Customer Reviews

Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy: Curiouser and Curiouser (The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series)

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Smartly written, loaded with insights, facts, historical references, and a wee bit of conjecture. An excellent companion piece that no Alice in Wonderland fan should be without.

I also highly recommend:

Alice in Verse: The Lost Rhymes of Wonderland -- without question, the best Wonderland/Looking-Glass book since the original.

and

The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition -- as its subtitle indicates, this is THE definitive edition of Carroll's original books.

Here is another book that came into my house and was instantly claimed by my son. This is a series of essays brings up some excellent points about Lewis Carroll, his history and the impact on today's world. The fact that Alice In Wonderland is still relevant today shows what a great author Carroll was and how thoughtful this child's tale actually is. Of course, there are the expected such as drugs and Alice, but there is the unexpected as well, like nuclear weapons and the Red Queen. I think you may want to go back and reread Alice a few more times after this book.

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!

Picture a book of philosophy essays by various academics and you might, as I did, have been a bit dubious about what you were about to read. I was utterly taken with Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy, edited by Richard Brian Davis, part of a series of pop culture philosophy books put out by Wiley and edited by Professor William Irwin. Other titles include The Simpsons and Philosophy, Batman and Philosophy, etc.

The book consists of a collection of essays by primarily philosophy and literature faculty and grad students from the US, UK, and Canada. As such, you get a variety of styles and looks at Alice, so if you don't like one, you can quickly skip forward and see what comes next. While I love non-fiction, I found one or two of the essays a bit hard going.

But it was worth it to get through them all. I don't think I have ever learned so much about philosophers like David Hume, or John Locke, or Nietzsche, as I did in the essays that dealt with them. Having philosophy placed in the context of a well-known book, even a fairy tale like Alice, helped to make some concepts like "will to ignorance" and "matters of fact" easy to understand.

Readers will be exposed to quite a variety of philosophers as well, in quick bites as the authors move through their takes on the story. All are well written and many have citations you can follow up, if necessary. Some, like Prof. White's essay, are downright funny. My favorites were Prof. White's essay on procrastination ("Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow"), Profs. Dunn and McDonald's on nonsense ("6 Impossible Things Before Breakfast"), and soon-to-be Dr. Shea's look at inductive reasoning ("Three Ways of Getting it Wrong: Induction in Wonderland"). Also enjoyable was Prof. Lloyd's view of "Unruly Alice" and a feminist slant on Alice.

This book balances scholarly writing with accessible reading. Citations are at the end of the essay, not in the text, and the authors cover a lot of ground and seem to be making an obvious attempt to keep up a readable pace. Anyone interested in philosophy at a relatively high level, and probably high school age or older, will find this a great way to learn something new about both Alice in Wonderland and philosophy.

John V. Karavitis I enjoy reading books from this series. You get re-exposed to a large number of different philosophers and philosophical topics, and the fact that the essays are tied to a pop culture TV series or movie makes the reading that much more enjoyable. I knew about Alice In Wonderland (who hasn't heard of it), and was looking forward to reading this book. All in all it's a decent entry in the series, but a number of the essays were weak, in fact, a couple of them were downright silly/incomprehensible, and a couple more meandered on their discussion. In my humble opinion, at the very least you can can skip the very two first essays and not miss a beat. The one that I enjoyed best was Brendan Shea's "Three Ways of Getting It Wrong: Induction in Wonderland", where we go from Hume (induction as the way we learn about the world) to Quine (the theory of underdetermination as a limitation to theories about how the world works) as we re-visit epistomology. Regardless of how good or bad these entries in the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series are, you will always find an essay or two that are real gems. Recommended, but watch out for that first step into the rabbit hole, it's a long way down. John V. Karavitis

Certainly, Alice in Wonderland is a timeless, children's classic, right..or is it? Yes, I think it is, without question, a timeless classic but the question is whether is really is just a children's book. Personally, I always thought it was a bit too bizarre for many kids and is really one of those books perhaps best revisited as an adult. To quote the book's cover, in Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll

"...introduces us to such oddities as a blue caterpillar who smoke a hookah, a cat whose grin remains after its head has faded away, and a White Queen who lives backward and remembers forward."

I know after reading this book of essays about the many questions of a philosophical nature that can be explored as they relate to Alice, I need to take another look at the original.

For example, have you ever though of little Alice as a feminist icon? Well if not, perhaps you should, as one of the 14 essays in the book, this one by Megan Lloyd, suggests.

"By rejecting daisy chains and following white rabbits, assertive Alice already sees the possibility in the real world she occupies. Alice offers another world for young women, one that need not be dull. Hers is a reality where women author their own tales, work out their own problems, expect the extraordinary, and speak their minds. Faced with continuing mistreatment and stereotypical expectations, today's young woman do well to ask themselves, what would Alice do?"

