The Authentic Alice and the Wrong Alice: The Different Messages between Lewis Carroll’s Novel Tim Burton’s Movie Adaptions
Tim Burton’s film, Alice in Wonderland (2010), is seen as a sequel of Lewis
Carroll’s original novel in the nineteenth century, Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland. In
Burton’s film, he sets that Alice is a nineteen-year-old girl, and she backs to
Wonderland, which is called Underland in this film, again. It seems that the director
has created another Alice in his film. Like Dormouse in the film, she argues
constantly that Alice is not the right one. Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (2010)
seems to create another Alice and express the feminist power, which is the same as
Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland, yet the image has been reversed
into a kind of masculinization symbol. Unlike Carroll’s version, this film is like a
journey that Alice becomes maturity and show feminine power rather than a journey
for puberty so that she can figure out a solution of her teenage crisis in reality.
It is said that Tim Burton’s film shares some similarities with Carroll’s novel;
however, some differences, namely Alice’s age and the setting of the film, arouse
people to question whether she is the right Alice or not. Both historical backgrounds
are in the nineteenth century, Victorian era, in London. Most characters are the same,
boisterous and full of curiosity girl. Burton would like to create another Alice in his
film; he says that "she's a very annoying, odd little girl [in Lewis Carroll’s novel]. I
wanted to make her into a character I could identify with: quiet, internal, not
comfortable in her own skin, not quite knowing how to deal with things, being both
young and having an old soul" (Turrell). In addition, both the director and the
screenwriter, Linda Woolverton, have said that it is a different Alice, for “This is not a
film version of the Alice books, but a film that uses significant characters borrowed
from the Alice books to creates a new story and continuation of the Alice books”
(Susina 181). Burton borrows some materials from Carroll and illustrate another story.
Underland, which differs from Wonderland, is a symbol of subconscious.
Subconscious is a mixture of reality and dream. Subconscious is “using symbols and
metaphors, your subconscious mind communicates with you through dreams,
providing you with these analogies to help you process certain situations or events.
You may look up the meaning of these symbols” (Jangid n.p.). In Carroll’s novel,
Alice falls into Wonderland, which can refer to a dream; in contrast with it, Burton’s
sets the world where Alice falls into is called Underland. It is much darker and violent
reality. It is apparent that characters whom Burton’s Alice meets in Underland can
correspond to her friends to relatives in reality in London. Since Burton’s Alice has to
face her teenager crisis, such as her marriage, she enters into her subconscious; then
she can empower herself in the real world to move on her crisis. It might make
audiences confuse because Burton interweaves reality and dream. In the beginning of
the film, Hamish can see caterpillar. It seems that Underland exists. Tweedledee and
Tweedledum represent her friends, twin sisters; Red Queen is like Hamish’s mother;
Knave of Hearts is similar to elder sister’s husband. In Burton’s film, Alice feels
confused about whether Underland is a dream or not. She tries many times to prove
that she can wake up from her dream. The way that she examines whether it is dream
or not makes herself feel painful. However, no matter she gives herself a pinch or is
hurt by the Bandersnatch, she feels painful. She starts to believe that it is a real world
and follows the prophecy to kill Jabberwocky. When Alice comes back from
Underland, time does not pass. It is like a dream. Interweaving reality and dream,
Burton replaces Wonderland to Underland so that Alice can enter her subconscious.
The prominent and significant goal of the journey in Underland is a process of
seven-year-girl Alice, to illustrate feminine power. Both Carroll’s Alice and Burton’s
try to break the norm of Victorian era. Carroll uses “the satire on the social
conventions, manners and etiquette of the Victorian era, which is represented though
the bizarre conversations and situations with Wonderland creatures in which Alice
gets involved” (Huici). People in Victorian era are asked to have a good manner.
