[1]
Another character is presented as mortal, without hesitation, making us wonder whether our character can distinguish immortal features or he/she is accustomed to deal with such distinctions. Curiously enough, this is being stressed plenty of times, creating an atmosphere of mystic and arcane devices from superior beings, still unknown our rank in that stratum.
This woman is clearly recognizable from Coleridge’s poem as the damsel with a dulcimer -carrying a lute instead.
“A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,”
From: [32]Turn away from this dark sea and seek a way out into the forest
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#1>
[2]
We may choose to answer rudely. This option is rather appreciated by those who seek a chaotic path and wish to force the actions to see their repercussions. In a true roleplaying experience we can play evil characters, although it might have ill effects.
From: [8]“Enough questions. Show me the lute!”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#2>
[3]
Related to [14] but with an addition in the responses chart: “Are you truly a mortal?”. It is not obvious to us why this link is shown in this fragment and is neglected in the other one.
This solemn phrase, which evokes a chant or a title, prompts her laughing. Perhaps it pictures our character within a certain social frame to which we are not aware. We do not know if she understands what it implies.
From: [15] “I am the west wind and the morning star.” [19]“I am the west wind and the morning star.” [18]“I am the west wind and the morning star.”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#3>
[4]
She is a little offended by his/her distrust this time. Nevertheless, she forgives him/her as she is a trusting woman, a characteristic that we have collected from every action that she executes, even when she is endangered.
Her society might also be honor-bound, since she doesn’t take lightly the words pronounced and seems to be more distressed by the rejection of her presentation rather than by the attempted robbery.
[Perhaps you have not yet tried to seize her lute, but I needed to compare these two actions]
From: [8]“I have seen mortal women before, but I do not think you are mortal.” [12]“I have seen mortal women before, but I do not think you are mortal.”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#4>
[5]
Her attitude is serene and forgiving. Despite of the many possible mistakes and offences we might have committed, she is permissive and understanding, probably the most amiable soul we may find in our adventure.
From: [2]“I am sorry lady. I don’t know what possessed me to such behavior.”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#5>
[6]
Many links in this hypertext direct to this particular moment, which presumably was key to the developing of the story. There are two core items in the dialogue with the woman: her robe and her lute. The first, to cover our character’s nudity, and the second, to describe and react to this wonderful instrument. Possibly, these two are less specific subjects and, therefore, most common to bring in their conversation, without much advancing the plot.
From: [14]“May I see your lovely strange lute?”; [18]“What a lovely instrument. May I see it?”; [12]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [3]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [7] “May I see your lute?” [20]“May I see your lovely dulcimer?” [19]“What a lovely instrument. May I hold it?” [18]“What a lovely instrument. May I hold it?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#6>
[7]
Here we are presented with a hint on the nature of our character, additional information: his/her name unfolds an enchantment that is felt in the environment. Through this unexpected event we understand that our presence in that particular world is not ordinary, since a denizen is not able to point out the causes for this magical experience.
From: [9] “What was that?” [10] “What was that?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#7>
[8]
A hint on her social status: a servant most probably as she introduces herself as a simple woman instead of addressing herself as a noble. She might work in the court, which provides her with elaborate dresses. We identify this woman with the lute with that of Coleridge’s poem with the dulcimer. The latter had also a similar job as a maid:
A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,
From: [15] “Who are you, and what sort of creature?” [3]“Are you truly a mortal?” [19] “And what sort of creature are you?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#8>
[9]
The sole fact of distinguishing between a mere name and a “true” name implies that there is some magical attachment to the latter, which is reinforced by the use of asterisks, stressing out this option amongst the other ones. There exists some kind of peril intrinsic to this action and it is promptly shown by the subtle change in the environment that our character cannot identify at first glance.
From: [8]* Give your own true name. *
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#9>
[10]
There is contradiction in her actions and words: she may be a simple woman in her functions, but she is swift and she magically protects her possessions -the lute.
She seems amiable nevertheless, and tries to comfort us with her friendly attitude.
From: [9] Flee through the archway before she can conjure.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#10>
[11]
| She puts a hand on your shoulder. “Wait! I won’t harm you.”You are startled by the speed of her movements. But the sparkle of her laughter puts you at ease. |
|
[68]“Lady, have you a cloak or tunic?” |
We have no option but to ask her again about the clothes, which turns out to be awkward as it does not further develop into a different topic after our intended escape. Also, a mere tap on our shoulder is enough to give up the thought: we are not meant to resist. (See Conclusion for a discourse over this idea)
From: [69]Flee through the archway
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#11>
[12]
There is contradiction in her actions and words: she may be a simple woman in her functions, but she is swift and she magically protects her possessions -the lute.
She seems amiable nevertheless, and tries to comfort us with her friendly attitude.
From: [13] Flee through the archway
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#12>
[13]
She saw us first, but somehow we managed to vanish from her sight. Now we are hidden, we can choose the next step to follow, in the same way we would have needed to decide in a real-life situation.
From: [1]Hide from the mortal
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#13>
[14]
We may come to this fragment either by laughing out loud without an obvious reason or by stating that we do not speak strangely. Either way, she will overwhelm us with her smile to the point we will not be concerned by a possible enchantment. Nevertheless, we still are suspicious and do not forget about the magic of the place. Our character definitely is aware of the mechanisms of magic, since he/she always considers this threat while interacting with strangers.
From: [13] Break into laughter; [8] “I speak not strangely at all!”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#14>
[15]
On the one hand, this picture seems straightforward to us, as readers who can understand the embarrassment of being naked. On the other hand, the act of bowing down to someone to perform a salutation is already outdated or alien to the western culture. For the Asian, this might be normal and well-mannered, but to us it brings us the notion of medieval times and chivalrous customs, which are retained and lavished by Romantics and the present-day fantasy genre, which fits well with the magic atmosphere of this narrative.
From: [1] Speak to the mortal woman
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#15>
[16]
| The mortal woman smiles sadly as you make off with her strange and wondrous lute.As you run, gaps of glaring light open in the tiles under your feet. Everywhere you look is a terrible glaring whiteness.
You awaken in a mundane world without mystery or wonder. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
Similar to [17], although with a distinction in whether you carry with you the lute or not.
After robbing the lute, she does not attempt to catch us, as she knows the destiny that awaits us. We awaken in a mundane world, not specified whether it is the real world or the original to which our character belongs. (I presume our character is not a ‘normal’ person, since he/she is not as astonished to deal with magic as an actual human would be.) (Read the Conclusion for further ideas on this subject.)
If you click on “+ T H E E N D +” you will be taken to the beginning, as you probably have failed in pursuing the mysterious dome. The author understands that you may want to restart and avoid the mistake choosing another option next time or following a completely different path, in a gamely fashion.
From: [6] Flee through the archway, taking the instrument with you; [6] Hold tight to the wonderful lute and race down the stairs to the dock
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#16>
[17]
| The mortal woman smiles sadly as you try to seize her instrument. Something is drawing you back away from her.Gaps of glaring light open in the tiles under your feet. Everywhere you look is a terrible glaring whiteness.
You awaken in a mundane world without mystery or wonder. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
Similar to [16], although with a distinction in whether you carry with you the lute or not.
She does not perform any evident hostile action but awaits as we are being taken away by some force. We awaken in a mundane world, not specified whether it is the real world or the original to which our character belongs. (I presume our character is not a ‘normal’ person, since he/she is not as astonished to deal with magic as an actual human would be.) (Read the Conclusion for further ideas on this subject.)
If you click on “+ T H E E N D +” you will be taken to the beginning, as you probably have failed in pursuing the mysterious dome. The author understands that you may want to restart and avoid the mistake choosing another option next time or following a completely different path, in a gamely fashion.
From: [2] Seize the dulcimer by force.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#17>
[18]
We are not able -this time- to steal the lute from her. Nevertheless, we are not punished by our actions but instead can try a whole new range of topics that might have not come to our mind. The option of trying to catch her lute is presented many times in the dialogue, as if it had a particular attraction to us.
Strangely, even if we have acted hostile in our first encounter, she is forgiving and trusting, and might give it to us employing the proper polite words. Although we might find many enemies across our search of the dome, she does not seem to associate with evil nor harms us.
From: [13] Take the instrument
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#18>
[19]
Should we choose to seek her attention, she will be startled and will ask for our name. Instead of freely giving it, we can question her about her nature, her lute or for some clothes; or we can answer in a riddle, a poetic phrase to introduce ourselves. The option for giving our name is discarded, although this seems an appropriate situation to select it. Any answer we choose, she will not be uneasy with the ignorance, and will not introduce herself either on any fragment of text.
From: [13] Tap her shoulder
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#19>
[20]
Previously she referred to herself as a simple woman, a musician. She maintains this statement and declares that the only magic she knows is the one produced by music. Whether this assertion is literal or figurative, we do not know, although she might be related to magic nevertheless, as she is protected by a concealed barrier which prevents us from stealing her lute. Perhaps this level of magic is common to the inhabitants of the dome, or maybe she represents a more significant entity.
Our character reacted to this menace suspecting that it might be an enchantment. This observation leads us to think that magic is not foreign to him/her and that he/she understands that names may be used as tools for it.
We may arrive to this point from a phrase stating that we serve Umbriel the Queen. Now we know a little more about her: her name is neither common nor modern, and may be inspired in the satellite of Uranus -Umbriel. Somehow, it invokes a feeling of darkness from the etymology of the word: ‘umbra’ – shade, shadow in Latin.
From: [9] “You will not conjure with my name.” [10]“You will not conjure with my name. I serve Umbriel the Queen.”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#20>
[21]
| The wall is built of stone, netted with ivy, and overhanging near the top. You climb easily over the wall and drop down the far side.
The sounds and smells of the night forest are comfortable and familiar. It is almost like waking from a dream. |
|
Report your strange discovery to the Queen.[*] |
We may not continue this path, since it was not written. Through this, we might have been able to inform the Queen, and thus meet her for the first time as readers, and know more about the period and society in which our character grew. A clearer background would have made us aware of the distinctions between his/her reality and the experiences in the region.
On the other side of the wall, our character returns to his/her homeland. He/she can now identify everything that surrounds him and distinguishes the past experience inside the neighboring areas of the dome, drawing a borderline by means of this fence, which surrounds the entire complex as in Kubla Khan:
“With walls and towers were girdled round”
From: [46]Climb over the wall, swift and fleet
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#21>
[22]
| A faint path winds deep into the forest, rising slowly. Soon you are climbing more steeply. Soft needles prickle your feet beneath the outstretched bows of great fir trees.The path brings you to the base of granite slab. Its hard smooth surface is cool to the touch. |
|
[25]Climb up the stone slab.[26]Find a way around.
[42]Return to the river. |
We chose to penetrate into the forest, where we soon find a path that we automatically follow until we come to its end: a slab with no markings. The forest is inclined in hills towards the centre, ruled by the dome which we are seeking. This forest is a simile of the one in Kubla Khan, further detailed in subsequent fragments.
“And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree ;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.”
From: [34] Delve into the secret places of the forest
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#22>
[23]
| You slide nimbly down the smooth stone slab and land with a bounce on a pile of fir needles and few old birch leaves. The air seems very still here after the open breezes up on the rock. You hear the croak of a distant toad. |
|
[26]Find a way around the stone slab.[42]Return to the river. |
We might choose to go back to the point when we decided to climb and look around for another path. At this moment, as we already tried to drag ourselves up the stone lab, it is not offered once more. The author describes to us the difference in the quality of the air from the breeze we felt up on the slab and the quiet air in the forest, among other details, to acquire a more elaborated feeling of the surroundings.
From: [29]Slide down. [28]Slide down.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#23>
[24]
| When you reach the top of the slab you discover that the path continues. Whoever made this path must climb directly up the slab. |
|
[27]Follow the path on up the sloop. |
At first glance, climbing the slab would have seemed unnecessary and whimsical. Nevertheless, it is revealed that it was a requisite to continue our way along the path. This makes us believe it was some kind of fortuitous trial.
From: [25]Climb to the top. [29]Climb upward to the top of the rock face. [28]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#24>
[25]
We stop at the middle of our action. This gives us an in-depth view of our ‘humanoid’ nature, spending some lines in mundane details that ornate the narration and makes us empathise with the effort of our character. He/she needs to rest, hence he/she takes a breath. The author takes this opportunity to allow us to reflect over the past, scout the area or continue straight away.
From: [22]Climb up the stone slab.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#25>
[26]
| You scramble over lose rock and through brambles around the edge of the steep stone slab. A frightened snake skitters away. When you make your way around to the top of the slab you discover that the path continues. Whoever made this path must climb directly up the slab. |
|
[27]Follow the path on up the sloop. |
After sliding down or ignoring the slab altogether you find that the way was meant to be followed up the stone slab, so your only option is to climb it, once you’ve chosen to find the path around it.
This image adds to the conception of the forest that we had in our minds the idea of savage and rugged. A path is a way built by humans in the pursuit of connecting places, so the place is not inhabited, but it certainly is secluded.
From: [22]Find a way around. [23]Find a way around the stone slab.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#26>
[27]
Another curious detail to add to our picture of the land is the fact that it has many unique features that seem odd to our character, such as the growing of that oak tree in a hill -perhaps the weather in that part of the world is not cold enough for these species and he/she considers it strange. These characteristics are meant to isolate this area from the outside world, turning it into a bizarre phenomenon.
When we continue along the path, we hear somebody coming towards us. We can ignore this event and go on, shout at him or hide, but either way is under construction, so we will not know who will be. The only other character we physically encountered was a lady with a lute if we dreamt on the lawn or by effect of the river, following other links. Probably it isn’t her, due to the fact that it would have bound us to a similar conversation already written. Then, we do not know who this stranger is nor his intentions, but calling out loud could be as dangerous as trying to approach the guards at the wall.
