Curious And Curiouser: Alice in Wonderland

On Aug. 2, 1865 — 160 years ago Saturday — Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” was first published in London.

The author had paid all the publication expenses himself, however, his illustrator was dismayed at the poor quality of the copies that came off the presses. So the author discarded the 2,000 copies he had printed and had the book reprinted. It would finally hit shelves in time for the 1865 holiday season.

Linger a while with us to learn more about that and at least six other impossible things before you have breakfast ...

'Oh, You can't Help that. We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.'

The man we call Lewis Carroll was born Charles Lutwidge Dodgson in January 1832 in Cheshire, England. His family included a number of British military officers and noted officials of the Anglican church.

Dodgson suffered from a number of health problems. He suffered illnesses that left him deaf in one ear and that caused him chronic breathing issues. In addition, he struggled with what he called his “hesitation” — a stammer he kept his entire life.

Dodgson taught mathematics at Christ Church College in Oxford, England and made photographic portraits of families and their children in his spare time. He became friends with the dean of the college, Henry Liddell, and his children.

Seven-year-old Alice Liddell, photographed by Dodgson in 1860.

In July 1862, Dodgson and a colleague took Liddell’s three daughters — Lorina (age 13), Alice (10) and Edith Mary (8) — on a five-mile boating trip up the River Thames. Dodgson entertained the girls by making up a story about Alice falling down a rabbit hole and running into all sorts of strange creatures there.

Entranced, Alice suggested Dodgson write the story down. Which seemed like a grand idea to him. As he wrote, he expanded his tale and began considering publishing a children’s book. He was already a published author, having written a book on Algebraic Geometry two years before.

In November 1864, Dodgson was finished with his manuscript. He called it “Alice’s Adventures Underground” and illustrated it himself. He presented Alice with a copy — perhaps the same copy that resides today in the British Library. It’s the only copy of that version of Dodgson’s manuscript that’s known to exist.

Dodgson approached his friend, Alexander MacMillan — who owned a noted London publishing house — about publishing his work. They discussed alternative titles such as “Alice Among the Fairies” and “Alice’s Hour in Elfland” before settling on “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.”

Dodgson realized his own drawings weren’t up to snuff, so he recruited John Tenniel, a political cartoonist for Punch magazine, to illustrate his book. Dodgson wanted complete control over the final product, so he agreed to pay Tenniel out of his own earnings and to have the manuscript typeset himself as well.

Dodgson had the book attributed to Lewis Carroll, a name he had used for some of his previously published poetry work. His hope was to keep his poetry and children’s book separated from the papers and books he’d publish as a mathematician and scholar.

The name itself is an example of Dodgson’s complex sense of humor. He had created the name by translating his first and middle names into Latin. Charles Lutwidge became “Carolus Ludovicus.” He then translated the name back into English and reversed the order of the names into “Lewis Carroll.”

Dodgson in 1863, photographed by Oscar G. Rejlander, who had collaborated with Charles Darwin on a book about evolution.

'What Is The Use Of A Book Without Pictures or Conversations?'

A first edition copy

The first run of 2,000 books were ready on Aug. 2, 1865. Tenniel was horrified when he saw a copy — it was poorly printed, he complained.

Dodgson agreed and had the books — which hadn’t yet been bound — discarded and reprinted. This cost Dodgson more than half his annual salary. The rejected pages were sent to a New York publisher and sold in the U.S.

“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” was wildly successful. The first run sold out and a new edition — carrying an 1866 publish date — were printed for Christmas.

Queen Victoria enjoyed the book so much that she urged Dodgson to dedicate his next book to her. So he did: “An Elementary Treatise on Determinants, With Their Application to Simultaneous Linear Equations and Algebraic Equations.”

In the 160 years since it was first published, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” has never gone out of print. It’s been translated into 174 languages.

A self-portrait by John Tenniel

'I Give Myself Very Good Advice, But I Very Seldom Follow it'

Dodgson continued to publish scholarly works on mathematics and his poetry work. Twenty-six of his poems were presented in his 1869 book “Phantasmagoria and Other Poems.”

He began floating the idea for an Alice sequel as early as August 1866. “Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There” was published in time for the 1871 Holiday season but carried a publish date of 1872. Within weeks, more than 15,000 copies were sold.

Dodgson was recognized as a savvy marketer of his Alice characters and stories. He designed items like cookie tins and postage stamp cases that helped him promote his properties.

In December 1886, the first musical stage production of Dodgson’s Alice books debuted in London’s West End. The first filmed version of “Alice in Wonderland” was a silent movie released in 1903. Walt Disney tried to make a live-action Alice adaptation in 1933 but dropped his plans when another studio beat him to it. He eventually released an animated version in 1951.

In the 1880s, Dodgson began experiencing migrane headaches and a rare neurological disorder that causes hallucinations resulting in the sufferer feeling like they are growing smaller or larger — a phenomenon that has since been named Alice in Wonderland syndrome.

Dodgson died of pneumonia in January 1898. He was 65.

The state of merchandising in 1865: An Alice in Wonderland postage stamp case ...

..and an 1890 version for younger readers.