Carroll creates Wonderland, a nonsense world, to contrast with the real world. Alice
goes to Wonderland alone. Her bravery and curiosity not only find her identity but
also break the norm of Victorian era. For example, Carroll’s Alice not only argue with
King and Queen in Wonderland but also tired of caring the baby to indicate the
abandoned woman’s basic responsibility, maternity. Burton’s Alice enters to
Underland alone as well. However, the journey in Underland is not just for her
identity anymore, but for another mission – to kill Jabberwocky in Underland. In
Burton’s film, it is apparent for audiences to find that there are more violent scenes
than Carroll’s novel. Burton’s Alice faces some violent scenes and she is forced to
fight for the habitants in Underland. Violent scenes are necessary parts in this film. In
the way of maturity, it means that she must enter into adult world. In words, it
Underland is dark and gloomy. Burton would like to create a heroine who conquers all
plights that she meets in Underland and wears an armor of knight. When Alice comes
to Underland, she is questioned by Dormouse again and again. Habitants in
Underland would like to find the right Alice. However, Alice does not know whether
she is the right one whom they are looking for. After she sees the prophecy which she
is destined to fulfill – to kill Jabberwocky, she thinks that she is not the right one.
Caterpillar: “Who are you?
Alice: “I thought we settled this. I’m Alice, but not that one.”
Caterpillar: “How do you know?”
Alice: “You said so yourself.”
Caterpillar: “I said you were not hardly Alice, but you’re much more her
now. In fact, you’re almost Alice.”
(Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland)
Through the journey in Underland, Alice tries to identify herself. She is indicated by
some scenes or characters, especially Mad Hatter. Mad Hatter is the one who believes
that she is the right Alice, who just loses her “muchess.” All these things push Alice to
to own a new identity or a new life.
Caterpillar: “I can’t help you if you don’t even know who
you are, stupid girl.”
Alice: “I’m not stupid. My name is Alice, I live in London.
I have a mother named Helen and sister named Margaret.
My father was Charles Kingsleigh. He had a vision that
stretched halfway around the world, and nothing could stop
him. I’m his daughter, Alice Kingsleigh.”
Caterpillar: “Alice at last!”
(Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland)
After she reaffirms her identity, she realizes that it is not a dream, but a memory of
childhood. Killing Jabberwocky makes Alice changes because “She returns to the real
world with a rejuvenated self-concept, her independence secur[ity] in light of a
newly-embraced identity. ‘This is my life,’ she tells her older sister. ‘I’ll decide what
to do with it’” (Caroline Leal and Elise Leal). She knows that she can do it if she
believes in herself, and she is also aware that she can be her own master in life. She
It may be apparent that Burton’s film should be seen as a feminine power
because of Alice’s alone and brave journey in Underland. However, “Burton’s modern
adaptation pushes Alice into traditional male roles, such as becoming a knight in
shining armor and embarking on a career in the capitalist trade industry, to prove her
worth” (Brink 3). In Brink’s critic, he addresses that Alice’s feminist power has been
masculinized. He thinks that Alice kill Jabberwocky by wearing an armor of knight,
yet armor is a symbol of masculinity. It seems that women still needs men’s power to
conquer plights. The other point of masculinity which he mentions in his critic is that
Alice do business in the end. Business is a men’s activity. This plot, in his opinion,
indicates that she enters a world of masculinity. Brink’s statement provides a different
angle of this film. However, it may be more like another meaning in Burton’s film.
Since Burton’s Alice wears an armor and hold to sword to kill Jabberwocky, she
breaks the boundary between men and women and indicates that armor is not only the
symbol of masculinity. In the end of the film, Alice choose to do business with her
father’s friend rather than follow her mother’s will to marry someone whom she does
not like. She is more insistent than the past Alice. She dares to voice for herself. The
becomes more confident and brave enough to challenge in men’s world.
Consequently, although Tim Burton’s film, Alice in Wonderland, is seen as a
sequel of Carroll’s novel, Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland, Burton just borrows some
elements from Carroll’s novel to tell another story. Alice seems can be anyone
because she is becoming in Underland, from hardly Alice, almost Alice to the right
one. In addition, Underland is different from Wonderland. The former one refers to
subconscious, and the latter one is a dream. Burton interweaves reality and dream to
help Alice enter her subconscious to heard the voice in her deep mind in order to
figure out how to deal with her problem in reality. In the end of the film, she becomes
her own master of her life. It seems that the journey of Underland leads her to a new
life. In Underland, she manifests six impossible things which her father has said in
reality. Mad Hatter tells her that the best people are bonkers, and so is Alice. Both two
things help Alice to be aware that she has potential power, and she dares to be what
she wants to be even though she may be seen as a bonkers person. Alice knows that
she can follow her mind in the end. Therefore, Alice can be anyone; anyone can be
Alice. Tim Burton just uses the flame of Carroll’s novel to address that the journey in
Works Cited
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<http://hdl.handle.net/1946/22790>
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