From: [26]Follow the path on up the sloop. [24]Follow the path on up the sloop.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#27>
[28]
| A tantalizing view stretches out below you. The moon frosts a fertile land like a wild garden of flowers, trees, fields and fountains. Through it all runs the glittering and sinuous river. Its voice is soft but clear from your high vantage. Beyond the river, more spectacular than before, you look down now upon the luminous dome, glittering like a net of stars.Here and there in the distance you can make out long walls climbing the hill tops. Whether they are many walls or one, you cannot tell. But they look to be the heavy work of human folk. |
|
[29]Think back over the events of this night.[24]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
[23]Slide down. |
We finally achieve a view over the valley which helps us framing the scenery: there are more or less the same items as in Kubla Khan:
A stately pleasure-dome decree :
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.
So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round :
And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree ;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.
The walls -our character asserts that they were erected by humans- circle around the dome, which was previously considered a non-mortal construction, in a defensive stance, guarding it from invaders with unwavering determination. Every detail described from above seems utterly beautiful and Eden-like, although when advancing deeply into the territory their perils emerge with a similar voluptuosness.
From: [25]Gaze out at the night view. [29]Gaze out at the night view.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#28>
[29]
| The night was fresh and young when you set out to explore the creek. Beasts and birds slept or hunted in the forest, much like any night. You followed the gully, rising steep-walled into the northern hills. Finally, you emerged on the plateau by a small spring.You first glimpsed the wall from the pool of the spring. It continued as far as you travelled in either direction; so you climbed it and made your way through that garden land until you glimpsed that luminous dome.
You can see the dome glowing in the valley below you now. |
|
[28]Gaze out at the night view.[24]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
[23]Slide down. |
The events could lead us to have a more centred background for our character: he/she explored at night some location, rather irrational for a traveler to scout at that time, not carrying any equipment, hence we understand our character was not far from home or he/she was a free soul that lived and enjoyed the wilderness. Most probably, he/she was having a nightly stroll, due to his/her knowledge of the area and its animal inhabitants.
He/she reflects over the past actions that took him/her to that place and some geographical locations that are unknown to us and completely framed in nature.
Our meditation stops at the point we had gazed at the dome, and redirects us to the present, that is sharing the same view that we had at that time.
From: [25]Think back over the events of this night. [28]Think back over the events of this night.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#29>
[30]
| You dream of falling in a vast blackness full of stars. Tiny stones whirl around a cloud of gas. Mortal armies fight ceaselessly in the vault of time. You land on a bed of feathers to hear the screeching of geese. Star dust and a million seeds fall around you. It is daylight in a small hut. There are mortals everywhere and you are naked, without tunic or possessions. You hide in the dark and cannot find your way out. |
|
[31]–* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **——-++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * - |
You may choose not to fight the circumstances and rest. Probably, in a situation like this, strange and menacing, we would not take this decision. Nevertheless, this has consequences that go beyond the mere passing of time. Our character falls asleep and, by influx of the flower’s scent or the enchanted waters you sleep and teleported among mortals and nude (you may end up dreaming as a result of the three actions linked below). Reality seems to melt with imaginings, and our character wakes up somewhere else.
Instead of a simple “Next” link, the author conceived ASCII signs as a more powerful instrument for transmitting the idea of being asleep in a sort of oneiric wavy line. This dream is as relevant to the plot as the whole “Vision in a Dream” that is the subtitle of “Kubla Khan“. In the poem, the emperor ‘hears’ about war, the same way we dream of armies fighting:
“And ‘mid this tumult Kubla heard from far
Ancestral voices prophesying war !”
This contrast between an idyllic scenery and the danger entangled in it is a constant feature throughout the narrative as well as the poem. The enticing nature of ‘start dust’ and the ‘million seeds’ that evoke purifying rain are opposed by the many perils faced by the character, both in the dome’s terrain and in the dreams it conjures.
From: [46]Oh well. It doesn’t matter. Settle down for a nap; [41] Drink deeply. Sleep… [63]Sleep…
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#30>
[31]
| You struggle in complete darkness for a long time. Finally, you see a faint glow. As you move nearer it becomes torch light glistening on water. You are naked and alone on a tiled porch lit by many torches. Dark water laps against a stone dock below. |
|
[32]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—- |
Another feature presented in Kubla Khan is incorporated to this hypertext: we are no longer under the moon but inside some dark caves to where the river comes.
“Through wood and dale the sacred river ran,
Then reached the caverns measureless to man,”
From: [30]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—-
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#31>
[32]
| You are standing on a floor of many-colored tile. It chills your bare feet but is very beautiful. An exquisitely carved rail runs around three sides of the porch. A wall of marble towers above you; at it’s base a broad archway. Torches burn in glittering stanchions on the rail. Their glow returns like starlight from the quiet water below. But the sky is absolutely black. |
|
[1]Turn away from this dark sea and seek a way out into the forest. |
From the moment we decided to sleep, we have been driven through dreams and darkness -not having a chance to decide upon our fate- up until we arrive to some sort of arched construction from which we are meant to leave (that is the sole link provided).
A hypothesis about the black sky that the author mentions may be that the character is indeed inside a cave of huge proportions and low temperature, for there is such a cavern in Kubla Khan‘s refrain: “A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice !” (described as “caverns measureless to man”). There’s no mention of trees, lawns or flowers, neither visually nor sensitive, which unconsciously frames it as a contrasting scenery.
From: [31]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—-
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#32>
[33]
| “We should enter now. It is best that we not keep the lord waiting. I am to play at tonight’s feast.”She leads the way through the arch, into a long dim tunnel. A chill wind flows through the tunnel making you shiver. |
|
Follow.[*]Turn back.[*] |
This way, the narrative is broken again. It raises many questions such as the identity of the lord, whether he knows our character is coming or not, and where the tunnel leads among others.
Some notion of temporality is inserted through these links. The usual responses to our nudity and her instrument are eluded when she realizes the passing of time, although we could not advance to this moment unless we asked her about mortality, insisting. This might be so because of the nature of the text, with many unfinished sections; the tendency may have been to continue altogether to the meeting with this lord.
From: [4]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [4] “Have you a cloak or tunic?”; [5]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [5]“Have you a cloak or tunic?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#33>
[34]
Any reader will start reading this fragment, that presents us with the first and probably most decisive set of choices. In this beginning, the author introduces us to a marvelous world in which, as we grasp its features, fantastic events are possible. We recognize the unrealistic setting through the first impression of our character, that acknowledges the dome as created by immortals of some sort. This early assumption and the mesmerizing composition that tells us about secrets and wonders, makes us realize that we are going to witness some sort of fantasy plot.
The inspiration on the poem of Samuel Coleridge, Kubla Khan, is apparent in these few lines, whereas the famed “pleasure-dome” erected by the emperor is now a work of non-mortals, stating that such impressive creation cannot be built by humans, and thus transforming the realistic-aimed poem of Coleridge into a fantasy tale.
Further discussed in the Conclusion.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#34>
[35]
These two short paragraphs show us exclusively the distress and restlessness that accompany the quest. Soon we discover the dreadful nature of this place, full of wonders as well as of perils. These characteristics are also patent in Kubla Khan, particularly in this fragment:
“But oh ! that deep romantic chasm which slanted
Down the green hill athwart a cedarn cover !
A savage place ! as holy and enchanted
As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted
By woman wailing for her demon-lover !
And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,
A mighty fountain momently was forced :
Amid whose swift half-intermitted burst
Huge fragments vaulted like rebounding hail,
Or chaffy grain beneath the thresher’s flail :
And ‘mid these dancing rocks at once and ever
It flung up momently the sacred river.
Five miles meandering with a mazy motio”
The voices we hear could be that of the woman seeking her demon-lover, or merely a by-product of the haunted forest. The water the author refers to pertains to the sacred river that travels across the area, surrounding the dome. The distant tumult we are not able to identify might as well be due to the course of the waters.
From: [34] Attend the voices of the night
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#35>
[36]
We have chosen to cross the river through the way illuminated by the moon, as if it were a game. We are able to pursue joy even when we are immerse in a risky situation, surrounded by a landscape unknown to us. Perhaps it is in our nature to linger over fun and pleasure, trusting natural elements as if it all were benign.
From: [34] Cross the shimmering path of moon beams
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#36>
[37]
The link led us to another self-amusement scene. This playful diversion makes us wonder if our character is accustomed to the wilds in such a way that he/she looks as content as ever when delaying his/her duties in the pursuit of childish delight.
Employing such an expression as “taming wild dragons” propels us directly into a world which keeps those creatures, although in the same grade of respectful distance as we are used to see in fantasy tales and even real historical recordings of the medieval ages.
From: [36]Cross back for the sheer joy of riding moon beams.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#37>
[38]
| You thrash wildly, arching your body and grasping at foam until direction loses all meaning. You cry out to the Queen but your mouth is full of water. |
|
[49]Keep struggling.
[49]Surrender to the river. |
Our circumstances seem quite severe. In this short fragment we can only observe the process of the fight but none of the results, anticipating a tragic ending. We express our profound serfdom to the queen by means of directing our desperate thought towards her -perhaps we come from a royalist society or we belong to a circle close to her.
From: [40]Struggle to do something. Anything!
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#38>
[39]
| It’s not summer. It’s autumn, and you are under a spell!The roar of the river drowns out all other sounds. Rushing water drowns out all other sights. Water surrounds your body. It tastes clean and wild. The smell of it is like wind off the mountains. |
|
[40]What a beautiful night… |
Now the narrator corrects us exclaiming: because of the mildness of the weather and the calm river we thought it was summer, but we are mistaken, dazzled, and got caught by a spell. The river gets hold of our senses and envelops us. We retain a feeling of peril thanks to the adjectives and verbs that describe the situation in risky or violent terms -roar, drowns, rushing, surrounds. However, this danger is bound to the force of nature, that might have been angered by an enchantment, and its magnificence, thus we are given a picture of compelling waters and landscapes.
From: [37]Swim soft, sweet, swirling, summer night.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#39>
[40]
To our character, there exists no doubt in attributing the river’s reaction to magic. Nevertheless, it could be that we are being carried by the tumult of a plentiful river that pushes us to the bottom, in a natural way. We cannot assess neither as correct, therefore we will accept our character’s interpretation, which places us in a delicate situation.
From: [39]What a beautiful night…
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#40>
[41]
| As the water touches your mouth you know it is enchanted. A thousand years of moths circle your mind like a candle flame. Their many colored wings are a wonder and a terror. Wings like veined marble. Wings like writhing flames. They fall on you like snow burying some tiny creature beside a toadstool. |
|
[42]Leap up and dispel the enchantment!
[30]Drink deeply. Sleep… |
Drinking from the river’s waters produce both an amazing image in our mind and a sense of impeding danger. This dichotomy between beauty and peril exists in almost every wonder that we might come across, probably because of a web of enchantments that prevent us from disrupting the calmness of this place.
From: [34] Drink of the dark noisy waters
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#41>
[42]
We find now the same choices as in the beginning. The description has changed though: now it covers the smells and the light sources in the night. The river is not calm but wild, plentiful with foam and, as we learned, dangerous. The dome competes in brightness with the moon reflected in the water, preluding an impressive construction which we considered not human-made.
In our scouting we encounter unfamiliar essences as well, which make us develop a stronger notion about the strangeness of this place. Not only as readers, but also as characters, we understand that the situation is awkward and learn that every step might trigger an unexpected event. We grow more prudent.
From: [41] Leap up and dispel the enchantment! [35]Break free of this revery. There is much to be done. [22]Return to the river. [23]Return to the river.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#42>
[43]
We are revealed we are vassals of a Queen whose name and kingdom we don’t know yet. Retracing our steps, we discover that we had arrived to a place from which we cannot escape, that seems to be in a different ‘plane’. The options for the retreat are not written, so we can only continue in pursue of the dome.
Again, we may glimpse the parallelism of the scene in Kubla Khan: Our character had to climb over a wall to access to the dome’s surroundings. This location, circled (girdled, the term employed by Coleridge), helps to realize how distinct is this area to our character from the outside, where he/she belongs. It may be seen as a wholly different space comprised in a circumference.
From: [34]Return most swift to report your discovery to the Queen; [35]Best to leave now. Let the Queen decide the fate of this place.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#43>
[44]
| An arrow strikes your breast. The world is pain. Your vision blurs and you know no more. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
When we decided to approach the guards, they instantly reacted to our presence with their weapons. This automatic gesture implies that they were ordered to shoot anybody in sight and, most sensible, that our character should not be in the area. They employ arrows and make use of horns, recalling us of medieval ages once more.
From: [45] Go to meet the guards
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#44>
[45]
We see the towers heavily defended, declared hostile and, perhaps, prepared to eliminate any intruders. Our character seems unaware of such danger as he/she comes towards the settlement. This is one of the several dangerous spots that may be protecting the dome, impeding newcomers to reach it.
When we started our adventure, we didn’t come across such walls, despite we came from the outside of this maze. Our hypothesis is that we triggered some sort of event in our scouting of the area, and were lead to a different plane, or a hidden place that is barely connected with the former reality, as if it were a dream.
From: [46] Venture to see if there is anyone in the towers that guard the wall
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#45>
[46]
Now our character starts to apprehend the nature of this place: confusing and enchanted, the same way it was back in Kubla Khan‘s poem:
“A savage place ! as holy and enchanted
As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted”
(…)
“And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,”
However Coleridge did only describe it, whereas we are to struggle with the events that overwhelm the protagonist in many different scenes.
From: [43]Work your way back to the river and the dome
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#46>
[47]
| Your song is wide as mountains and deep as the pools of night where stars dwell. As you sing, the mortal woman smiles. She prepares her instrument. |
|
[48]Sing on. |
This reaction to a new acquaintance seems awkward in our current cultural standards, and reminds us, perhaps, of the more sensitive elven of Tolkien’s novels. The metaphors employed set us in a magnificent melody context without specifying neither rhythm nor lyrics, suggesting its quality, which may be beyond human possibilities.
