezco cuando se deja de lado por completo el punto de la obra. Es indefectible que el autor busque en su momento sustento para sus planteos para poder así unir cabos, pero a veces es un tedio tener que tolerar que sea 90% historia y 10% referencias de Alice. La gracia está en homogeneizar todo y sacar un resultado comparando, citando, ejemplificando, de la manera que sea. Pero sin duda intentando no inclinarse tanto en un tema que no es el principal. Quizá el libro hubiera sido perfecto si la parte del balance estaba un poco más "armoniosa" y no quedaba más expuesta una cosa que otra. Aún así, las referencias están, y la cosa gira en torno a la creación de Lewis Carroll, como advertía desde un comienzo.
• 
  Anita Dalton

  Overall, this book was a disappointment to me, and that may be a user problem, I am ready to admit. I wanted this book to explain the philosophy of Alice in Wonderland. Several articles used Alice in Wonderland to explain philosophy, and if that seems like a fine distinction, it really isn’t. The former explores philosophical points in the book. The latter uses book elements to illustrate philosophical points. You can do the latter with anything. I could, if I tried long enough, find a way to illustrate any philosophical tenet using my cats, organic bathroom cleaners or the content of the junk drawer in my kitchen. You can use just about anything to prove a theory if you don’t mind stretching a metaphor until it almost breaks. That seems to happen a lot in some of these articles, and while it wasn’t what I particularly wanted, the book is titled Alice and Wonderland and Philosophy, which means that my complaint is just me… well, complaining. The book didn’t misrepresent itself. I just wanted something else.
  Read my entire review here.
• 
  Freda Mans-Labianca

  I was so excited to read this book, because I had seen Alice in Wonderland or read the book many times and was a fan. After completing the book, I am left feeling like I wish I hadn't read it. It took away the fantasy and fun from what I had already known.
  Growing up Alice is an iconic idol, for little girls all over the world. My childhood was no different. We didn't wonder what drugs the writer was on to get the story, we only cared about the content.
  This book for me was over-burdened with philosophical ideas, and granted they made sense, but is there a limit to content being used? I think so in this case. Sometimes the connections were made, drifted from, then brought back again. Too much, in my opinion.
  This is not a book I would tell Alice lovers to grab. I would actually advise to steer clear of it.
  
• 
  Monica

  This book came out right around the time the newest 'Alice in Wonderland' movie came out, I doubt a coincidence but it is still a welcome book. This book is a collection of stories, or essays if you will because of the non-fiction pieces, the delve into the minute details of the well loved story, 'Alice in Wonderland'.
  
  The essays are each vastly different all taking on elements of the original story and giving different insights, historical facts, and other various tidbits. After reading this book I want to re-read the original story just so I can get a truly see with my own eyes what each of these writers were saying in their pieces. If you like 'Alice in Wonderland', please pick up this book, you won't regret it!
  
  P.S. I also think the cover is very well done, and super cute.
• 
  Janice

  Liked this overall, but definitely enjoyed some essays more than others.
• 
  Marsha

  This installment in the “And Philosophy” series lives up to the premise of Carroll’s most endearing work. There is a lot of sense to be found in nonsense but a great deal of fun, too. From the irreverent to the rebellious, we look in the adventures of Carroll’s titular character with new eyes, probing what it means to be human, real or sensible.
  
  According to the various thinkers within these pages, Alice is explained as a searching child, a would-be dictator, a rebel and feminist icon. She wants to survive Wonderland, understanding that it has dangers within its innocuous flowered pathways and checkered fields. But she also wants to know who she is and frets over the answer when she’s queried by its inhabitants.
  