You can take a deeper look at Alice and her adventures, while at the same time learning a bit about some of the Big Questions. A number of your big name thinkers make an appearance, from Plato and Socrates to Kant and Nietzsche, but don't be too concerned if you eyes glaze over a bit when you hear those names. A number of big philosophical topics from logic, inductive reasoning and the meaning of language are explored as they relate to Wonderland, but again, fear not. Most of these essays are written in a clear, easily accessible way and you can ignore the endnotes if you wish. I admit, I wished. Also, a number of the essays are quite funny, my personal favorite being Mark White's "Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, But Never Jam Today: On Procrastination, Hiking, and...The Spiceabout philosophy Girls?" As an admitted procrastinator, I think this one in particular spoke to me.

This book is part of the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series, a series of more than 20 books that has taken on subjects such as Battlestar Galactica, South Park, 24 and one I really need to check out, Mad Men, as they relate to a variety of philosophical issues. As they say on their site at [...] , maybe a little sugar of the popular subjects make the medicine of a little deeper thinking go down easier...."the unexamined life is not worth living and the unexamined sitcom is not worth watching."

In large part, an entertaining book, part of an intriguing series and certainly a must read for any serious fans of Alice in Wonderland.

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.

Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy sparked my curiosity. I've heard many times how Carroll wrote deeper meaning into his Alice stories, and that they shouldn't be taken as children's novels. With that in mind, I dove into the book with the wicked abandon, much as Alice as did when she followed the White Rabbit.

The first chapter didn't disappoint. I greedily gobbled up the thoughts of Alice as a metaphor for young women coming of age. I couldn't wait to see what followed.

Much of the remainder of the book is a veritable rabbit's hole full of nuclear bombs, Spice Girls, Utahn Hikers, Morpheus with his red and blue pills, and the philosophy of Aristotle, Socrates, Plato, Nietzsche, Kafka, and others. While interesting, some of the essays left me wondering if their authors suffered from a sane curiosity or a curious sanity.

That said, the complete book isn't without its nuggets of knowledge sprinkled throughout the essays - just enough to keep you reading through the end.

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.

Alice In Wonderland And Philosophy: Curiouser and Curiouser is comprised of four subject sections. Each section is divided into chapters/essays, all written by different authors, typically a professor. Despite each essay being written by academics, it was easy to read and I did not struggle through this.

My favorite essay in this book was Unruly Alice: A Feminist View of Some Adventures in Wonderland by Megan S. Lloyd which, obviously was a feminist reading of Alice In Wonderland. My inner-feminist loved the portrayal of Alice as a strong girl who knows what she wants, thinks for herself, is inquistive and who is often not well-behaved.

The topics discussed in Alice In Wonderland And Philosophy run the gamut from procrastination to definitions of reality to time perception to Spice World. This was such a cool and smart way to look at a book. I definitely want to pick up the Harry Potter book of the Blackwell series now as well as the The Simpsons book, since I would love to see these takes on pop culture.

Here's a few quotes that spoke to me:

"Indeed, Alice eats and drinks what she sees, intrudes, barges in, takes her seat at the tea party uninvited, hears a squeaking pencil from one juror and takes it from him, uses her intellect to solve problems, and frequently speaks her mind--everything young women should do." pg. 9

Preach it, sista.

"Alice's sister longs for a similar experience, and muses about how these strange tales relieve us from the boredom and dullness of our everyday existence. They brighten the ordinary with excitement and allow us to transcend the commonplace, at least for a while."

And isn't that why we all read books? To transcend the commonplace? I think that will be my new excuse when my nose is in a book.

This book is imaginative and very fascinating. Alice in Wonderland has always held a magical place in my reading experience and this title compliments the story wonderfully. This is my first experience with such an astute group of writers willing to tackle the very ephemeral Alice. It was a treat to read,and I highly recommend it if you like expanding your mind. Because you will.

Some info about the book:

The perfect companion to Lewis Carroll's classic book and director Tim Burton's March 2010 remake of Alice in Wonderland.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has fascinated children and adults alike for generations. Why does Lewis Carroll introduce us to such oddities as blue caterpillars who smoke hookahs, cats whose grins remain after their heads have faded away, and a White Queen who lives backwards and remembers forwards? Is it all just nonsense? Was Carroll under the influence? This book probes the deeper underlying meaning in the Alice books, and reveals a world rich with philosophical life lessons. Tapping into some of the greatest philosophical minds that ever livedAristotle, Hume, Hobbes, and NietzscheAlice in Wonderland and Philosophy explores lifes ultimate questions through the eyes of perhaps the most endearing heroine in all of literature.

Looks at compelling issues such as perception and reality as well as how logic fares in a world of lunacy, the Mad Hatter, clocks, and temporal passage

Offers new insights into favorite Alice in Wonderland characters and scenes, including the Mad Hatter and his tea party, the violent Queen of Hearts, and the grinning Cheshire Cat.

Accessible and entertaining, Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy will enrich your experience of Alice's timeless adventures with new meaning and fun.

About the Editors

RICHARD BRIAN DAVIS is an associate professor of philosophy at Tyndale University College and the coeditor of 24 and Philosophy.

WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles, including Batman and Philosophy, House and Philosophy, and Watchmen and Philosophy.