From: [1] Sing of night winds and the long migrations of butterflies
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#47>
[48]
| Her music is cold fog at dawn and birds greeting the sun’s first rays. She enfolds your voice with music and then she too begins to sing.
Her song weaves itself with your own as if long rehearsed. A silver fountain rises under your night winds. Your butterflies rest on her bows of green. |
|
“Oh rapture.”[*] |
Her music is tightly intertwined with the one we chant, recreating an even more divine melody. It speaks of light and nature, and a fountain as the one that was recreated in Kubla Khan meets the two voices. For the poet, the music evokes the delightful dome that in our narrative remains a mystery.
The ectasy of the moment could be related to the passion of a sexual encounter, for it melts the voice of the two individuals into one melody. The final phrase, which conveys an approach of the lyrics of ours -about butterflies- to the instrumentality of hers -on green and nature- may imply a suggestive intercourse.
“Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,
That with music loud and long,
I would build that dome in air,
That sunny dome ! those caves of ice !
And all who heard should see them there”
“A mighty fountain momently was forced:”
From: [47]Sing on.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#48>
[49]
| You fall, tumbling down with the foam into a dark deep lake. Your tunic of birch leaves is torn to bits.
You are deep under water. There is no light and no way seems up. |
|
Whether we choose to fight until defeated or we let ourselves go, we will end up drowning. There was no other development possible. Thereby, we become aware of the implications of each action and the risks of acting irresponsibly.
We learn from this fragment about the clothes that we were wearing: a primitive tunic made of leaves. There is no other hint about our attire and inventory -probably we do not carry any weapons. Therefore, our nightly stroll probably does not correspond to any mission delegated by the queen, but could have been spontaneous.
In the end, we do not have any option for returning -the right rectangle is blank- so we have to retrace our steps manually. Somehow it seems to accomodate the situation, that left us without choice, finally calm and void.
From: [40]Fall tumbling down in contented amazement. [38]Keep struggling; [38]Surrender to the river.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#49>
[62]
Certainly in our character’s mind it is a common thing to rejoice over beauty and express him/herself in dance and song. This might affect our basic concept of the character: Which kind of human lingers in entertainment when pursuing an important discovery? We could agree that this was only an option given at some point, but the sole fact of projecting these into text and giving not much choice is determinant to our impression. There is no way we could have arrived to the lawn but by dancing on it, and thus we would have not been able to follow this set of choices, some of them, those that lead us to different areas, under construction.
From: [36]Dance upon the fragrant lawn by the river.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#62>
[63]
| You smell almond and anise, plum, pomegranate and primrose. The breeze speaks of gardens as you rest quietly on the grass. A tiny white flower brushes your cheek. The rush of water seems distant and muted. The birds are hushed. You are content. |
|
[30]Sleep… |
An image of beauty and tranquility, not carrying any danger at all. We bear in mind the oddness of this action: to rest calmly in a situation that might have waken our curiosity -about the dome and its surroundings. This reaffirms the idea of otherness, of being a human risen in other values than ours or even not human at all.
From: [62]Lay down to rest on the cool grass.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#63>
[64]
| You sing and nightingales sing with you. Never have you heard them sing so beautifully. You are transported by the give and take of voices. While you sing you hear no other birds. But the voices of the river and countless tiny insects seem to join your song.You realize you have reached the place where madness and genius meet. Everything is as it was moments before, but it is transformed. |
|
Enter the beech forest.[*]Follow the broad path to the dome.[*] |
Our relationship with the environment is very deep, to the point that we seem to melt our conscience to that of the sentient beings and nature forces around us. The striking beauty of the place is one that overwhelms, a feeling that does only trigger on a very few occasions, described perfectly in the text. Nevertheless, this place that contains the dome succeeds in arising such emotions in many ways: by singing, by sleeping, by swimming in the river or dancing on the lawn, by regarding at the landscape from above…
Maybe we have entered a magical realm full of wonders as we were told in the first place.
From: [62]Sing to the night birds.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#64>
[68]
The clothes she is wearing recall us some ancient fashion in which women wore long ornate dresses in the thinnest fabric and intricate designs, possibly related to Asian or Egyptian mode, as they revered gold and complicated patterns. In consonance with Kubla Khan, the lady might be of a similar origin and stratum:
“A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid”
The many options provided for the clothes end up abruptly as the writer wouldn’t continue through this path. To this point, we might think that the author had something in mind about the way you deal with the robe -perhaps to rouse her smile or to be more or less sensible to a fashion-, but we can only guess. You may follow any other way around the text either by starting again or by following the links underneath to a new choice.
From: [69]Consider her beauty; [69] Wait patiently; [11]“Lady, have you a cloak or tunic?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#68>
[69]
Whether or not she wears anything else, we do not know yet, but this piece of text may consist of more that we would think at first glance. This is the second most common link’s estuary, and comprises every topic that has to do with clothes and, interestingly, also with a sensual approach such as “reach out to touch her mouth” or an unrelated gesture like “return the lute, gently and with reverence”. Perhaps this particular bit was intended to be suggestive, offering a picture of this woman as open to seduction.
From: [6]Return the lute, gently and with reverence; [12]“Have you a cloak or tunic?” [15] “Have you a cloak or tunic?” [3]“Have you a cloak or tunic?” [7] “Have you a cloak or tunic?” [9] Reach out to touch her mouth. [10]“Lady… have you a cloak or tunic?” [20]“Have you a cloak or tunic? For I am cold and damp.” [19]“All things in due course. Have you a cloak or tunic?” [18]“All things in due course. Have you a cloak or tunic?”
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#69>
 No Comments »
You might choose to explore the hypertext and its analysis in different ways. Select the one you feel more comfortable with.
- Work your own path through the narrative. Start from the beginning.
- See each post by its ordinal number. Start from number 1. *It will not make any sense, story-wise.
- Read the paths the way I have arranged them. See the diagram.
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In order to gather additional information to develop a suitable analysis, I contacted Mr. Linhart, whom I thank for the quick reply and the idea given.
My email:
Greetings, Mr. Linhart.
I’m a student of English in the University of Valencia. We were presented, in our faculty, with the opportunity of working with hypertextual fiction, which I consider an interesting subject with many creative applications. In my research on hypertexts, I came across your narrative and found it most attractive, particularly the arrangement of links as actions performed by the reader instead of just windows to different scenes. I’m also fond with science-fiction and fantasy stories, so your idea caught me up unavoidably.
I wanted to ask you whether you had uploaded more links or you definitely parked the project. Had you the idea of writing it merely as a ‘demo’ of the possibilities of your tool? I would love to see more, if it were possible, although it seems like the story was written a long time ago.
Thank you for your time and excuse my poor English.
Regards,
Marta Tornero
PS: Do you think it would be possible to know more about the Dome and the characters? I would be very grateful to have some more information to work on for my paper regarding your hypertext.
His response:
Hello Marta -
Thank you for your interest in ‘Luminous Dome’.
I did originally think of it as a demonstration only. Later I got more interested, but ended up being too busy to keep working on ButtonTalk in general or ‘Luminous Dome’ in particular. So, unfortunately it has been shelved.
The one other thing I can tell you is that it was inspired by the poem ‘Kubla Khan’ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
Best wishes,
- Stephen Linhart
No Comments »
Another curious detail to add to our picture of the land is the fact that it has many unique features that seem odd to our character, such as the growing of that oak tree in a hill -perhaps the weather in that part of the world is not cold enough for these species and he/she considers it strange. These characteristics are meant to isolate this area from the outside world, turning it into a bizarre phenomenon.
When we continue along the path, we hear somebody coming towards us. We can ignore this event and go on, shout at him or hide, but either way is under construction, so we will not know who will be. The only other character we physically encountered was a lady with a lute if we dreamt on the lawn or by effect of the river, following other links. Probably it isn’t her, due to the fact that it would have bound us to a similar conversation already written. Then, we do not know who this stranger is nor his intentions, but calling out loud could be as dangerous as trying to approach the guards at the wall.
From: [26]Follow the path on up the sloop. [24]Follow the path on up the sloop.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#27>
No Comments »
| You slide nimbly down the smooth stone slab and land with a bounce on a pile of fir needles and few old birch leaves. The air seems very still here after the open breezes up on the rock. You hear the croak of a distant toad. |
|
[26]Find a way around the stone slab.
[42]Return to the river. |
We might choose to go back to the point when we decided to climb and look around for another path. At this moment, as we already tried to drag ourselves up the stone lab, it is not offered once more. The author describes to us the difference in the quality of the air from the breeze we felt up on the slab and the quiet air in the forest, among other details, to acquire a more elaborated feeling of the surroundings.
From: [29]Slide down. [28]Slide down.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#23>
No Comments »
| When you reach the top of the slab you discover that the path continues. Whoever made this path must climb directly up the slab. |
|
[27]Follow the path on up the sloop. |
At first glance, climbing the slab would have seemed unnecessary and whimsical. Nevertheless, it is revealed that it was a requisite to continue our way along the path. This makes us believe it was some kind of fortuitous trial.
From: [25]Climb to the top. [29]Climb upward to the top of the rock face. [28]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#24>
No Comments »
| A tantalizing view stretches out below you. The moon frosts a fertile land like a wild garden of flowers, trees, fields and fountains. Through it all runs the glittering and sinuous river. Its voice is soft but clear from your high vantage. Beyond the river, more spectacular than before, you look down now upon the luminous dome, glittering like a net of stars.
Here and there in the distance you can make out long walls climbing the hill tops. Whether they are many walls or one, you cannot tell. But they look to be the heavy work of human folk. |
|
[29]Think back over the events of this night.
[24]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
[23]Slide down. |
We finally achieve a view over the valley which helps us framing the scenery: there are more or less the same items as in Kubla Khan:
A stately pleasure-dome decree :
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.
So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round :
And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree ;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.
The walls -our character asserts that they were erected by humans- circle around the dome, which was previously considered a non-mortal construction, in a defensive stance, guarding it from invaders with unwavering determination. Every detail described from above seems utterly beautiful and Eden-like, although when advancing deeply into the territory their perils emerge with a similar voluptuosness.
From: [25]Gaze out at the night view. [29]Gaze out at the night view.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#28>
No Comments »
| The night was fresh and young when you set out to explore the creek. Beasts and birds slept or hunted in the forest, much like any night. You followed the gully, rising steep-walled into the northern hills. Finally, you emerged on the plateau by a small spring.
You first glimpsed the wall from the pool of the spring. It continued as far as you travelled in either direction; so you climbed it and made your way through that garden land until you glimpsed that luminous dome.
You can see the dome glowing in the valley below you now. |
|
[28]Gaze out at the night view.
[24]Climb upward to the top of the rock face.
[23]Slide down. |
The events could lead us to have a more centred background for our character: he/she explored at night some location, rather irrational for a traveler to scout at that time, not carrying any equipment, hence we understand our character was not far from home or he/she was a free soul that lived and enjoyed the wilderness. Most probably, he/she was having a nightly stroll, due to his/her knowledge of the area and its animal inhabitants.
He/she reflects over the past actions that took him/her to that place and some geographical locations that are unknown to us and completely framed in nature.
Our meditation stops at the point we had gazed at the dome, and redirects us to the present, that is sharing the same view that we had at that time.
From: [25]Think back over the events of this night. [28]Think back over the events of this night.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#29>
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| You scramble over lose rock and through brambles around the edge of the steep stone slab. A frightened snake skitters away. When you make your way around to the top of the slab you discover that the path continues. Whoever made this path must climb directly up the slab. |
|
[27]Follow the path on up the sloop. |
After sliding down or ignoring the slab altogether you find that the way was meant to be followed up the stone slab, so your only option is to climb it, once you’ve chosen to find the path around it.
This image adds to the conception of the forest that we had in our minds the idea of savage and rugged. A path is a way built by humans in the pursuit of connecting places, so the place is not inhabited, but it certainly is secluded.
From: [22]Find a way around. [23]Find a way around the stone slab.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#26>
No Comments »
We stop at the middle of our action. This gives us an in-depth view of our ‘humanoid’ nature, spending some lines in mundane details that ornate the narration and makes us empathise with the effort of our character. He/she needs to rest, hence he/she takes a breath. The author takes this opportunity to allow us to reflect over the past, scout the area or continue straight away.
From: [22]Climb up the stone slab.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#25>
No Comments »
| You smell almond and anise, plum, pomegranate and primrose. The breeze speaks of gardens as you rest quietly on the grass. A tiny white flower brushes your cheek. The rush of water seems distant and muted. The birds are hushed. You are content. |
|
[30]Sleep… |
An image of beauty and tranquility, not carrying any danger at all. We bear in mind the oddness of this action: to rest calmly in a situation that might have waken our curiosity -about the dome and its surroundings. This reaffirms the idea of otherness, of being a human risen in other values than ours or even not human at all.
From: [62]Lay down to rest on the cool grass.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#63>
No Comments »
| You sing and nightingales sing with you. Never have you heard them sing so beautifully. You are transported by the give and take of voices. While you sing you hear no other birds. But the voices of the river and countless tiny insects seem to join your song.You realize you have reached the place where madness and genius meet. Everything is as it was moments before, but it is transformed. |
|
Enter the beech forest.[*]
Follow the broad path to the dome.[*] |
Our relationship with the environment is very deep, to the point that we seem to melt our conscience to that of the sentient beings and nature forces around us. The striking beauty of the place is one that overwhelms, a feeling that does only trigger on a very few occasions, described perfectly in the text. Nevertheless, this place that contains the dome succeeds in arising such emotions in many ways: by singing, by sleeping, by swimming in the river or dancing on the lawn, by regarding at the landscape from above…
Maybe we have entered a magical realm full of wonders as we were told in the first place.