  This is a terrific book and, if it gets bogged down in head-scratching, philosophical cant by Locke, Hume and others, well, what else could you expect? If they’re all mad, what are you for reading this?
• 
  Lizzie

  My math explained:
  
  - Unruly Alice (5*)
  - Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, but Never Jam Today (4*)
  - Nuclear Strategies in Wonderland (1*)
  - You're Nothing but a Pack of Cards (3*)
  - Six impossible Things before breakfast (4*)
  - Reasoning Down the Rabbit Hole (4*)
  - Three Ways of Getting It Wrong (4*)
  - Is There Such a Thing as a Language? (2*)
  - Alice, Perception, and Reality (3*)
  - How Deep Does the Rabbit Hole Go? (1*)
  - Perspectivism and Tragedy (1*)
  - Wishing It Were some other Time (2*)
  - Serious Nonsense (3*)
  - Memory and Muchness (5*)
• 
  Natalia Nazeem Ahmed

  A fascinating read! A compilation of short essays, discussing Alice in Wonderland through different lenses - studying the use of memory, of different realities (influenced by drugs), and even studying the concept of time- the way we experience it and the way Alice experiences it.
• 
  Cary

  This book is just a feminist agenda using the AIW story to advance it's biased and zealous views.
  
  From p. 12: "Alice's line 'little girls eat eggs quite as much as serpents do,' even resonates with today's pro-life/pro-choice discussion"
• 
  Elysa

  Placing an overall judgement on a collection of essays is always tricky. This book had some excellent essays and some I didn't enjoy. The collection covered a wide range of ideas, and it was really interesting to read.
• 
  gothgoomba

  This book is a lot of things.... an easy read and comprehensive is not one of them. I spent so much time reading and re reading and not understanding why these essays were considered philosophical beyond mentioning a philosopher here and there.
• 
  Jayshree Salian

  Wasn't exactly what I expected it to be, a nice feminist take at the book though.
• 
  Val Escobar

  Totalmente enriquecedor, me tomo 4 años terminarlo! Pero me ha permitido perder el miedo a leer textos “densos”, una lectura que exigía mi atención. Maravillosa
• 
  Ripley

  I wanted to like this. I really did. However, it wasn't for me.
• 
  Sarah Nestler

  Read before September 2022 and before the Great Cleaning - therefore, I have no rating. But I remember that I read it and did not like it enough to keep it.
• 
  Alyssa May

  This is a great book for Alice in Wonderland fans. This book reminds me of Alice in Zombieland
• 
  Theresa

  I was excited to finally hold this book in my hands. I adored "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" as a child, so this book would be one that would explain those strange things that I didn't get way back then. I opened the book and this chill went through me. I thought: gosh, these are essays and I didn't have much for philosophy in college. Maybe this was above my head. I put the book aside, and read a nice fun fiction book and then came back to it again. I decided it was now or never, so I jumped in and started to read.
  
  I won't lie and tell you I understood everything, however, the book as a whole was enjoyable and very enlightening! I know that I'm going to go back through this book again, after reading Alice in Wonderland over again, and then see if those things I didn't get will be clearer. "Alice... and Philosophy" definitely is a thinking book, and it has provoked lots of thought on my end!
  
  I really enjoyed many of the essays, but I think my favorite was "Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, but Never Jam Today: On Procrastination, Hiking, and ... the Spice Girls?" by Mark D. White. I found the essay made a lot of sense, and his humor was brilliant - even in his footnotes!!" (I didn't know footnotes could be so fascinating or funny).
  
  The essay "Is There Such a Think as a Language?" by Daniel Whiting was excellent and made me look at the language and communication both in the story as well as in our world. Actually, when I think about it, all the essays were thought provoking - even the ones I didn't totally "get".
  
  "Alice... and Philosophy" is really a great addition to one's library. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact I enjoyed it enough to add some of the others of the series to my "must purchase" list and they will be coming home with me the next time I visit my local bookstore!!
• 
  Kate

  Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy gives readers an in-depth and academic look into the world of Alice in Wonderland. Journey deep into the rabbit hole to discover the lasting effects that Alice in Wonderland has had on our society and its pop culture.
  
  Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy is broken down into four sections, which are then broken down further into essays. Each essay is written by various authors and professors who discuss topics from feminism to philosophy to even drug usage. You may be thinking, what does this have to do with Alice in Wonderland the novel? The truth is a lot. On the surface, Lewis Carroll's classic seems to be just about a young girl who travels down the rabbit hole to discover a new world and a great adventure. But the truth is, as with many novels, the novel is filled with many diverse layers. And it is those layers that Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy discusses.
  
