Complete Alice in Wonderland - L. Carroll [158]
1858: Phantastes, by George MacDonald, is published. Some of the elements of this story (such a person falling asleep and waking in Fairy Land) would probably inspire Carroll in his improvised storytelling of the first “Alice” stories.
1858: Carroll creates a photograph featuring undergraduate Quentin Twiss, dressed as “the Artful Dodger.” This portrayal (arguably) may have influenced his direction to Tenniel in the later design and illustration of the Hatter in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
November 24, 1859: Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species. (As a veiled jest in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, an intelligent monkey will appear in the background of the illustration featuring Alice speaking with the Dodo at the Pool of Tears.)
November, 1860: A discussion in the month’s issue of Notes and Queries (likely read by Carroll, a follower) features a discussion on the origin of the phrase “to grin like a Cheshire-Cat.”
December 12, 1860: Carroll meets Queen Victoria and members of the Royal Family. (Carroll’s fixation on tales concerning queens, such as the “Alice” stories, may have been a result of the great importance he placed on this meeting.)
Late December?, 1861: Following his ordination, Carroll struggles to control his worsening stammer. (This affliction likely led to him portraying himself as the Dodo in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, since his own pronunciation of his last name was often “Do-Do-Dodgson.”)
June 27, 1862: During a boating trip, Carroll and the Liddell sisters are caught in the rain. (This episode is alluded to in Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, and more distantly in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, when Alice complains about trying to become dry after swimming in the Pool of Tears.)
July 4, 1862: Carroll and his friend, Robinson Duckworth (known as “the Duck”), take the Liddell sisters up the river Isis on a boating adventure. While rowing, Carroll improvises a story, which will later become Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alice asks Carroll to write the story down.
August 1, 1862: Carroll listens to the Liddell sisters perform the song “Beautiful Star.” (This will later be parodied in the Mock Turtle’s song, “Beautiful Soup”.)
November 13, 1862: Carroll begins formally writing down Alice’s adventures.
February 10, 1863: By this time, Carroll has completed the manuscript for Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, the first version of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. His illustrations, however, are not yet complete.
March 10, 1863: Carroll takes Alice to see the fireworks and illuminations conducted to celebrate the marriage of the Prince of Wales to Princess Alexandra in Denmark. (Some of the pageantry of this event will later be included in the royal feast episode of the Red Queen in Through the Looking-Glass.)
April 15, 1863: Carroll takes a train journey with Miss Prickett and the Liddell children. (This episode will later be referenced in the train chapter of Through the Looking-Glass.)
March, 1863: Carroll writes a dedicatory poem entitled “Life’s ‘Pleasance’” that will later become the prefatory poem in Through the Looking-Glass.
May 9, 1863: Carroll presents the manuscript of Alice’s Adventures Under Ground to his friend, the author George MacDonald. Based on the enthusiastic reception of the work by MacDonald’s children, Carroll considers publication.
June 27, 1863: Carroll and Mrs. Liddell suffer some form of social mishap (rumored to relate to Carroll’s perceived interest in the Liddell girls, and speculation among uninformed observers). Carroll and Alice may have been forbidden to see one another at this time.
October 19, 1863: Carroll inquires with Macmillan about publishing Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. The publisher expresses interest.
October 1863: Robinson Duckworth encourages Carroll to speak to John Tenniel (the cartoonist for Punch) about creating illustrations for a published version of Alice’s Adventures Under Ground.