From: [62]Sing to the night birds.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#64>
No Comments »
| You fall, tumbling down with the foam into a dark deep lake. Your tunic of birch leaves is torn to bits.
You are deep under water. There is no light and no way seems up. |
|
Whether we choose to fight until defeated or we let ourselves go, we will end up drowning. There was no other development possible. Thereby, we become aware of the implications of each action and the risks of acting irresponsibly.
We learn from this fragment about the clothes that we were wearing: a primitive tunic made of leaves. There is no other hint about our attire and inventory -probably we do not carry any weapons. Therefore, our nightly stroll probably does not correspond to any mission delegated by the queen, but could have been spontaneous.
In the end, we do not have any option for returning -the right rectangle is blank- so we have to retrace our steps manually. Somehow it seems to accomodate the situation, that left us without choice, finally calm and void.
From: [40]Fall tumbling down in contented amazement. [38]Keep struggling; [38]Surrender to the river.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#49>
No Comments »
| You thrash wildly, arching your body and grasping at foam until direction loses all meaning. You cry out to the Queen but your mouth is full of water. |
|
[49]Keep struggling.
[49]Surrender to the river. |
Our circumstances seem quite severe. In this short fragment we can only observe the process of the fight but none of the results, anticipating a tragic ending. We express our profound serfdom to the queen by means of directing our desperate thought towards her -perhaps we come from a royalist society or we belong to a circle close to her.
From: [40]Struggle to do something. Anything!
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To our character, there exists no doubt in attributing the river’s reaction to magic. Nevertheless, it could be that we are being carried by the tumult of a plentiful river that pushes us to the bottom, in a natural way. We cannot assess neither as correct, therefore we will accept our character’s interpretation, which places us in a delicate situation.
From: [39]What a beautiful night…
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| It’s not summer. It’s autumn, and you are under a spell!
The roar of the river drowns out all other sounds. Rushing water drowns out all other sights. Water surrounds your body. It tastes clean and wild. The smell of it is like wind off the mountains. |
|
[40]What a beautiful night… |
Now the narrator corrects us exclaiming: because of the mildness of the weather and the calm river we thought it was summer, but we are mistaken, dazzled, and got caught by a spell. The river gets hold of our senses and envelops us. We retain a feeling of peril thanks to the adjectives and verbs that describe the situation in risky or violent terms -roar, drowns, rushing, surrounds. However, this danger is bound to the force of nature, that might have been angered by an enchantment, and its magnificence, thus we are given a picture of compelling waters and landscapes.
From: [37]Swim soft, sweet, swirling, summer night.
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Certainly in our character’s mind it is a common thing to rejoice over beauty and express him/herself in dance and song. This might affect our basic concept of the character: Which kind of human lingers in entertainment when pursuing an important discovery? We could agree that this was only an option given at some point, but the sole fact of projecting these into text and giving not much choice is determinant to our impression. There is no way we could have arrived to the lawn but by dancing on it, and thus we would have not been able to follow this set of choices, some of them, those that lead us to different areas, under construction.
From: [36]Dance upon the fragrant lawn by the river.
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The link led us to another self-amusement scene. This playful diversion makes us wonder if our character is accustomed to the wilds in such a way that he/she looks as content as ever when delaying his/her duties in the pursuit of childish delight.
Employing such an expression as “taming wild dragons” propels us directly into a world which keeps those creatures, although in the same grade of respectful distance as we are used to see in fantasy tales and even real historical recordings of the medieval ages.
From: [36]Cross back for the sheer joy of riding moon beams.
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| Her music is cold fog at dawn and birds greeting the sun’s first rays. She enfolds your voice with music and then she too begins to sing.
Her song weaves itself with your own as if long rehearsed. A silver fountain rises under your night winds. Your butterflies rest on her bows of green. |
|
“Oh rapture.”[*] |
Her music is tightly intertwined with the one we chant, recreating an even more divine melody. It speaks of light and nature, and a fountain as the one that was recreated in Kubla Khan meets the two voices. For the poet, the music evokes the delightful dome that in our narrative remains a mystery.
The ectasy of the moment could be related to the passion of a sexual encounter, for it melts the voice of the two individuals into one melody. The final phrase, which conveys an approach of the lyrics of ours -about butterflies- to the instrumentality of hers -on green and nature- may imply a suggestive intercourse.
“Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,
That with music loud and long,
I would build that dome in air,
That sunny dome ! those caves of ice !
And all who heard should see them there”
“A mighty fountain momently was forced:”
From: [47]Sing on.
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There is contradiction in her actions and words: she may be a simple woman in her functions, but she is swift and she magically protects her possessions -the lute.
She seems amiable nevertheless, and tries to comfort us with her friendly attitude.
From: [9] Flee through the archway before she can conjure.
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Previously she referred to herself as a simple woman, a musician. She maintains this statement and declares that the only magic she knows is the one produced by music. Whether this assertion is literal or figurative, we do not know, although she might be related to magic nevertheless, as she is protected by a concealed barrier which prevents us from stealing her lute. Perhaps this level of magic is common to the inhabitants of the dome, or maybe she represents a more significant entity.
Our character reacted to this menace suspecting that it might be an enchantment. This observation leads us to think that magic is not foreign to him/her and that he/she understands that names may be used as tools for it.
We may arrive to this point from a phrase stating that we serve Umbriel the Queen. Now we know a little more about her: her name is neither common nor modern, and may be inspired in the satellite of Uranus -Umbriel. Somehow, it invokes a feeling of darkness from the etymology of the word: ‘umbra’ – shade, shadow in Latin.
From: [9] “You will not conjure with my name.” [10]“You will not conjure with my name. I serve Umbriel the Queen.”
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Here we are presented with a hint on the nature of our character, additional information: his/her name unfolds an enchantment that is felt in the environment. Through this unexpected event we understand that our presence in that particular world is not ordinary, since a denizen is not able to point out the causes for this magical experience.
From: [9] “What was that?” [10] “What was that?”
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Her attitude is serene and forgiving. Despite of the many possible mistakes and offences we might have committed, she is permissive and understanding, probably the most amiable soul we may find in our adventure.
From: [2]“I am sorry lady. I don’t know what possessed me to such behavior.”
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| The mortal woman smiles sadly as you try to seize her instrument. Something is drawing you back away from her.
Gaps of glaring light open in the tiles under your feet. Everywhere you look is a terrible glaring whiteness.
You awaken in a mundane world without mystery or wonder. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
Similar to [16], although with a distinction in whether you carry with you the lute or not.
She does not perform any evident hostile action but awaits as we are being taken away by some force. We awaken in a mundane world, not specified whether it is the real world or the original to which our character belongs. (I presume our character is not a ‘normal’ person, since he/she is not as astonished to deal with magic as an actual human would be.) (Read the Conclusion for further ideas on this subject.)
If you click on “+ T H E E N D +” you will be taken to the beginning, as you probably have failed in pursuing the mysterious dome. The author understands that you may want to restart and avoid the mistake choosing another option next time or following a completely different path, in a gamely fashion.
From: [2] Seize the dulcimer by force.
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| “We should enter now. It is best that we not keep the lord waiting. I am to play at tonight’s feast.”
She leads the way through the arch, into a long dim tunnel. A chill wind flows through the tunnel making you shiver. |
|
Follow.[*]
Turn back.[*] |
This way, the narrative is broken again. It raises many questions such as the identity of the lord, whether he knows our character is coming or not, and where the tunnel leads among others.
Some notion of temporality is inserted through these links. The usual responses to our nudity and her instrument are eluded when she realizes the passing of time, although we could not advance to this moment unless we asked her about mortality, insisting. This might be so because of the nature of the text, with many unfinished sections; the tendency may have been to continue altogether to the meeting with this lord.
From: [4]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [4] “Have you a cloak or tunic?”; [5]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [5]“Have you a cloak or tunic?”
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The sole fact of distinguishing between a mere name and a “true” name implies that there is some magical attachment to the latter, which is reinforced by the use of asterisks, stressing out this option amongst the other ones. There exists some kind of peril intrinsic to this action and it is promptly shown by the subtle change in the environment that our character cannot identify at first glance.
From: [8]* Give your own true name. *
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We may choose to answer rudely. This option is rather appreciated by those who seek a chaotic path and wish to force the actions to see their repercussions. In a true roleplaying experience we can play evil characters, although it might have ill effects.
From: [8]“Enough questions. Show me the lute!”
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She is a little offended by his/her distrust this time. Nevertheless, she forgives him/her as she is a trusting woman, a characteristic that we have collected from every action that she executes, even when she is endangered.
Her society might also be honor-bound, since she doesn’t take lightly the words pronounced and seems to be more distressed by the rejection of her presentation rather than by the attempted robbery.
[Perhaps you have not yet tried to seize her lute, but I needed to compare these two actions]
From: [8]“I have seen mortal women before, but I do not think you are mortal.” [12]“I have seen mortal women before, but I do not think you are mortal.”
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We find now the same choices as in the beginning. The description has changed though: now it covers the smells and the light sources in the night. The river is not calm but wild, plentiful with foam and, as we learned, dangerous. The dome competes in brightness with the moon reflected in the water, preluding an impressive construction which we considered not human-made.
In our scouting we encounter unfamiliar essences as well, which make us develop a stronger notion about the strangeness of this place. Not only as readers, but also as characters, we understand that the situation is awkward and learn that every step might trigger an unexpected event. We grow more prudent.
From: [41] Leap up and dispel the enchantment! [35]Break free of this revery. There is much to be done. [22]Return to the river. [23]Return to the river.
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| An arrow strikes your breast. The world is pain. Your vision blurs and you know no more. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
When we decided to approach the guards, they instantly reacted to our presence with their weapons. This automatic gesture implies that they were ordered to shoot anybody in sight and, most sensible, that our character should not be in the area. They employ arrows and make use of horns, recalling us of medieval ages once more.
From: [45] Go to meet the guards
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Related to [14] but with an addition in the responses chart: “Are you truly a mortal?”. It is not obvious to us why this link is shown in this fragment and is neglected in the other one.
This solemn phrase, which evokes a chant or a title, prompts her laughing. Perhaps it pictures our character within a certain social frame to which we are not aware. We do not know if she understands what it implies.
From: [15] “I am the west wind and the morning star.” [19]“I am the west wind and the morning star.” [18]“I am the west wind and the morning star.”
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A hint on her social status: a servant most probably as she introduces herself as a simple woman instead of addressing herself as a noble. She might work in the court, which provides her with elaborate dresses. We identify this woman with the lute with that of Coleridge’s poem with the dulcimer. The latter had also a similar job as a maid:
A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,
From: [15] “Who are you, and what sort of creature?” [3]“Are you truly a mortal?” [19] “And what sort of creature are you?”
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| The mortal woman smiles sadly as you make off with her strange and wondrous lute.
As you run, gaps of glaring light open in the tiles under your feet. Everywhere you look is a terrible glaring whiteness.
You awaken in a mundane world without mystery or wonder. |
|
+ T H E E N D + |
Similar to [17], although with a distinction in whether you carry with you the lute or not.
After robbing the lute, she does not attempt to catch us, as she knows the destiny that awaits us. We awaken in a mundane world, not specified whether it is the real world or the original to which our character belongs. (I presume our character is not a ‘normal’ person, since he/she is not as astonished to deal with magic as an actual human would be.) (Read the Conclusion for further ideas on this subject.)
If you click on “+ T H E E N D +” you will be taken to the beginning, as you probably have failed in pursuing the mysterious dome. The author understands that you may want to restart and avoid the mistake choosing another option next time or following a completely different path, in a gamely fashion.
From: [6] Flee through the archway, taking the instrument with you; [6] Hold tight to the wonderful lute and race down the stairs to the dock
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The clothes she is wearing recall us some ancient fashion in which women wore long ornate dresses in the thinnest fabric and intricate designs, possibly related to Asian or Egyptian mode, as they revered gold and complicated patterns. In consonance with Kubla Khan, the lady might be of a similar origin and stratum:
“A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid”
The many options provided for the clothes end up abruptly as the writer wouldn’t continue through this path. To this point, we might think that the author had something in mind about the way you deal with the robe -perhaps to rouse her smile or to be more or less sensible to a fashion-, but we can only guess. You may follow any other way around the text either by starting again or by following the links underneath to a new choice.
From: [69]Consider her beauty; [69] Wait patiently; [11]“Lady, have you a cloak or tunic?”
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| She puts a hand on your shoulder. “Wait! I won’t harm you.”
You are startled by the speed of her movements. But the sparkle of her laughter puts you at ease. |
|
[68]“Lady, have you a cloak or tunic?” |
We have no option but to ask her again about the clothes, which turns out to be awkward as it does not further develop into a different topic after our intended escape. Also, a mere tap on our shoulder is enough to give up the thought: we are not meant to resist. (See Conclusion for a discourse over this idea)
From: [69]Flee through the archway
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Whether or not she wears anything else, we do not know yet, but this piece of text may consist of more that we would think at first glance. This is the second most common link’s estuary, and comprises every topic that has to do with clothes and, interestingly, also with a sensual approach such as “reach out to touch her mouth” or an unrelated gesture like “return the lute, gently and with reverence”. Perhaps this particular bit was intended to be suggestive, offering a picture of this woman as open to seduction.
From: [6]Return the lute, gently and with reverence; [12]“Have you a cloak or tunic?” [15] “Have you a cloak or tunic?” [3]“Have you a cloak or tunic?” [7] “Have you a cloak or tunic?” [9] Reach out to touch her mouth. [10]“Lady… have you a cloak or tunic?” [20]“Have you a cloak or tunic? For I am cold and damp.” [19]“All things in due course. Have you a cloak or tunic?” [18]“All things in due course. Have you a cloak or tunic?”
