How Wanderer Alice became Warrior Alice, and why
By Kristina Aikens
In this Article, Aikens compares the traditional cultural views of woman in society to the journey Alice takes in the stories of “Alice Adventures in Wonderland” and the Tim Burton’s Adaptation of “Through the Looking Glass”.
She argues that Alice is the first character who serves as a role model for women in that she isn’t tied down to domestic obligations. She emphasizes Alice’s sense of curiosity enables her to wonder places she normally wouldn’t be allowed to go to. Alice lacks self-control and follows her impulses, not worrying about the consequences of her actions. For example, indulges in things that are labeled “eat me” or “drink me”. Aikens also discusses how women aren’t known to engage in drug experimentation, and that “man would be secure enough in his identity to survive the destabilizing effect of hallucinogens”, rather than woman since they are considered inferior. In Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, Alice takes the role of a warrior, a role that only men are perceived to manage. Alice doesn’t have fear, and she isn’t worried about expressing her emotions and ideas, even in the face of authority. She doesn’t have any goals and is oriented on her own ideas and perceptions, and isn’t forced to do things she wouldn’t want to.