  If you are a die-hard Alice in Wonderland fan, then this is definitely going to be a must read for you. However, those who are looking for an enlightening look at the world of Alice in Wonderland, should definitely give this novel a try. You will not be disappointed.
  
  Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy is very well-written in an academic and intellectual way, but it is never dry. The authors infuse humor and pop culture references through out to keep readers entertained as well as relevant. I had a blast reading this novel, and discovered a new outlook on one of my most beloved tales. Fantastic read!
• 
  Samanta

  Philosophy (as a discipline) and I have never really seen eye to eye. I've always found it rather boring, and I counted minutes until the class in high school finished. But when you mix it with beloved themes from pop culture, it gets so much more interesting.
  
  Alice in Wonderland is a peculiar book, and one that is mistakenly considered a children's book, just because the main character is a 7-year-old girl. In Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy, a few, quite funny, and I should think, a tiny bit crazy philosophers, try to address the many peculiarities featured in "Alice stories" and connect them with the world we live in. Thus, you have the feminist view of Alice as a rebel against social conventions, procrastination, the relativity of time, our perception of reality (and if it really is reality), drug use and hallucinations etc.
  
  Some of the essays were very interesting, and some less interesting, but for being a collection of philosophical essays, the book reads very easy, almost like a story. Reading the short CV's of the contributors was a special treat because it gave me another perspective of the whole project.
  
  Although, I'm very fond of "Alice stories", I have to agree with Robert Arp, one of the contributors, when he says:
  
  When I was young, I loved the Alice stories, like any other kid. But now that I'm older, I can't help but think to myself: "What was this Lewis Carroll dude smoking when he wrote this?"
• 
  Diana

  Taken from my
  blog.
  
  I hadn't read anything like this so I was excited when I got the chance to read it!
  
  It was very interesting to see how others took the story of Alice and thought of it in so many different ways. At some times they got me thinking in ways that I hadn't before and made me realize so many things. At times I had thought of the things that they said but at others they made me think of a whole different possibility.
  
  Throughout the book many of the writers used terms that I may not have understood but then they explained what it was and how they took that and related it to Alice. Some times they made comparisons which I found helped a lot with understanding what they were thinking and trying to write.
  
  Overall, I think this would be a great book to read if you are trying to read something different for a change. I enjoyed some of the sections more than others simply because at times it may seem as if that's the way that I sometimes think. I think it was an interesting read that I would recommend.
• 
  Cheryl

  We are all familiar with the story and movie of Alice in Wonderland but have you ever wondered how Alice’s adventures related to real life? Well you can get all your questions or curiosities answered in Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy: Curiouser and Curiouser.
  
  This book is edited by two professors of philosophy but this book does not read like a boring college text book. All the different characters and situations Alice encountered while in Wonderland is dissected and broken out into mini chapters. Chapters like Jam yesterday, jam tomorrow, but never jam today: On procrastination, hiking, and…The Spice Girls? Or Reasoning Down the Rabbit-Hole: Logical Lessons in Wonderland.
  
  I found the topics and the discussions very interesting. I thought this book also showed that fairy tales and movie characters still have to deal with the same issues we do in real life, only you don’t see the behind the scenes. This book would make a good book club selection to discuss with fellow readers. Check this book out but be warned as you will journey down the rabbit hole but you may not want to know how deep it really is.
  
• 
  Jennifer

  My review from my blog:[return][return]Alice In Wonderland and Philosophy is a rather enlightening read about lessons that can be learned through the various characters and their actions in the novel Alice In Wonderland. While I had never looked this deeply into the meaning of Lewis Carol's delightful and fanciful tale before now, William Irwin and Richard Brian Davies decided to as a part of their Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series. So what can be learned? The book is laid out in four parts totaling fourteen chapters each of which is written by a different author. With depth and precision, Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy deconstructs various parts of the story to show the deeper philosophical side and how each can be practically applied to everyday life. My favourite chapter was on logical possibility and tying in Hume's thoughts. Throughout Alice In Wonderland and Philosophy, the reader can look within as well as at the world at large all the while learning about some of the greatest philosophical minds. I found Alice In Wonderland and Philosophy to be a thoroughly engaging read.