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Many links in this hypertext direct to this particular moment, which presumably was key to the developing of the story. There are two core items in the dialogue with the woman: her robe and her lute. The first, to cover our character’s nudity, and the second, to describe and react to this wonderful instrument. Possibly, these two are less specific subjects and, therefore, most common to bring in their conversation, without much advancing the plot.
From: [14]“May I see your lovely strange lute?”; [18]“What a lovely instrument. May I see it?”; [12]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [3]“May I see your lovely instrument?”; [7] “May I see your lute?” [20]“May I see your lovely dulcimer?” [19]“What a lovely instrument. May I hold it?” [18]“What a lovely instrument. May I hold it?”
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There is contradiction in her actions and words: she may be a simple woman in her functions, but she is swift and she magically protects her possessions -the lute.
She seems amiable nevertheless, and tries to comfort us with her friendly attitude.
From: [13] Flee through the archway
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Should we choose to seek her attention, she will be startled and will ask for our name. Instead of freely giving it, we can question her about her nature, her lute or for some clothes; or we can answer in a riddle, a poetic phrase to introduce ourselves. The option for giving our name is discarded, although this seems an appropriate situation to select it. Any answer we choose, she will not be uneasy with the ignorance, and will not introduce herself either on any fragment of text.
From: [13] Tap her shoulder
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We are not able -this time- to steal the lute from her. Nevertheless, we are not punished by our actions but instead can try a whole new range of topics that might have not come to our mind. The option of trying to catch her lute is presented many times in the dialogue, as if it had a particular attraction to us.
Strangely, even if we have acted hostile in our first encounter, she is forgiving and trusting, and might give it to us employing the proper polite words. Although we might find many enemies across our search of the dome, she does not seem to associate with evil nor harms us.
From: [13] Take the instrument
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We may come to this fragment either by laughing out loud without an obvious reason or by stating that we do not speak strangely. Either way, she will overwhelm us with her smile to the point we will not be concerned by a possible enchantment. Nevertheless, we still are suspicious and do not forget about the magic of the place. Our character definitely is aware of the mechanisms of magic, since he/she always considers this threat while interacting with strangers.
From: [13] Break into laughter; [8] “I speak not strangely at all!”
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On the one hand, this picture seems straightforward to us, as readers who can understand the embarrassment of being naked. On the other hand, the act of bowing down to someone to perform a salutation is already outdated or alien to the western culture. For the Asian, this might be normal and well-mannered, but to us it brings us the notion of medieval times and chivalrous customs, which are retained and lavished by Romantics and the present-day fantasy genre, which fits well with the magic atmosphere of this narrative.
From: [1] Speak to the mortal woman
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| Your song is wide as mountains and deep as the pools of night where stars dwell. As you sing, the mortal woman smiles. She prepares her instrument. |
|
[48]Sing on. |
This reaction to a new acquaintance seems awkward in our current cultural standards, and reminds us, perhaps, of the more sensitive elven of Tolkien’s novels. The metaphors employed set us in a magnificent melody context without specifying neither rhythm nor lyrics, suggesting its quality, which may be beyond human possibilities.
From: [1] Sing of night winds and the long migrations of butterflies
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She saw us first, but somehow we managed to vanish from her sight. Now we are hidden, we can choose the next step to follow, in the same way we would have needed to decide in a real-life situation.
From: [1]Hide from the mortal
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Another character is presented as mortal, without hesitation, making us wonder whether our character can distinguish immortal features or he/she is accustomed to deal with such distinctions. Curiously enough, this is being stressed plenty of times, creating an atmosphere of mystic and arcane devices from superior beings, still unknown our rank in that stratum.
This woman is clearly recognizable from Coleridge’s poem as the damsel with a dulcimer -carrying a lute instead.
“A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw :
It was an Abyssinian maid,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight ‘twould win me,”
From: [32]Turn away from this dark sea and seek a way out into the forest
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| You are standing on a floor of many-colored tile. It chills your bare feet but is very beautiful. An exquisitely carved rail runs around three sides of the porch. A wall of marble towers above you; at it’s base a broad archway. Torches burn in glittering stanchions on the rail. Their glow returns like starlight from the quiet water below. But the sky is absolutely black. |
|
[1]Turn away from this dark sea and seek a way out into the forest. |
From the moment we decided to sleep, we have been driven through dreams and darkness -not having a chance to decide upon our fate- up until we arrive to some sort of arched construction from which we are meant to leave (that is the sole link provided).
A hypothesis about the black sky that the author mentions may be that the character is indeed inside a cave of huge proportions and low temperature, for there is such a cavern in Kubla Khan‘s refrain: “A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice !” (described as “caverns measureless to man”). There’s no mention of trees, lawns or flowers, neither visually nor sensitive, which unconsciously frames it as a contrasting scenery.
From: [31]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—-
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| You struggle in complete darkness for a long time. Finally, you see a faint glow. As you move nearer it becomes torch light glistening on water. You are naked and alone on a tiled porch lit by many torches. Dark water laps against a stone dock below. |
|
[32]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—- |
Another feature presented in Kubla Khan is incorporated to this hypertext: we are no longer under the moon but inside some dark caves to where the river comes.
“Through wood and dale the sacred river ran,
Then reached the caverns measureless to man,”
From: [30]—++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * – –* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **—-
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We see the towers heavily defended, declared hostile and, perhaps, prepared to eliminate any intruders. Our character seems unaware of such danger as he/she comes towards the settlement. This is one of the several dangerous spots that may be protecting the dome, impeding newcomers to reach it.
When we started our adventure, we didn’t come across such walls, despite we came from the outside of this maze. Our hypothesis is that we triggered some sort of event in our scouting of the area, and were lead to a different plane, or a hidden place that is barely connected with the former reality, as if it were a dream.
From: [46] Venture to see if there is anyone in the towers that guard the wall
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| The wall is built of stone, netted with ivy, and overhanging near the top. You climb easily over the wall and drop down the far side.
The sounds and smells of the night forest are comfortable and familiar. It is almost like waking from a dream. |
|
Report your strange discovery to the Queen.[*] |
We may not continue this path, since it was not written. Through this, we might have been able to inform the Queen, and thus meet her for the first time as readers, and know more about the period and society in which our character grew. A clearer background would have made us aware of the distinctions between his/her reality and the experiences in the region.
On the other side of the wall, our character returns to his/her homeland. He/she can now identify everything that surrounds him and distinguishes the past experience inside the neighboring areas of the dome, drawing a borderline by means of this fence, which surrounds the entire complex as in Kubla Khan:
“With walls and towers were girdled round”
From: [46]Climb over the wall, swift and fleet
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| You dream of falling in a vast blackness full of stars. Tiny stones whirl around a cloud of gas. Mortal armies fight ceaselessly in the vault of time. You land on a bed of feathers to hear the screeching of geese. Star dust and a million seeds fall around you. It is daylight in a small hut. There are mortals everywhere and you are naked, without tunic or possessions. You hide in the dark and cannot find your way out. |
|
[31]–* –** ++ **—** *+*+* **——-++ * **** – ++ * ** *-*-+ * - |
You may choose not to fight the circumstances and rest. Probably, in a situation like this, strange and menacing, we would not take this decision. Nevertheless, this has consequences that go beyond the mere passing of time. Our character falls asleep and, by influx of the flower’s scent or the enchanted waters you sleep and teleported among mortals and nude (you may end up dreaming as a result of the three actions linked below). Reality seems to melt with imaginings, and our character wakes up somewhere else.
Instead of a simple “Next” link, the author conceived ASCII signs as a more powerful instrument for transmitting the idea of being asleep in a sort of oneiric wavy line. This dream is as relevant to the plot as the whole “Vision in a Dream” that is the subtitle of “Kubla Khan“. In the poem, the emperor ‘hears’ about war, the same way we dream of armies fighting:
“And ‘mid this tumult Kubla heard from far
Ancestral voices prophesying war !”
This contrast between an idyllic scenery and the danger entangled in it is a constant feature throughout the narrative as well as the poem. The enticing nature of ‘start dust’ and the ‘million seeds’ that evoke purifying rain are opposed by the many perils faced by the character, both in the dome’s terrain and in the dreams it conjures.
From: [46]Oh well. It doesn’t matter. Settle down for a nap; [41] Drink deeply. Sleep… [63]Sleep…
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#30>
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Now our character starts to apprehend the nature of this place: confusing and enchanted, the same way it was back in Kubla Khan‘s poem:
“A savage place ! as holy and enchanted
As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted”
(…)
“And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,”
However Coleridge did only describe it, whereas we are to struggle with the events that overwhelm the protagonist in many different scenes.
From: [43]Work your way back to the river and the dome
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#46>
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WORK IN PROGRESS
This is a work in progress, and you’ve reached an unfinished section.
So far, I’ve written only about 4,000 words of a short 30,000 word piece. I expect the equivalent of a novel in this format might be about twice as many words as a traditional novel.
At this point, still trying to explore and demonstrate some of my ideas about interactive fiction in general, and about ButtonTalk in particular. |
|
Title Page* BEGIN *
The Mortal Woman
Falling In The River
Maze |
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html>
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| A faint path winds deep into the forest, rising slowly. Soon you are climbing more steeply. Soft needles prickle your feet beneath the outstretched bows of great fir trees.
The path brings you to the base of granite slab. Its hard smooth surface is cool to the touch. |
|
[25]Climb up the stone slab.
[26]Find a way around.
[42]Return to the river. |
We chose to penetrate into the forest, where we soon find a path that we automatically follow until we come to its end: a slab with no markings. The forest is inclined in hills towards the centre, ruled by the dome which we are seeking. This forest is a simile of the one in Kubla Khan, further detailed in subsequent fragments.
“And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree ;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.”
From: [34] Delve into the secret places of the forest
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#22>
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We have chosen to cross the river through the way illuminated by the moon, as if it were a game. We are able to pursue joy even when we are immerse in a risky situation, surrounded by a landscape unknown to us. Perhaps it is in our nature to linger over fun and pleasure, trusting natural elements as if it all were benign.
From: [34] Cross the shimmering path of moon beams
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#36>
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These two short paragraphs show us exclusively the distress and restlessness that accompany the quest. Soon we discover the dreadful nature of this place, full of wonders as well as of perils. These characteristics are also patent in Kubla Khan, particularly in this fragment:
“But oh ! that deep romantic chasm which slanted
Down the green hill athwart a cedarn cover !
A savage place ! as holy and enchanted
As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted
By woman wailing for her demon-lover !
And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,
A mighty fountain momently was forced :
Amid whose swift half-intermitted burst
Huge fragments vaulted like rebounding hail,
Or chaffy grain beneath the thresher’s flail :
And ‘mid these dancing rocks at once and ever
It flung up momently the sacred river.
Five miles meandering with a mazy motio”
The voices we hear could be that of the woman seeking her demon-lover, or merely a by-product of the haunted forest. The water the author refers to pertains to the sacred river that travels across the area, surrounding the dome. The distant tumult we are not able to identify might as well be due to the course of the waters.
From: [34] Attend the voices of the night
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#35>
No Comments »
| As the water touches your mouth you know it is enchanted. A thousand years of moths circle your mind like a candle flame. Their many colored wings are a wonder and a terror. Wings like veined marble. Wings like writhing flames. They fall on you like snow burying some tiny creature beside a toadstool. |
|
[42]Leap up and dispel the enchantment!
[30]Drink deeply. Sleep… |
Drinking from the river’s waters produce both an amazing image in our mind and a sense of impeding danger. This dichotomy between beauty and peril exists in almost every wonder that we might come across, probably because of a web of enchantments that prevent us from disrupting the calmness of this place.
From: [34] Drink of the dark noisy waters
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#41>
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We are revealed we are vassals of a Queen whose name and kingdom we don’t know yet. Retracing our steps, we discover that we had arrived to a place from which we cannot escape, that seems to be in a different ‘plane’. The options for the retreat are not written, so we can only continue in pursue of the dome.
Again, we may glimpse the parallelism of the scene in Kubla Khan: Our character had to climb over a wall to access to the dome’s surroundings. This location, circled (girdled, the term employed by Coleridge), helps to realize how distinct is this area to our character from the outside, where he/she belongs. It may be seen as a wholly different space comprised in a circumference.
From: [34]Return most swift to report your discovery to the Queen; [35]Best to leave now. Let the Queen decide the fate of this place.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#43>
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Any reader will start reading this fragment, that presents us with the first and probably most decisive set of choices. In this beginning, the author introduces us to a marvelous world in which, as we grasp its features, fantastic events are possible. We recognize the unrealistic setting through the first impression of our character, that acknowledges the dome as created by immortals of some sort. This early assumption and the mesmerizing composition that tells us about secrets and wonders, makes us realize that we are going to witness some sort of fantasy plot.
The inspiration on the poem of Samuel Coleridge, Kubla Khan, is apparent in these few lines, whereas the famed “pleasure-dome” erected by the emperor is now a work of non-mortals, stating that such impressive creation cannot be built by humans, and thus transforming the realistic-aimed poem of Coleridge into a fantasy tale.
Further discussed in the Conclusion.
“The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#34>
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Pathways:
Start reading from the beginning.
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When we first read “The Luminous Dome“, we found it enticing because of its narrative structure: the development of the story according to our choices, in the same way a role-playing game would be narrated. We believe that one of the key features of this interactive reading is this individual approach, that allows us to free ourselves from a linear path and delve into a selected branch of the story, a path we tread on helped by our decisions, which may be different from those of another reader. Many hypertexts offer us a distanced view of the events, not derived from our direct action into it but from a set of choices selected by curiosity. This particular hypertext is related to the old experience of representing a character by means of a table game or a role-playing book (link= example) in which you follow a path depending on the decision you want to make -for instance: run, hide, attack, flank… a group of incoming trolls. The Luminous Dome was similar to the concept seen on this books, but translated to the virtual sphere: more accessible and dynamic. We want to assess its significance, as it is a different perspective than the usual in hypertext fiction: we do not simply read in any order, but select the actions and participate in the outcome.
