Alice In Wonderland Gender Roles

The female role, in children’s books, may go against traditions, but can rarely be considered rebellious against the cultural norms. Children’s books should not be rebellious, because while plenty of room for improvement in the department of feminism, it is not a burden that should be thrusted upon children. Since children will one day be the ones in charge it is important to introduce them to progressive ideas but until then, it is the adult’s responsibility to handle complex issues. Books can show new ideas, and positive roles for women without overturning the social norm. Robert Munsch’s The Paper Bag Princes, E. B. White’s Charlotte’s Web, and Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland go a long way is showing women in different roles

In the Victorian era, women were fighting for such simple human rights as comfortable clothing, and the ability to vote. Men who opposed this were doing what they could to keep women restricted. Medical doctors even fabricated ailments such as, “Bike Face” to prevent women from using bicycles to increase their mobility, and furthering their goals. While the character in the book Alice came across as incredibly ignorant of danger, which is a negative quality associated with women, she was curious, and relatively fearless, which is qualities that most men of her era would not approve of. These qualities and types of thinking, if encouraged in a girl, could move women from restricted house wife, to enabled citizen. The other prominent female are the Duchess and the Queen. The mercurial Duchess who berates a baby, then is overly nice to Alice. While the Queen who can be perfectly summed up as entitled, and overly violent, to the point that she beheads people for simply messing up her game of croquet. Both are negative stereotypes for women, but it makes Carroll’s opposition to the female norm that much better. As his curious and brave Alice is in opposition to these clichés. The best part it is Carroll’s surreptitiousness; Alice is not crazy brave, or crazy smart, or crazy inquisitive, she is simply a little girl in a bizarre situation. By using a little girl in a bizarre situation, Alice does not stand out as a rebel. She goes against cultural norms without anyone noticing, she fits right it her time while still pushing the