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Alice's Adventures Under Ground

by Lewis Carroll (1832–1898)

  • Free to read
  • 1 hour to read
  • 2 chapters
  • Reading level: 7th grade

"Alice's Adventures Under Ground" by Lewis Carroll is a fantastical tale written during the late 19th century, specifically in the Victorian era. This book serves as a facsimile of the original manuscript that eventually evolved into what is now widely known as "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." The likely topic of the book revolves around a young girl's surreal journey through a bizarre underworld filled with whimsical creatures and peculiar events, challenging the norms of logic and reality. In this enchanting narrative, Alice finds herself in a fantastical world after following a perplexed White Rabbit down a rabbit hole. Throughout her journey, she encounters various characters including talking animals and anthropomorphic beings, all of whom challenge her understanding of identity and logic. From shrinking and growing in size through magical food and drinks to navigating peculiar social interactions with the likes of the Caterpillar and the Queen of Hearts, Alice's adventures are both chaotic and philosophical. Ultimately, the story culminates in a bizarre trial, where the Queen's absurdity reigns, leading to a climax that reflects the nonsensical nature of the world Alice has fallen into. The tale ends with Alice awakening from what she realizes has been a curious dream, leaving readers to ponder the fine line between fantasy and reality.

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  • Fantasy fiction
  • Children's stories
  • Imaginary places
  • Alice (Fictitious character from Carroll)

Read the opening

Chapter 8

"You are old, father William," the young man said,
"And your hair is exceedingly white:
And yet you incessantly stand on your head—
Do you think, at your age, it is right?"

"In my youth," father William replied to his son,
"I feared it might injure the brain
But now that I'm perfectly sure I have none,
Why, I do it again and again."

"You are old," said the youth, "as I mentioned before,
And have grown most uncommonly fat:
Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door—
Pray what is the reason of that?"

"In my youth," said the sage, as he shook his gray locks,
"I kept all my limbs very supple,
By the use of this ointment, five shillings the box—
Allow me to sell you a couple."

"You are old," said the youth, "and your jaws are too weak
For anything tougher than suet:
Yet you eat all the goose, with the bones and the beak—
Pray, how did you manage to do it?"

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Contents

  1. Front Matter
  2. Chapter 8

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About this edition

This free edition of Alice's Adventures Under Ground by Lewis Carroll comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #19002, released 2006-08-07. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Children & Young Adult Reading, Science-Fiction & Fantasy, Classics of Literature, British Literature.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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