After we encountered this narrative, we tried to develop an analysis based on its tools and interpretation. To help this, we contacted the author and learned that it was based in the poem of Coleridge, Kubla Khan. We would like to set the similarities and differences in this conclusion, although our main goal originally was to frame the hypertext in a role-playing field of analysis.
The inspiration in this poem is found in most of the features that surround the glittering dome. We might state that the fictional work of Linhart develops almost every aspect observed in Kubla Khan, contextualizing it and developing its initial characteristics so it comes to existence: the sacred river that ran through Coleridge’s vision is enchanted in The Luminous Dome, depicting a plentiful and dangerous entity, a common dissonance between beauty plus calmness and hidden danger. The walls and towers that girdle the dome, are now heavily defended by humans, separating the dome and its surroundings from the outside world. Moreover, many of the natural elements that our character finds in this area seem odd or unknown to him, presenting faculties that range from fearful to marvellous, even portraying both at the same time. The paradisaical world of Kubla Khan is further experienced in a series of events that we might trigger in any of the paths we choose: its landscape, sounds, scents, are common in the narrative, and the amazement that our character feels is boosted by the endangering situations that dissociate it from a heavenly setting. Some other details -the waning moon, the greenest fertile grounds- are also included in the hypertext, a transposition from Kubla Khan into a world on its own, a merging of the distinct elements depicted by Coleridge in his vision to create a story. For instance, the dulcimer lady in the poem has a narrated representation, in which she goes beyond the original, carrying out a dialogue with our character -we can observe some of the ideas captured in the poem embodied in the lute-lady of the narrative, such as her humble origin as a musician, her mesmerizing musical skills and so on and so forth.
Nevertheless, we encounter also differences from the inspirational poem: the first being the inclusion of a character, us, that is not symbolized by any of the themes in Kubla Khan. This addition is necessary to elaborate a personal view of the subject, and does not confront the setting, since it only helps to represent it from the inside. A more striking difference is that of the general spatial and temporal atmosphere: we are not in an exotic land depicted by a Romantic writer, but in a fantasy setting with implausible features -magic, enchantments and such. The lyrical work of Coleridge was a realistic view of a magnificent land reigned by an emperor who would erect the pleasure-dome, the core of his vision, whereas the glittering dome in Linhart’s narrative is acknowledged to be a work of immortals. The hallucination of Coleridge showed a foreign land capable of such impressive constructions, while “The Luminous Dome” is an obvious fictional tale unrelated to the real world.
This element, the disjointed relationship with reality that gives expression to a fantasy world, is compulsory to understand the unconnected character we embody. Although this is a role-playing story, we cannot identify ourselves with the character we handle, as he/she -notice that we do not know the gender applied to it, due to its connection with ourselves (we will employ the masculine as it is the unmarked denotation)- is not a present-day person with current sociocultural background and personality, and we do not know his own background in order to react as he would do. We come to recognize this is no actual and current human because of his reactions towards the events he witnesses (the use of magic seems natural to him; he rejoices easily in the environment, disregarding his mission; he is capable of performing wonderful songs…). His appearance -we will only know he wears a tunic made with leaves- seems also atypical and quite primitive to us. We have been fit in a fantasy-medieval world with no previous background that we might have discovered in, perhaps, the complete development of the narrative, which remained unfinished.
It is important to note that “The Luminous Dome” is an unfinished work which did not accomplish to take us to the central idea of the work: the dome that we can make out from a distance and never reach. As a narration, it can be observed as a whole without expecting a resolution, and even acquire a notion of mystery that is never resolved, relating it even more to the dome of Coleridge, that we never approach or dissect.
Further notes on the role-playing experience have to be issued: the tool that utilizes the author to make us a part of the decision making process is that of links with a descriptive text that records possible actions. In conversation, many of the expected lines are offered, whereas in exploration this is addressed differently: most of the actions present unknown results that might be quite harmful -we learn that the wonders of this world contain perilous enchantments that deprive us from our conscience or literally drown us. It is also common to be driven through the story instead of choosing every possible path we might think of -for instance: if we were to return to the beginning, we would do it only from three of the five starting points, and in some concrete spots. On the other hand, some paths are already prearranged and immobile, we can only select one link, although we could think of other options. Nonetheless, this is not badly received as sometimes it alleviates the decision making process on behalf of linear narration for a short period.
We would like to conclude stating that this hypertext in a role-playing basis has achieved the level of interactivity of a present-day videogame of the same characteristics, even more easily, as the narrated works do not linger in programming issues, freeing from the necessity of development that restricts its progress. “The Luminous Dome” contains a great idea for the field of hypertextual fiction and develops it in an appealing way, that will make us return to the beginning to restart the adventure, finding something new in each reading -from a secondary quest to an odd death.
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This paper covers the literary and structural analysis of the hypertext “The Luminous Dome“, by Stephen Linhart. Its main goals are uncovering the basic features that presents this narrative, characterize it by means of comparison and interpretation, and superpose it to the essentials of roleplaying in order to understand its achievements in this field.
We began by writing an email to the author, expecting an answer that might help us develop this analysis. It was key to the proper deconstruction of the work, as he told us the source of his inspiration to write this hypertext: the poem of Coleridge, Kubla Khan. The reader will notice that we have conducted our research by means of translating the poem to the hypertext context, as well as interpreting the characteristics of the narrative to our impressions as ‘co-author’.
You may start reading the hypertext plus its commentary in the Core Index, deciding from the very beginning the way you want to browse through it. Were you to review every aspect without following the narrative, you would select the numbered “linear” option. If you wanted to read it the original way with the addition of our analysis, then you would go to its respective path -”Start from the beginning“. Finally, if you are searching for an specific path or would like to recreate the hypertext’s structure, you may follow our link to a possible diagram for this work.
Finally, we would like to comment on the structure of our paper and further details necessary to comprehend it. We have worked on each fragment as it was presented on the original page, representing it by a number which led to it in the first place. To illustrate our ideas, we will attach a post with some explanatory notes (text in blue):
[36]
Our analysis: We have chosen to cross the river through the way illuminated by the moon, as if it were a game. We are able to pursue joy even when we are immerse in a risky situation, surrounded by a landscape unknown to us. Perhaps it is in our nature to linger over fun and pleasure, trusting natural elements as if it all were benign.
The link and segment that took us to this piece of text ->From: [34] Cross the shimmering path of moon beams
Copyright: “The Luminous Dome”, Stephen Linhart
© Stephen Linhart, 1996. Jan. 2010
<http://www.stephen.com/button/luminous.html#36>
The last part of our paper is the Conclusion: the set of ideas that we acknowledged from the dissection of this hypertext, which are related to the way it is read and how it relates to fantasy and roleplaying experiences.
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His father died (June 1868), plunging him into a depression that lasted some years. Reads Dickens’ Our Mutual Friend (January). Dodgson’s father, Archdeacon Charles Dodgson, dies (June). Brothers and sisters move to “The Chestnuts,” Guildford (September). Publishes letter in Oxford University Herald about Woodstock Election (November).
 - “The Chestnuts”
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Context: Benjamin Disraeli becomes premier of Great Britain (February). General Ulysses Grant elected eighteenth president of United States (November).
Disraeli resigns and William Gladstone becomes premier (December)
Previous (1867) – Index – Next (1869)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll” Keith Parkins September 2005 rev 5
© Keith Parkins 1998-2005. Oct 2009
<http://www.heureka.clara.net/art/carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
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His humorous and other verses were collected in 1869 as Phantasmagoria and Other Poems. Sister, Mary Charlotte Dodgson, marries Charles E. S. Collingwood at Guildford (April). First Chapter of “Through the Looking Glass” is sent to Macmillans.
 - Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel
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Context: First Transcontinental Railroad completed in United States. Disestablishment of Irish Church (July).The Suez Canal, Egypt opens -a canal linking the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. Grigori Rasputin, Russian Mystic; Chamberlain, British Prime Minister; Mahatma Gandhi; Henri Matisse, Fauvist are born this year.
Previous (1868) – Index – Next (1870)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1869”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1869&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
He became a member of the Society for Psychical Research at its inception in 1882, and an active campaigner against vivisection during the 1870s. Spends five days at home of Henry Holiday, artist and illustrator, taking photographs July). Visits Margate, Kent, for five weeks (August and September). Alice was an immediate success, with 20,000 copies printed by 1870.
 - Margate Pier, taken in 1890
Context: In the 1870s in Britain some skilled workers were given a week’s annual paid holiday. In the 1870s water supplies were created in most towns. As a result of these measures towns were much healthier and cleaner by the end of the 19th century than at the beginning. Charles Dickens dies (June). Republic proclaimed in France (September). “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea“, written by Verne. Rosa Luxemburg, a Polish-born German Marxist revolutionary, and Lenin, Founder of the Soviet Republics, are born. 1870–71: The Franco-Prussian War results in the unifications of Germany and Italy, the collapse of the Second French Empire, the breakdown of Pax Britannica, and the emergence of a New Imperialism.
Previous (1869) – Index – Next (1871)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
“Margate Pier, Margate, Kent”, ViewFinder
© English Heritage 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://viewfinder.english-heritage.org.uk/search/detail.aspx?uid=78161>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1870”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1870&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Late in 1871, a sequel—Through the Looking-Glass And What Alice Found There—was published (dated 1872; actually published December 1871). Tenniel reluctantly agrees to illustrate it. Visits Lord Salisbury and family at Hatfield House (July). Attends brother’s wedding at Sleights, near Whitby (August). Travels to Scotland, visiting studio and home of Sir Noël Paton (September).
 - Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel
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Context: 1871–1872: Famine in Persia is believed to have caused the death of 2 million. 1871–1914: Second Industrial Revolution 1870s-90s: Long Depression in Western Europe and North America. In 1871 bank holidays were created and trade unions were definitely made legal.
Previous (1870) – Index – Next (1872)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
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 - Carroll aged about 40
Visits family and relatives at Southwick and Whitburn, near Sunderland (April). Publishes The New Belfry (June).
Spends holiday at Bognor Regis with some of his sisters (August and September). Guest of Salisbury family at Hatfield House for New Year (December).
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Context: Arthur Orton, the Tichborne Claimant, found an imposter (March). Smallpox epidemic in London (July).Yellowstone National Park is created. In February 17, 1872, Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jocinto Zamora (Gomburza), all Filipino priests, were executed by the Spanish colonizers on charges of subversion.
Previous (1871) – Index – Next (1874)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1872”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1872&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
This was The Hunting of the Snark, the longest and best sustained nonsense poem in the English language. The last line came into his mind while he was walking at Guildford in July 1874; the poem was not ready for publication until 1876.
Context: “Der Ring des Nibelungen“, Wagner; “The Mysterious Island“, Verne. Robert Frost, best known for his poem “The Road Not Taken” and the poet Amy Lowell are born, as well as Sir Winston Churchill. The Société Anonyme Coopérative des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, and Graveurs, better known today as the Impressionists organize and present their first public group exhibition at the Paris studio of the photographer Nadar. The British East India Company is dissolved. 1874–1875: First Republic in Spain.
Previous (1872) – Index – Next (1875)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Later Verse”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap5.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1874”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1874&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Meets Gertrude Chataway who is to become one of his most faithful child friends.
 - “St. George and the Dragon”, 1875. Xie Kitchin & her brothers
Context: The famous writers Edgar Wallace, John Buchan and Burroughs, the creator of Tarzan, are born in 1875. In 1875 a Public Health Act strengthened previous acts. All local authorities were forced to appoint Medical Officers of Health who could prosecute people who sold food or drink unfit for human consumption. The councils were also required to provide refuse collection. In 1875 the Artisan’s Dwellings Act was passed which gave councils the power to demolish slums but large scale slum clearance did not begin till the 20th century.
Previous (1874) – Index – Next (1876)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1875”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1875&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
In 1876, Dodgson produced his last great work, The Hunting of the Snark, a fantastical “nonsense” poem, exploring the adventures of a bizarre crew of variously inadequate beings, and one beaver, who set off to find the eponymous creature; illustrated by Henry Holiday. Becomes interested in logic.
 - “The Hunting of the Snark”, illustration by Henry Holiday
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 - Photography of Alexandra Kitchin, a child friend, taken by Carroll in 1876
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Context: The Bulgarian revolt against Ottoman rule. 1876–1879: 13 million Chinese died of famine in northern China. 1876–1914: The massive expansion in population, territory, industry and wealth in the United States is referred to as the Gilded Age.
Previous (1875) – Index – Next (1877)
Sources
Carroll:
“File:Lewis Carroll – Henry Holiday – Hunting of the Snark – Plate 9.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lewis_Carroll_-_Henry_Holiday_-_Hunting_of_the_Snark_-_Plate_9.jpg>
“File:Alexandra Kitchin 2.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexandra_Kitchin_2.jpg>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
Spends the summer by the sea at Eastbourne where he is to spend every August from now on, occupies rooms with the same landlady annually until 1897.
 - A panoramic view of Eastbourne, as seen from the west on Beachy Head
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Context: Great Railroad Strike in the United States may have been the world’s first nationwide labor strike. 1877–78: Following the Russo-Turkish War, the Treaty of Berlin recognizes formal independence of the Principality of Serbia, Montenegro and Romania. Bulgaria becomes autonomous.
Previous (1876) – Index – Next (1878)
Sources
Carroll:
“File:Eastbourne Panorama, England – May 2009.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eastbourne_Panorama,_England_-_May_2009.jpg>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Begins inventing word games.
Context: 1878: First commercial telephone exchange in New Haven, Connecticut.
