Alice In Wonderland, Eccentricity In Chapter 11

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How does Carroll present Eccentricity in Chapter 11? The chapter begins by describing the courtroom of Wonderland. As the reader would expect, the courtroom is not a normal one, mainly because the inhabitants are not supposed to be there, e.g. birds and beasts. The reader is first introduced to eccentricity in this chapter by the appearance of the King, who is also playing the judge, “The judge, by the way, was the King; and, as he wore his crown over his wig”. This shows eccentricity as firstly, the King is not supposed to be in the courtroom, let alone playing the judge, and secondly, he should not be wearing the crown as well as the wig, it should be one or the other. This eccentricity also provides humour for younger readers as they can imagine how silly the King must look. A little way into the chapter, the reader is introduced to the jurors. This is perfectly normal in a courtroom and brings back some order for the reader. However as the reader carries on, it is clear that Carroll is juxtaposing the formality of the courtroom, “all the jurors were writing down 'Stupid things!'”. Here Carroll is using eccentricity to present to the audience how literal and formal the jurors usually are and how it can make them become confused if they don’t relax a little. Carroll is also bringing up the issue of identity again in this chapter, “for fear they should forget them before the end of the trial”, showing that it is not only Alice who struggles with finding her identity in Wonderland. By doing this, Carroll also provides a link back to the beginning of the book and carries on the theme running throughout of identity. Carroll also juxtaposes the formality of the courtroom by allowing Alice to interact with the jurors whilst they are writing down, to them, important things, “This, of course, Alice could not stand , and she went round the court , and got behind him,
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