Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy

239 Pages·2010·2.76 MB·English

by  Richard Brian Davis

IRWIN
PHILOSOPHY/POP CULTURE W I L L I A M I RW I N
S E R I E S E D I T O R :
A E D I T E D B Y RICHARD BRIAN DAVIS
Should the Cheshire Cat’s grin make us reconsider
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the nature of reality? i
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Can Humpty Dumpty make words mean whatever I
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he says they mean? W
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Can drugs take us down the rabbit-hole?
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Is Alice a feminist icon? L
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Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has fascinated children and adults alike for
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generations. Why does Lewis Carroll introduce us to such oddities as a blue
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caterpillar who smokes a hookah, a cat whose grin remains after its head has
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faded away, and a White Queen who lives backward and remembers forward? Is D
it all just nonsense? Was Carroll under the infl uence? This book probes the deeper P
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underlying meaning in the Alice books and reveals a world rich with philosophical
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life lessons. Tapping into some of the greatest philosophical minds that ever lived— L
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Aristotle, Hume, Hobbes, and Nietzsche—Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy S
explores life’s ultimate questions through the eyes of perhaps the most endearing O
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heroine in all of literature.
H
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RICHARD BRIAN DAVIS is an associate professor of philosophy at Tyndale

University College and the coeditor of 24 and Philosophy. c
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WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, u
s
Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as e
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coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent a
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titles, including Batman and Philosophy, House and Philosophy, and Watchmen
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and Philosophy. u
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To learn more about the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, s
visit www.andphilosophy.com e
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$17.95 USA/$21.95 CAN
Cover Design: Paul McCarthy
Cover Image: © Getty Images
EDITED BY
DAVIS
BLACKWELL PHILOSOPHY AND POP CULTURE SERIES
This book has not been approved, licensed, or sponsored by any entity or person
involved in creating or producing Alice in Wonderland, the novels or films.
ISBN: 978-0-470-55836-2 EAN: 9780470558362
A L I C E I N
W O N D E R L A N D
A N D
P H I L O S O P H Y
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The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series
Series Editor: William Irwin
South Park and Philosophy Batman and Philosophy
Edited by Robert Arp Edited by Mark D. White and
Robert Arp
Metallica and Philosophy
Edited by William Irwin House and Philosophy
Edited by Henry Jacoby
Family Guy and Philosophy
Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski Watchmen and Philosophy
Edited by Mark D. White
The Daily Show and Philosophy
Edited by Jason Holt X-Men and Philosophy
Edited by Rebecca Housel and
Lost and Philosophy
J. Jeremy Wisnewski
Edited by Sharon Kaye
Terminator and Philosophy
24 and Philosophy
Edited by Richard Brown and
Edited by Richard Davis,
Kevin Decker
Jennifer Hart Weed, and
Ronald Weed Heroes and Philosophy
Edited by David Kyle Johnson
Battlestar Galactica and
Philosophy Twilight and Philosophy
Edited by Jason T. Eberl Edited by Rebecca Housel and
J. Jeremy Wisnewski
The Offi ce and Philosophy
Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski Final Fantasy and Philosophy
Edited by Jason P. Blahuta and
Michel S. Beaulieu
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A L I C E I N
W O N D E R L A N D
A N D
P H I L O S O P H Y
CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER
Edited by Richard Brian Davis
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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Copyright © 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
Chapter opener design by Forty-Five Degree Design LLC
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or trans-
mitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording,
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy : curiouser and curiouser / edited by Richard
Brian Davis.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-55836-2 (pbk.)
1. Carroll, Lewis, 1832-1898. Alice’s adventures in Wonderland. 2. Philosophy
in literature. 3. Literature–Philosophy. I. Davis, Richard Brian, 1963–
PR4611.A73A54 2010
823' .8–dc22
2009037590
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: “It’s My Own Invention”—
Yeah, Right! ix
Introduction: You’re Late for a Very
Important Date 1
PART ONE
“WAKE UP, ALICE DEAR”
1 Unruly Alice: A Feminist View of Some
Adventures in Wonderland 7
Megan S. Lloyd
2 Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, but Never
Jam Today: On Procrastination, Hiking,
and . . . the Spice Girls? 19
Mark D. White
3 Nuclear Strategists in Wonderland 33
Ron Hirschbein
4 “You’re Nothing but a Pack of Cards!”:
Alice Doesn’t Have a Social Contract 47
Dennis Knepp
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vi CONTENTS
PART TWO
“THAT’S LOGIC”
5 “Six Impossible Things before Breakfast” 61
George A. Dunn and Brian McDonald
6 Reasoning Down the Rabbit-Hole: Logical
Lessons in Wonderland 79
David S. Brown
7 Three Ways of Getting It Wrong: Induction in
Wonderland 93
Brendan Shea
8 Is There Such a Thing as a Language? 107
Daniel Whiting
PART THREE
“WE’RE ALL MAD HERE”
9 Alice, Perception, and Reality: Jell-O
Mistaken for Stones 125
Robert Arp
10 How Deep Does the Rabbit-Hole Go?:
Drugs and Dreams, Perception and Reality 137
Scott F. Parker
11 Perspectivism and Tragedy: A Nietzschean
Interpretation of Alice’s Adventure 153
Rick Mayock
12 Wishing It Were Some Other Time: The
Temporal Passage of Alice 167
Mark W. Westmoreland
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CONTENTS vii
PART FOUR
“WHO IN THE WORLD AM I?”
13 Serious Nonsense 183
Charles Taliaferro and Elizabeth Olson
14 “Memory and Muchness”: Alice and the
Philosophy of Memory 197
Tyler Shores
CONTRIBUTORS: Pawns and Pieces: As Arranged
before Commencement of Game 213
INDEX: “Down, Down, Down”: What You Will
Find at the Bottom 219
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
“ It ’ s My Own Invention ”— Y eah, Right!
“ Oh, I ’ ve had such a curious dream. ” Since it seems as though
I ’ ve just edited a book, I’ d better single out a few individu-
als for special praise. Thanks are due to Connie Santisteban
at Wiley, who was no doubt tempted (at points) to speak the
dreaded words of the White Rabbit: “ Oh my ears and whis-
kers, how late it ’s getting!” She didn’ t . And to Bill Irwin, who
pushed me— o r rather let me jump —i nto the rabbit hole.
Working with Bill is sweet: “ a sort of mixed fl avour of cherry -
tart, custard, pineapple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered
toast. ” And fi nally, to my daughters, Madelyn and Emma, who
urged me on at every turn. My wish for you is that you would
grow up to be (in Megan Lloyd’ s words) as “ u nfl appable, confi -
dent, assertive” as Alice herself. To Madelyn and Emma Davis,
I dedicate this book.
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