Previous (1877) – Index – Next (1879)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Author of a fair number of books on mathematics, none of enduring importance, although Euclid and his Modern Rivals (1879) is of some historical interest.
 - Euclid and his Modern Rivals
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Context: Anglo-Zulu War in South Africa. 1879–83: Chile battles with Peru and Bolivia over Andean territory in the War of the Pacific. Paul Cézanne, one of the creators of modern art, called the “solidifier of Impressionism”, paints “Apples, Peaches, Pears, Grape”. Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin are born. Also Albert Einstein.
Previous (1878) – Index – Next (1880)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
Euclid and His Modern Rivals (Paperback), Amazon.com
©Amazon.com 2009. Oct. 2009.
<http://www.amazon.com/Euclid-Modern-Rivals-Lewis-Carroll/dp/0486229688>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1879”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1879&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Dodgson abruptly ceased photography in 1880 (last photograph taken on July 15). Over 24 years, he had completely mastered the medium, set up his own studio on the roof of Tom Quad, and created around 3,000 images. Fewer than 1,000 have survived time and deliberate destruction. His reasons for abandoning photography remain uncertain. Dodgson recorded experiencing his first episode of migraine with aura, describing very accurately the process of ‘moving fortifications’ that are a manifestation of the aura stage of the syndrome. Indeed a condition, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, has been named after it.
 - Winter view of Tom Quad (the Great Quadrangle) in the snow
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Context: 1880–1881: the First Boer War, between the British and the settlers of Dutch origin. Schliemann excavated a Mycenaean grave shaft and discovered The Mask of Agamemnon.
Previous (1879) – Index – Next (1881)
Sources
Carroll:
“File: Tom Quad, Christ Church 2004-01-21.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tom_Quad,_Christ_Church_2004-01-21.jpg>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1880”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1880&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
In 1881 he gave up the Mathematical Lectureship he had probably never much liked, and began a life of increasing leisure and some eccentricity.
Context: By 1881 about two thirds of the population in Britain lived in towns. First electrical power plant and grid in Godalming, Britain. 1881–1899: The Mahdist War in Sudan.
Previous (1880) – Index – Next (1882)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
 - Carroll aged about 60
Elected Curator of the Common Room by his colleagues. Publishes another work on mathematics. He became a member of the Society for Psychical Research at its inception in 1882.
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Context: 1882: The British invasion and the subsequent occupation of Egypt. James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, Hendrik Willem van Loon, Franklin Roosevelt, 32nd US President, all of them are born in 1882.
Previous (1881) – Index – Next (1883)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1882”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1882&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Works on a stage adaptation of “Alice”. His humorous and other verses were collected in 1869 as Phantasmagoria and Other Poems and later separated (with additions) as Rhyme? and Reason? (1883). The 1883 volume also contained The Hunting of the Snark, a narrative nonsense poem that is rivalled only by the best of Edward Lear.
Context: Krakatoa Eruption, Indonesia -erupted repeatedly, massively and with disastrous consequences. “Thus Spake Zarathustra“, Nietzsche -a 19th-century literary masterpiece, tremendously influential in the arts and in philosophy, uses the Persian religious leader Zarathustra to voice the author’s views. Franz Kafka and Benito Mussolini are born, as well as Walter Gropius, Founder of Bauhaus, 1919.
Previous (1882) – Index – Next (1885)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“File:SnarkFront.svg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SnarkFront.svg>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1883”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1883&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Publishes several articles on proportional representation. Also publishes A Tangled Tale.
 - A Tangled Tale, cover
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 - “Where Does the Day Begin?”, manuscript notes about a mathematical problem
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Context: 1884–85: The Berlin Conference signals the start of the European “scramble for Africa“. Attending nations also agree to ban trade in slaves. 1884–85: The Sino-French War led to the formation of French Indochina. “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson is published.
Previous (1883) – Index – Next (1886)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1885”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1885&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Publishes facsimile of Alice’s Adventures Under-Ground. Gives lectures at Lady Margaret Hall (one of the Women’s colleges in Oxford University).
 - A design for the play of “Alice”, done in 1886
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Context: Russian-Circassian War ended with the defeat and the exile of many Circassians. Imam Shamil defeated. Coca-Cola: The product that has given the world its best-known taste was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886. Dr. John Stith Pemberton, a local pharmacist, produced the syrup. The Statue of Liberty was built in New York.
Previous (1885) – Index – Next (1887)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1886”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1886&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
The Game of Logic (1887). Carroll’s attempt at making formal logic fun for children includes a game board with tokens and a formidably difficult accompanying text on propositions and syllogisms. Teaches logic in a Girl’s Senior School in Oxford. Meets Isa Bowman, another favourite child friend.
 - “The Game of Logic”
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 - Corrected proof for Ninth Paper on Logic (Oxford, 1887).
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Context: “The Kiss“, a marble sculpture by the French sculptor Auguste Rodin -the sculpture appeared originally as part of a group of reliefs decorating Rodin’s monumental bronze portal The Gates of Hell.
Previous (1886) – Index – Next (1889)
Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1887”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1887&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Publishes his last novel, Sylvie and Bruno, illustrated by Harry Furnis. Sylvie And Bruno was Carroll’s last attempt at imaginative literature on a large scale. Dodgson invented The Wonderland Postage-Stamp Case in 1889.
 - Sylvie and Bruno, illustration
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Context: The Eiffel Tower, Paris: a tower 300 metres high conceived as part of preparations for the World’s Fair of 1889. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad establishes the Ahmadi Muslim Community. End of the Brazilian Empire and the beginning of the Brazilian Republic. In 1889 in Britain the Gas Workers and General Labourers Union was formed. Also in 1889 a Seaman’s Union and the General Railway worker’s Union was formed.
Previous (1887) – Index – Next (1890)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1889”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1889&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
To his adoring artist friend Gertrude Thomson he was “not exactly an ordinary human being of flesh and blood. Rather … some delicate, ethereal spirit, enveloped for the moment in a semblance of common humanity.” (Harper’s Monthly Magazine, July 1890, 254; Illustrated News, 4 April 1891, 435; Interviews and Recollections, 235). Publishes The Nursery “Alice.”
 - Gertrude Thompson
Context: By the 1890s the weekend was common as many people had Saturday afternoon off. The Wounded Knee Massacre, the last major armed conflict between the Lakota Sioux and the US, was the last battle in the American Indian Wars. This event represents the end of the American Old West. Agatha Christie is born.
Previous (1889) – Index – Next (1891)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll: A Myth in the Making”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/carroll/dreamchild/dreamchild1.html>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lclctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1890”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1890&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
Sees Alice Liddell again (now Mrs Hargreaves) after a long separation and also makes peace with her mother.
 - Syzygies on the name of his young friend Beatrice Earle, 10 June 1891.
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Context: “Femmes de Tahiti (Sur la plage)”, by Gauguin.
Previous (1890) – Index – Next (1892)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1891”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1891&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Resigns post as Curator and publishes several short texts on logic.
Context: J.R.R Tolkien is born.
Previous (1891) – Index – Next (1893)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1892”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1892&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Produced the second volume of Sylvie and Bruno (1889), Sylvie and Bruno Concluded (1893). These were an unsuccessful attempt to re-create the Alice fantasies. Each volume ran to four hundred pages. Moreover, they were both prefaced by rambling apologetic addresses such as a clergyman might make from the steps of the chancel, involving good works and moral reflections of every kind. He also published “Syzygies and Lanrick” (word games). Curiosa Mathematica”, Part 2″. “Pillow Problems”.
 - Sylvie and Bruno Concluded, illustration
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Context: The Scream, Edvard Munch‘s most significant motif.
Previous (1892) – Index – Next (1896)
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Sources
Carroll:
“About Lewis Carroll”, Classic Authors
© 2009 Cyber Studios Inc. Oct 2009
<http://www.classicauthors.net/Carroll/>
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“File: Sylvie and Bruno” Wikimedia Commons. 13 June 2007
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sylvie_and_Bruno.gif>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1893”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1893&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
His last book, Part I of Symbolic Logic, appeared in 1896; it went through four editions within a year. “Lewis Carroll is among the immortals of literature, C. L. Dodgson was soon forgotten, except by the very few.” — Claude M. Blagden, Student of Christ Church from 1896.
 - Carroll in 1895 by an unknown photographer
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Context: 1895–1896: Ethiopia defeats Italy in the First Italo–Ethiopian War. Olympic games revived in Athens. Klondike Gold Rush in Canada. Greece was the birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games in 1896.
Previous (1893) – Index – Next (1897)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Lewis Carroll: A Myth in the Making”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/carroll/dreamchild/dreamchild1.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: In Memoriam”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc8.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1896”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1896&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
The exploitation of the Alice books in their various guises, translations and adaptations, still kept him busy, and he made a number of small verbal changes for a new edition in 1897. At Christmas, 1897, he was busily engaged on Part II of Symbolic Logic when he caught a feverish chill which turned to bronchitis. Gives several sermons to congregations of children. Discovers a number of rules of rapid division and multiplication. Decides to send back all letters addressed to “Lewis Carroll, Christ Church” as “not known at this address”.
Context: Gojong, or Emperor Gwangmu, proclaims the short-lived Korean Empire: lasts until 1910. “Dracula“, by Bram Stoker. “Nymphéas, effet du soir”, Claude Monet, 1897.
Previous (1896) – Index – Next (1898)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1897”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1897&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Lewis Carroll’s first biography appeared, officially sanctioned by the family, within months of his death in 1898. Dies at Guildford (January 14) at his sisters’ home, “The Chestnuts” in Guildford, of pneumonia following influenza. He was 2 weeks away from turning 66 years old. He is buried in Guildford at the Mount Cemetery. Three Sunsets and Other Poems published posthumously (January).
 - Memorial cards for the Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson
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Context: The Spanish-American War – a military conflict between Spain and the United States that began in April 1898. The United States gains control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines after the Spanish-American War. 1898–1900: The Boxer Rebellion in China is suppressed by an Eight-Nation Alliance. 1898–1902: The One Thousand Days war in Colombia breaks out between the “Liberales” and “Conservadores”, culminating with the loss of Panama in 1903.
Previous (1897) – Index
Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: In Memoriam”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc8.html>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“About Lewis Carroll”, Classic Authors
© 2009 Cyber Studios Inc. Oct 2009
<http://www.classicauthors.net/Carroll/>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1898”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1898&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Back (1832-1867)
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Frances Jane Lutwidge (wife of Charles Dodgson, cousin and clergyman) gave birth to Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, in January the 27th (1832) in the little parsonage of Daresbury in Warrington, Cheshire, England. He is the eldest son and third child in a family of seven girls and four boys.
Context: The Great Reform Bill finally received the royal assent on 7 June 1832. Before 1832, England was ruled by a oligarchy of landowners. After this date the urban middle class had an increasing say. In France, the French Revolution of 1830 ended in a constitutional monarchy ruled by Louis-Philippe. Gustave Eiffel and Edouard Manet are born.
Previous – Index - Next (1839)
Sources:
Carroll
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1832”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1832&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Amongst his reading list appears “The Pilgrim’s Progress“, which he reads at the age of seven, revealing a precocious intellect.
 - Silhouette of Dodgson, aged 8~
Context: Opium Wars (a.k.a. Anglo-Chinese Wars) start in China First Opium War ranges from 1839 to 1842. Civil war in the Federal Republic of Central America led to the foundings of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. In 1839 John Bright and Richard Cobden formed an Anti-Corn Law League, to achieve the abolition of the Corn Laws.
Previous (1832) – Index – Next (1843)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“Brief bio: Early Life”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography1.html>
History:
“Corn Laws.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
© Wikipedia. 8 Sep 2009 Oct 2009
<http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_Laws>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
 - Drawing representing Croft Rectory, by Carroll
The Dodgson family moved to the Croft-on-Tees Rectory, Yorkshire, as his father was given a larger parish. He held that post for the rest of his life. Carroll had been educated at home until the age of 12. A collection of treasures hidden under the nursery floor at Croft in 1843 included a small thimble, a child’s white glove, and a child’s ‘left-hand shoe’—objects that had their individual significance for the Dodo, the White Rabbit and the White Knight. There was also a block of wood with these words scribbled on it in Charles’s hand:
And we’ll wander through the wide world and chase the buffalo.
Context: The Victorian Era had begun in 1837, and would end in 1901. Queen Victoria‘s reign is considered the apex of the British Empire. Slavery is baned through the Abolition Act. Meanwhile by the 1840s public opinion changed in favour of free trade. Most people believed that government should interfere in the economy as little as possible. They also believed that countries should trade without import duties. Many tariffs were abolished.
Previous (1839) – Index – Next (1844)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/>
“Lewis Carroll Biography” Famous People
© Famous People. Oct. 2009
<http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/lewis-carroll-6.php>
“Brief bio: Early Life”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography1.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
In August he attended Richmond School for the first time. It was a small private institution, where he appears to be happy and settled.
Context: First publicly funded telegraph line in the world—between Baltimore and Washington. Dumas published both “The Count of Montecristo” and “The Three Musketeers“; Nietzsche and Karl Benz were born. Millerite movement awaits the Second Advent of Jesus Christ on October 22. Christ’s non-appearance becomes known as the Great Disappointment.
Previous (1843) – Index – Next (1845)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: early life”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography1.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1844”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1844&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
The beginning of the “Rectory Magazines”, manuscript compilations to which all the family were supposed to contribute. In fact, Charles wrote nearly all of those that survive, beginning with Useful and Instructive Poetry (not published until 1854), produced at the age of thirteen, contains remarkable anticipations of Humpty Dumpty and of the Mouse’s tail in Alice.
 - Humpty Dumpty – illustrated by Tenniel in Through the Looking Glass
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Context: Unification of the Kingdom of Tonga under Tāufaʻāhau. The New Zealand Land Wars (1845-72). Starts the Irish Potato Famine, which leads to the Irish diaspora. Röntgen discovers X-rays, 1895.
