UNIT: ALICE IN WONDERLAND

I. Why did I chose this theme ? Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, shortened to Alice in Wonderland is a novel written by the English author

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson better known under his pen name Lewis Caroll in 1865. A girl whose name is Alice notices a strange dressed rabbit and decides to follow him. She falls into a rabbit hole and arrives in a fantasy world, Wonderland. The story tells her adventures with the different and odd characters she meets as the Mad Hatter, the Caterpillar or the Queen of Hearts.

I chose this theme because Alice in Wonderland is a masterpiece in literature and became in this way a source of inspiration for a lot of artists throughout the world. Indeed, we can obviously find this theme in literature as well as music, movies and even fashion. Moreover, I really love the universe of Alice in Wonderland especially its eccentric characters and the way people adapt this world in their art.

II. Alice in pictures

Annie Leibovitz is well-known American photographer; she was born in 1949 and has worked for magazines like Vogue US, Rolling Stones (the cover of John Lennon and Yoko Ono), Vanity Fair (Demi Moore pregnant) or has taken a photo of famous people like Queen Elizabeth II, Bill Gates or Michael Jackson.

In 2008, she did a photo shooting for the Vogue US about Alice with the Russian model Natalia Vodianova as Alice and the others characters are played by world-famous fashion designers like Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld, John Galliano and more. It’s my favorite work of her because I found this shooting poetic, beautiful and obviously well done. Plus, I admire most of the designers in the shooting and I really enjoyed seeing them in the world of Alice.

By the way, we can see that she didn’t really follow John Tenniel’s illustrations, one of the most famous artist for Alice in Wonderland.

Alice in Wonderland

By Annie

Leibovitz

III. Alice in music

They both come from the OST of the movie Alice in Wonderland by Tim Burton

The Poison, All American Rejects

You were so young, And I guess im old. Open your eyes, I’ll keep mine closed. I prefer standing, And you take your seat. Ill be wide awake, And you'll fall asleep. And you'll fall down a hole. That's the one place we both know You take me with you if you could, but I wouldn't go I guess sometimes we both loose our minds, to find a better road. I can be pensive, You can be so sure. You'll be the poison, You'll be the cure. I'm alone on the journey, I'm alive none the less, And when you do your very worst, Mmmmm it feels the best.

And you'll fall down a hole. That's the one place we both know. You take me with you if you could, but I wouldn't go. I guess sometimes we both loose our minds, and find a better road. And you'll fall down a hole. That's the one place in this world that we both know. You take me with you if you could, But if you could i'd lose everything. Can't you see the faces melting as the sun rains from their eyes, Go on and keep your head with the hearts that you left behind. Look at yourself, look in the mirror, don't you see a lie? That you tell yourself again a thousand times. And the truth that makes us laugh will make you cry, You wanna die? No? So you fall down a hole, Thats the one place where we both know, You take me with you if you could but I wouldn't go. Because sometimes, we both loose our minds to find a better road.

Alice’s Theme, Danny Elfman

Oh, Alice, dear where have you been? So near, so far or in between? What have you heard what have you seen? Alice, Alice, please, Alice! Oh, tell us are you big or small To try this one or try them all Its such a long, long way to fall Alice, Alice, oh, Alice How can you know this way not that? You choose the door you choose the path Perhaps you should be coming back Another day, another day And nothing is quite what is seems You’re dreaming are you dreaming, oh, Alice? (Oh, how will you find your way? Oh, how will you find your way?) (There’s no time for tears today. There’s no time for tears today.) (There’s no time for tears today. There’s no time for tears today.) So many doors how did you choose So much to gain so much to lose So many things got in your way No time today, no time today Be careful not to lose your head Just think of what the doormouse said Alice! Did someone pull you by the hand? How many miles to Wonderland? Please tell us so well understand Alice Alice Oh, Alice (Oh how will you find you way? Oh, how will you find you way?)

IV. Alice in cinema

I chose the animation Alice and the movie Alice in Wonderland directed by Tim Burton, the two of them belong to Disney. The two extracts are about Alice meeting the Mad Hatter and his friends. Moreover, they are very different, one is a singing scene whereas the other one is a way darker and it’s only dialogues. We can see two interpretations of Alice.

Vidéo "The Unbirthday" (Disney)