The Hero of a Whole New Genre

Dodgson was an ingenious man and a hero in his own right. The stories he wrote about nonsense have inflamed the imaginations of children and adults for generations. To every child that has danced to soundtrack of the Walt Disney production of Alice in Wonderland, to those who got read the bedtime story and dream of their own “wonderland,” to every actor that got their "big break" on a Broadway production of Alice, Charles Dodgson is a hero. Like most heroes, Dodgson denied his connection with this story that revolutionized children's literature. Letters addressed to "Lewis Carroll" were thrown away. [i] He did not want credit for the amazing work; he only offered it to society, a token of sorts.

Before the time of Alice’s Adventures, story books for children were often grim. The stories held inside portrayed grave images of people and children who had disobeyed societal norms or the religious beliefs of the collective whole. Most parents today would be horrified to read the stories to their children; yet in the time of Dodgson, these little books were commonly used to teach children morals and “scare” them into obeying their elders and parents. Dodgson’s stories about Alice— while holding a bit of moral ideas— were basically about “nonsense.” The books were simply silly stories to entertain, not to teach. This idea of a children’s novel for the sole purpose of entertaining had been around for a while, but Dodgson’s Alice in Wonderland made it popular. Since then it has not gone out of style.

Hansel & Gredel is an example of the type of stories that were told long before Dodgson's Alice

The success of Dodgson’s books can be attributed to the ability of children to identify with Alice. For the first time (in many cases) the children were being presented with a character that was not perfect. Unlike the common religious books were the child was portrayed as a miniature saint that the child must try to be like, the Alice that Dodgson created is not the ideal child. Alice is not the smartest cookie in the cookie jar; she is very much the average child. She is curious, somewhat thoughtful (in her own childlike way), and concerned only with her portion of the world. She is respectful to those around her, but doesn’t really go out of her way to follow the societal norms. The children identify with this character that is very much like them; because of this, they can really enjoy the story.

The cover of the first published Alice book by Dodgson

Refusing to take credit for his amazing work, Dodgson became a hero that is been recognized around the world. Dodgson captured the imagination of his young readers with the nonsense and silliness that permeated his stories. He introduced a whole new genre into the world of literature; because of this donation, children around the world have laughed and giggled at the thoughtful Caterpillar, the silly Hatter, and the ridiculous Queen of Hearts.

The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

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[i] Anthology p.674 (John Dougill, on Dodgson’s Oxford, in Oxford in English Literature, p. 130)

Alice In Wonderland

As Dougill explains in Oxford in English Literature, Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland is a close parallel to a student's life at the University (in particular, Oxford, but UT applies as well). Charles Dodgson "lived all his adult life"[i] at Christ Church (an Oxford College) — first as a student then as a fellow. As the head of the college’s daughter, little Alice Liddell would have recognized many of the people and places that appear in the text are directly related to people and places at Christ Church. This considered many correlations can be made to our life as freshman entering a university and Alice’s adventures in Wonderland and in the Looking Glass.

The most obvious of these similarities is Alice’s fall down the rabbit hole, akin to our spiraling fall into college life and the “emotional distance involved”[ii] in being separated from everything we have known and “plunged into a peculiar world with its own rules, its own logic, and its own language—the university in altered guise.”[iii] But the small detail in her fall that I find interesting is the incident with the “ORANGE MARMALADE.”[iv] Alice picks it up off of the shelf thinking to find a delicious treat within the jar, but just as we open our refrigerators as freshman we are “disappointed”[v] to find it empty. This is reminiscent of our transformation to college students; we are still use to our parents stocking our food supplies. We realize that now, among all the other responsibilities that we have thrust upon us in our new found “freedom” we have to find a way to feed ourselves. As Alice longed to become a queen but then found that the crown was actually “very heavy,”[vi] we are realizing that the freedom we longed for while living with our parents can actually be somewhat of a burden. When I return home to my parent’s house the small nagging things my mother does that use to drive me crazy are now a comfort. Her determination to still treat me as a child even as I outgrow my teen years is strangely encouraging. I now prefer home cooked meals to eating out and actually listen to my father’s advice. After even a few weeks, I have realized—much like Alice—that “it was much more pleasant at home... I almost wish I hadn’t gone down that rabbit hole.”[vii]

Alice’s inability to recite any of her lessons correctly is another curious incident. While in Wonderland she complains to the caterpillar that “I can’t remember things as I used.”[viii] This correlates to the idea put forth by Dougill that “It doesn’t matter what the professor teaches, it’s what the place teaches, it’s the young spirit that breathes in the hearts of those who are taught.”[ix] Thus we are brought back to the caterpillar’s original question to Alice, “Who are you?”[x] This is a question that plagues both Alice (“Who in the world am I?”[xi]) and us as college freshman. With pressure to decide what we want to do with our life and what to major in to meet that end, we are often overwhelmed. We would do well to take a valuable lesson from Dougill and Carroll and simply learn from our surroundings and “stay here”[xii] until we figure it out.

