Previous
Rushes
Upon reaching the Eighth Square, Alice discovers a large crown upon her head—she's now become a queen. However, the crown is big, awkward, and something that Alice has to get used to. This, combined with Alice's unsatisfactory experience as a queen, suggest that being an adult isn't as great as it might seem at first. Alice is just as lost in Looking-glass World as a queen as she was as a pawn, suggesting that the crown—the signifier of queendom, or of adulthood—is nothing more than a signifier. Adults, Carroll suggests, are just as lost in the world as Alice and other children are.
Alice's Crown Quotes in Through the Looking-Glass
The Through the Looking-Glass quotes below all refer to the symbol of Alice's Crown. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapters 9-10: Queen Alice; Shaking
Quotes
So she got up and walked about—rather stiffly just at first, as she was afraid that the crown might come off: but she comforted herself with the thought that there was nobody to see her, "and if I really am a Queen," she said as she sat down again, "I shall be able to manage it quite well in time."
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Everything was happening so oddly that she didn't feel a bit surprised at finding the Red Queen and the White Queen sitting close to her, one on each side: she would have liked very much to ask them how they came there, but she feared it would not be quite civil.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Through the Looking-Glass LitChart as a printable PDF.
Alice's Crown Symbol Timeline in Through the Looking-Glass
The timeline below shows where the symbol Alice's Crown appears in Through the Looking-Glass. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 8: "It's My Own Invention"
...there's something on her head. She lifts it off and sees that it's a golden crown.
(full context)
Chapters 9-10: Queen Alice; Shaking
...loll on the lawn. She gets up and walks stiffly, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with the crown and worried it'll fall off. She decides to practice and, if she really is a...
(full context)
