Rosalind Wiseman

Teachers, if you’re looking for a great field trip to close out the school year, go see Alice in Wonderland.  I saw it last Friday (what better way to celebrate my birthday) and fell in love with the inspiring female protagonist in the latest adaptation of the classic Lewis Carroll tale.

This version – brought to life by the fantastically quirky director Tim Burton – is actually more a sequel to the original. Alice is now a 19-year-old in Victorian London, being pushed into marriage by her mother, and believes that Wonderland is merely an imaginary place from her recurring dreams. The spirited Alice who first took a trip down the rabbit hole years before is still a curious dreamer, but the film’s creators set out to invigorate this Alice with strong self-agency.

Wonderland screenwriter Linda Woolverton told the New York Times, “I do feel it’s really important to depict strong-willed, empowered women, because women and girls need role models, which is what art and characters are. Girls who are empowered have an opportunity to make their own choices, difficult choices, and set out on their own road.”

Caution: Spoiler Alert!

Alice is so inspiring not because she merely kills the evil Jabberwocky, fulfilling what was “destined” of her. Instead, Alice chooses her own path because she wants to do what’s right and help her friends.  Yes, she doubts her ability along the way, thinking it would be “impossible” to fight such a beast (she’d be crazy not to). But in the end is encouraged by the words her father once spoke:

“Sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

Alice finds her strength, saves the day, and then returns to real life to turn down her marriage proposal in favor a job with her father’s trading company. And that’s not the only reason why Wonderland makes a great subject for media literacy; it’s also rich with allusions to the Girl World Box and social hierarchy roles—Hello Red Queen (Bee)!

So, take your students to see Alice in Wonderland and start a discussion with these questions:

• What scenes and quotes from the film illustrate Alice’s self-agency? (Examples include her declaration to Absolem she’s not a “stupid girl”; the discussions of her being the “right Alice”; when she dismisses the Mad Hatter’s proclamation that she’s lost her “muchness”; as well as those described above)
• Why is self-agency important for all of us?
• How is Alice a “Champion”?
• How is the Red Queen like a “Queen Bee”? (Push kids to explain further than just “she’s mean”— some examples include the way in which she controls those around her; how she feels people and things are disposable unless they are of use to her; and her constant fear of being overthrown and needing to maintain her power.)
• Why do the Queen’s followers pretend to all have odd physical characteristics?
• What did you think of the White Queen? What role in Girl World does she play? (This character was rather flat, and hypocritically says she cannot kill the Jabberwocky because it’s “against her vows,” so it would be interesting to see whether kids will pick up on this.)