All in all we can draw endless similarities between Lewis Carroll’s Alice and our own experiences here at the university. But on a lighter note, the one I identify the most with is Alice missing Dinah, her cat. I miss my own Patchis very much…

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[i] Anthology p.671 (John Dougill, on Dodgson’s Oxford, in Oxford in English Literature, p. 127)
[ii] Anthology p.675 (John Dougill, on Dodgson’s Oxford, in Oxford in English Literature, p. 131)
[iii] Anthology p.672 (John Dougill, on Dodgson’s Oxford, in Oxford in English Literature, p. 126)
[iv] Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, in The Annotated Alice, annotated by Martin Gardner (New York, Norton, 2000) 13
[v] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 13
[vi] Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There in The Annotated Alice, annotated by Martin Gardner (New York, Norton, 2000) 248
[vii] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 39
[viii] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 49
[ix] Anthology p.616 (John Dougill, Oxford in English Literature, p. 170)
[x] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 47
[xi] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 23
[xii] Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 24

Ode To The Future Me

In personality tests I am always categorize as a guardian type figure— someone who is a “cornerstone of society.” [i] I am labeled as someone who is concerned with the protection and continuation of the structures and the needs of our community as a whole. I am described as someone who does not always take the foremost role, but who is capable of leading a team to “get the job done.” As general and broad as these descriptions are, they are very true. I tend to keep lists, feel most comfortable working within a proven system, and enjoy keeping things running smoothly. But unlike the general personality type, I am a dreamer. Raising awareness for the children who have been hurt by sexual abuse is forefront among these dreams. But to realize this dream, I need more than the traits that a guardian personality will offer. I need to be a strong leader.

Being a strong leader encompasses many different aspects. I have known many leaders, but the ones that I respect the most are those that are passionate about the work they are doing, those that work to earn respect instead of simply demanding it, and those that understand that everyone is human and makes mistakes— including themselves. When I think over the life that I want to lead I have begun to understand that my long term goals cannot be realized without also transforming myself into a strong leader. The person I look up to the most in this respect is my father.

My father has strong business sense. He is an entrepreneur— a man that believes in himself and never questions his instincts. He is a family man that patterns his life after God’s will and always worries first about providing for my mom, siblings, and I and last about providing for himself. He has years of experience and freely shares the wisdom that it affords him. But at the same time he never shoves this advice at you or demands that you take the path he believes best. He raised my brother, sisters and I to be independent. Not to worry about other people and what they may think, but to do whatever you feel is best for yourself— within the realm of righteous living. We were taught to be courteous of others (especially our elders) and to not tread on the feeling of those who care about us. Out of all of the relationships I value, my father is the person that I would be most proud to emulate. He is my hero and my cheerleader.

When carefully studying my father’s character and his ability to lead without dragging those that follow him, I look at the traits that he possesses and I lack. I find that he has a strong sense of confidence in himself and in his judgment— that he understands and accepts himself and his boundaries, his strengths and his weaknesses. That he is compassionate and sympathetic towards others; he does not judge people based on stereotypical and superficial concepts, and he takes full responsibility for his actions— whether they are good or bad. But the trait that I most admire in my father is that he is a teacher, not is the sense of a vocation but that he shares the knowledge and stories he has gathered throughout his life with others.

The goal that I am most certain of is to become a teacher or professor one day. While this is a vocational goal, I also admire the ability to teach others in everyday life when you are about whatever task you might find yourself— to be a “lifetime teacher.” Because I want to be able to share my passion with others concerning the abuse of children, I have to be able to teach people why this is important. By raising awareness and simply sharing my story, people can become more informed on the subject and learn how to help prevent the abuse in their personal realms of influence.

But to become a teacher and to emulate the qualities that I see in the leaders around me, I must continue to build my character and to educate myself. Thus I enrolled in the Plan II program. According to Newman, the goal of a liberal arts education is the “cultivation of the intellect”[ii] or the construction of the character. The broad based courses required for a Plan II degree open my mind to new ideas and concepts and stretch my understanding of things different from myself. It forces me to try new things and to become a more well rounded person, to stretch my abilities and passions. Thus, ultimately helping me to relate to people that I find myself surrounded by and to become a more compassionate and sympathetic person.

The addition of literature and composition courses is equally important. These courses allow for self-exploration and give me time to delve into the literary accounts of the lives of others and learn from their struggles. May Sarton’s experiment with “aloneness” in the Journal of Solitude[iii] or Alice’s realization in Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There that the position of a queen that she had been so anxious to achieve came with a crown that was actually “very heavy” and “fitted tight”[iv] are excellent examples of knowledge that can be gleaned from both fiction and non-fiction accounts. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the business courses that I am enrolled in help me to develop the skills necessary to succeed in today’s world; almost everything is somehow related to business and commerce. A basic understanding of these concepts will help me to succeed in anything I choose to pursue as well as teach me to be a leader in the business world that I want to work in before becoming a teacher.

Outside of the classroom, extracurricular activities are also important to the development of leadership skills. In Senate of College Councils, I am surrounded by peers that are all diverse with different agendas and goals. Working in this diverse atmosphere to accomplish a common goal is a test of everyone’s abilities. Being involved in clubs gives me a chance to meet different people and make friends with fellow young leaders that are dedicated to making a difference in the world and in UT while we are here. This is the atmosphere where I am allowed to test out the leadership skills that I am learning in the classroom. This “testing ground” is integral to the learning process.

As I attend this university and learn how to apply leadership skills and the ability to teach to my everyday life I am sculpting myself into the type of person that I ultimately want to be. By teaching others the effects of abuse and advocating for those who have lost their innocence I fulfill my passion in life. As a victim, by helping myself become a strong leader and successful person I can provide inspiration to those who have been hurt and lead others to help in the fight against the sexual abuse of children.

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[i] Myers-Briggs Personality Test Descriptions, http://www.keirsey.com/handler.aspx?s=keirsey&f=%20fourtemps&tab=2&c=overview
[ii] Newman, “From Idea of a University” in vol.1, The Composition and Reading in World Literature Anthology, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn’s Copy and Binding, 2008) 319
[iii] May Sarton, Journal of Solitude (New York: Norton, 1992)
[iv] Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There in The Annotated Alice, annotated by Martin Gardner (New York, Norton, 2000) 248

UT Heroes

When I decided to come to UT it was not because someone famous had graduated from this institution, but because numerous famous people had graduated from these prestigious halls. No one person can make an institution worthy, but the tradition of excellence that has become the norm over the years sets the University of Texas apart in many respects.


As I read over the many accounts from different alumni that have gone on to greatness, certain points stand out to me: Margaret Cousins description of Austin as "the Athens of the West" (x: 942), Tom Jones honest admittance of having "loved it" (X: 951) when speaking about UT, or even John Schwartz simple description of the UT experience being "illuminating" (X: 973). I tend to identify with each of these points. There has not been a single moment here on campus that I have not enjoyed with every fiber of my being. The world of academia is where I belong— it calls out to me, drawing me in as a mother hen shelters her young. I have known for a long time that UT is a place of illumination; but as I read over these accounts, I realized that what you choose to do with this illumination is ultimately what crowns you either a UT alumni or a UT hero.

UT heroes are not necessarily the brightest students to walk our 40 acres, but they are always the leaders. As Red McCombs pointed out when receiving the UT Distinguished Alumni Award, " I'm representative of the group of C-students who didn't distinguish themselves in a given field, but still were contributors to their communities and were in leadership roles." (X: 989) By his own admittance he was not the brightest business student, but he was a leader and knew how to make his degree and the knowledge he had gleaned from this institution work for him. As a successful man he became a true UT hero— learning not only to take in life, but to give back as well.


Each of the heroes listed identify UT and Austin with a certain amount of surreal nostalgia that surrounds their time here at my current home— a time of “intellectual awakening” (X: 989) and “freedom without responsibility.”(X: 943) They describe being truly happy and content, full of life and opportunities. These accounts are inspirational and saddening at the same time. They remind me that this time of my life is only a short season, but inspire me to dream of all the opportunities that await me outside of these lush, "tree studded" (x: 942) grounds. I admire their accomplishments and imagine doing things even greater. Many may call these people UT heroes, but I deem them UT role models. They are people that every student can look up to; people that every student can relate to, because after all, in these accounts they are simply students like me and you.