Previous (1844) – Index - Next (1846)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“File:Humpty Dumpty Tenniel.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Humpty_Dumpty_Tenniel.jpg>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1845”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1845&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
In 1846, young Dodgson moved on to Rugby School, where he was evidently less happy, for as he wrote some years after leaving the place:
“I cannot say … that any earthly considerations would induce me to go through my three years again … I can honestly say that if I could have been … secure from annoyance at night, the hardships of the daily life would have been comparative trifles to bear.”
Scholastically, though, he excelled with apparent ease. “I have not had a more promising boy his age since I came to Rugby” observed R.B. Mayor, the Mathematics master. At Rugby, he was a diligent, but not very happy pupil: He disliked his four years at public school, principally because of his innate shyness, although he was also subjected to a certain amount of bullying; he also endured several illnesses, one of which left him deaf in one ear.
 - Painting of Rugby School (1852)
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Context: The Mexican-American War leads to Mexico’s cession of much of the modern-day Southwestern United States. Mormon migration to Utah. The Revolutions of 1848: These were a series of political and economic revolts that took place in Europe because of a recession and abuse of political power. The participants in the revolutions were the Poles, Danes, Germans, Italians, Czechs, Slovaks, Slovaks, Hungarians, Croats, and the Romanians.
Previous (1845) – Index - Next (1849)
Sources
Carroll:
“Rugby School”, RichardLindon.com
© RichardLindon.com 2009. Oct. 2009.
<http://www.richardlindon.com/7.html>
“Brief bio: Early Life”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography1.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“Lewis Carroll” Keith Parkins September 2005 rev 5
© Keith Parkins 1998-2005. Oct 2009
<http://www.heureka.clara.net/art/carroll.htm>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
At the unusually late age of seventeen (1849) he suffered a severe attack of whooping cough which left him with poor hearing in his right ear and was probably responsible for his chronically weak chest in later life. He left Rugby at the end of 1849 and, after an interval which remains unexplained, went on in January 1851 to Oxford.
Context: Working-class’ conditions were slightly improving: in 1847 women and children were banned from working more than 10 hours a day in textile factories. Seneca Falls Convention (1848) is the first women’s rights convention in the United States and leads to the battle for suffrage and women’s legal rights. Development of means of transport: by 1848 there were 5,000 miles of railways in Britain and the network continued to expand rapidly in the later 19th century. The Communist Manifesto is published a year before. Revolutions of 1848 start in Europe.
Previous (1846) – Index – Next (1850)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll: A Brief Biography”, Carloine Leach. 25 November 2004.
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/carroll/bio1.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1849”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1849&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
He was matriculated (May 23) at Christ Church, Oxford, but unable to take up residence as insufficient room for undergraduates at that time. In the holidays between 1845 and 1850 he edited a number of magazines for his own amusement; the most entertaining of these was The Rectory Umbrella, which he illustrated as well as wrote. In this were the first nonsense rhymes and humorous drawings. “Seldom,” says Walter De La Mare, ‘has any child shown himself so clearly the father-to-be of the man.”
 - Fifth ed. of the Rectory Magazine, 1850
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Context: Emergence of Advertising in America: Volney B. Palmer opens the first American advertising agency. Stevenson, Writer of Jekyll and Hyde was born in Edinburgh’s New Town in 1850. The Little Ice Age ends around this time: it was a period of cooling occurring after a warmer North Atlantic era known as the Medieval Warm Period.
Previous (1849) – Index – Next (1851)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)”, Victorian Station.
Copyright© 1999-2001 Victorian Station. Oct. 2009.
<http://www.victorianstation.com/authorcarroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Early Life at Croft Rectory”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc2.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1850”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1850&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
He enrolled into Christ Church College of Oxford University, his father’s old college, in 1851 (January 24). Oxford will be his home for the rest of his life. His mother dies a few days later of “Inflammation of the Brain” — perhaps meningitis or a stroke — at the age of forty-seven. (January 26). He became a resident of that college, and “from that day to the hour of his death a period of forty-seven years he belonged to ‘the House,’ never leaving it for any length of time. . .”
 - University of Oxford – Coat of Arms
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Context: 1851–60s: Victorian gold rush in Australia. The Taiping Rebellion in China, started in the same year, is the bloodiest conflict of the century. The Great Exhibition in London was the world’s first international Expo or World’s Fair. Massachusetts passed the first modern adoption law, recognizing adoption as a social and legal operation based on child welfare rather than adult interests. “Moby Dick” is written by Herman Melville.
Previous (1850) – Index - Next (1852)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)”, Victorian Station.
Copyright© 1999-2001 Victorian Station. Oct. 2009.
<http://www.victorianstation.com/authorcarroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“University of Oxford: Coat of Arms”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OUCOAcolourCopyrightKaihsuTai.png>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1851”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1851&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Dodgson excelled in his mathematical and classical studies in 1852, receiving a First in Honour Moderations and was shortly thereafter nominated to a Studentship (equivalent to a fellowship carrying a small stipend), by his father’s old friend Canon Edward Pusey. However, a little later he failed an important scholarship through his self-confessed inability to apply himself to study. Even so, his talent as a mathematician won him the Christ Church Mathematical Lectureship, which he continued to hold for the next twenty-six years.
 - Edward Pusey
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Context: Gaudí was born in Catalonia. The Duke of Wellington, former prime minister (from 1828 to 1830), passed away that year (1769-1852).
Previous (1851) – Index – Next (1853)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1852”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1852&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
In about 1853 Dodgson began a new series of numbered diary volumes which he continued to keep until his death, and most of these do survive, although even here the record is not complete. Some members of his family deliberately cut out and destroyed certain pages: most of this missing material dates from a single decade (between 1853 and 1863), and is so extensive that it amounts to five and a half years of missing time.
Context: 1853–56: Crimean War between France, the United Kingdom, the Ottoman Empire and Russia. Vincent Van Gogh, one of the four great Post-impressionists is born in Zudern (the Netherlands).
Previous (1852) – Index – Next (1854)
Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll at Oxford”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc3.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1853”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1853&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
In 1854 he gained a first in mathematical Finals—coming out at the head of the class—and obtained also a Second Class in Classics; later he proceeded to a bachelor of arts degree in December of the same year. Between 1854 and 1856, his work (poetry and short stories) appeared in the national publications, The Comic Times and The Train, as well as smaller magazines like the Whitby Gazette and the Oxford Critic. Most of this output was humorous, sometimes satirical. An ingredient of Alice derives from the poem ‘She’s all my fancy painted him’, which formed the basis of the White Rabbit’s ‘evidence’ at the trial of the Knave of Hearts, was composed in 1854, the earliest influence to his later work. At this date, he prepares for ordination into the Church.
Context: The Convention of Kanagawa formally ends Japan’s policy of isolation. Oscar Wilde, renowned Irish poet and dramatist was born. There were outbreaks of cholera in many towns in 1854 due to disgusting conditions of hygiene.
Previous (1853) – Index – Next (1855)
Sources
Carroll:
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“A biography of Lewis Carroll”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1854”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1854&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Liddell appoints Dodgson honorary Master of the House at Christ Church, Oxford–providing privileges within the college, entitling membership in Common Room, and paving way for position as mathematical lecturer (June). He was made a “Master of the House” and a senior student (called a fellow in other colleges) the following year and was appointed lecturer in mathematics (the equivalent of today’s tutor), a post he resigned in 1881. “I do not think I have yet written anything worthy of real publication (in which I do not include the Whitby Gazette or the Oxonian Advertiser), but I do not despair of doing so some day,” he wrote in July 1855.
Context: Abraham Gesner patents kerosene. Opera “Les Vêpres Sicilennes” is produced (Paris). Heavy French/British bombing of Sebastopol, 2000+ killed. Bessemer steelmaking process is patented. Palmerston elected premier of Great Britain (February). Alexander II becomes tsar of Russia (March). Charlotte Brontë dies (March). Great Exhibition opens in Paris (May).
Previous (1854) – Index - Next (1856)
Sources
Carroll:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1855”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1855&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“1855 in History”, BrainyHistory
© 2001-2009 BrainyMedia.com. Oct. 2009
<http://www.brainyhistory.com/years/1855.html>
In March 1856 he published his first piece of work under the name that would make him famous. A romantic poem called “Solitude” appeared in The Train under the authorship of “Lewis Carroll.” He also took up the new art form of photography. He excelled at it and it became an expression of his very personal inner philosophy. Carroll, who became
a lecturer in mathematics the same year Liddell was appointed Dean (1856), knew the Liddell family well
and was a frequent guest at the Deanery. Liddell’s daughter Alice was, of course, the little girl to whom Carroll narrated the original “Alice’s Adventures Underground.” ‘School class again noisy and troublesome—I have not yet acquired the arts of keeping order’, runs a diary entry of 1856.
 - Skeffington (brother), taken in 1856
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Context: Treaty of Paris ends Crimean War (March). Oscar Wilde born (October). John Buchanan elected fifteenth president of United States (November). Powdered milk invented. World’s first oil refinery in Romania.
Previous (1855) – Index – Next (1857)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll at Oxford”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc3.html>
“A biography of Lewis Carroll”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll the Photographer”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc4.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1856”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1856&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
 Receives M.A. degree (February). He first met John Ruskin in 1857 and became friendly with him. Publishes “Palace of Humbug” in first issue of The Oxford Critic (April). Sees Tom Taylor’s A Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing at Olympic Theatre (April). Sees thirteen-year-old Kate Terry in role of Ariel in The Tempest (July). Photographs Agnes Grace Weld as “Little Red Riding-Hood” (August). Takes holiday in Scotland (September). Meets Alfred Lord Tennyson and his family in Lake District (September).
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 - Dido, Carroll’s brother Wilfred’s dog, taken in 1857
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 - Sisters and Brother, taken by Carroll in 1857
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 - Old Rectory Garden -1857
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Context: Lord Baden-Powell, founder of Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, born (February). 1857–58: Indian Rebellion of 1857: Outbreak of Indian mutiny, also known as Sepoy Mutiny (March). Thomas Hughes’ Tom Brown’s School Days published.
Previous (1856) – Index – Next (1858)
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Sources
Carroll:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll the Photographer”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc4.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Early Life at Croft Rectory”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc2.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1857”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1857&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Though information is scarce (Dodgson’s diaries for the years 1858–1862 are missing), it does seem clear that his friendship with the Liddell family was an important part of his life in the late 1850s. Exhibits four photographs at fifth annual exhibition, Photographic Society of London (April). Takes photographs of Liddell sisters, including Alice as “Beggar-Maid” (Summer).
 - Photograph of Alice Liddell, taken by Carroll
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Context: Princess Royal, Victoria, marries Prince Frederick William of Prussia (January). The Great Eastern, a ship of revolutionary design by renowned Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, launched (January). Lord Derby elected premier of Great Britain (February). Atlantic telegraph completed (August).
Previous (1857) – Index – Next (1859)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“File: Alice Lidell 2.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alice_Liddell_2.jpg>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
Visits the Tennysons on Isle of Wight (April). Meets Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Oxford, to discuss ordination (July).
Visits studio of sculptor Alexander Munro and takes several photographs (summer). Spends time with Bishop of Durham Charles T. Longley and his family (late summer). Prince of Wales comes to Christ Church, Oxford, as undergraduate (October).
 - Margaret Anne and Henrietta Mary Lutwidge, taken by Carroll
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Context: Rudolf Diesel, Inventor Diesel Engine in 1893 and Theodore Roosevelt, 26th Us President are born. Arthur Conan Doyle born (May). Palmerston elected premier for second term (June). Isambard Kingdom Brunel dies (September). Darwin’s Origin of Species published. George Eliot’s Adam Bede published. The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, or Austro-Sardinian War was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859.
Previous (1858) – Index – Next (1860)
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Sources
Carroll:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll the Photographer”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc4.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1859”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1859&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
Dodgson became deeply troubled by an unexplained sense of sin and guilt at this time (the early 1860s), and frequently expressed the view in his diaries that he was a “vile and worthless” sinner, unworthy of the priesthood. Contributes “A Photographer’s Day Out” to The South Shields Amateur Magazine (early in the year). Makes pilgrimage to Daresbury and Richmond–places associated with his early life (Easter). Attends meeting of British Association at Oxford during which Wilberforce and Huxley debate Darwin’s Origin of Species. Photographs several delegates (June/July).
Takes holiday at Whitby, Yorkshire (late summer). Meets Queen Victoria and members of Royal Family at Christ Church Deanery, Oxford (December). Publishes A Syllabus of Plane Algebraical Geometry (month unknown).
 - Thomas Combe, 1860, Superintendent of the Oxford University Press
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Context: By the 1860s the 10 hour day was common, but not universal. In ‘sweated industries’ such as making matchboxes and lace people were paid piece rates (i.e. they were paid so much for each one they made). People often worked in their own homes and very often they had to work from dawn to dusk to make a living. Max Havelaar,written by a former official of the Dutch East Indian Civil Service under the pen name Multatuli, was first published in Holland in 1860: it ignited a major political and social brouhaha. November 6, 1860 – Abraham Lincoln, who had declared “Government cannot endure permanently half slave, half free…” is elected president, the first Republican. J. M. Barrie, writer of Peter Pan, born (May). Great Eastern arrives in New York (June). Prince of Wales visits United States (August). First patent issued for Yale lock.
Previous (1859) – Index – Next (1861)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll at Oxford”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc3.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1860”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1860&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
He delayed the process for some time but eventually took deacon’s orders on 22 December 1861 (he was ordained deacon of Church of England by Wilberforce in Christ Church Cathedral). Begins “letter register” numbering all correspondence sent and received chronologically (January). Reviews Photographic Society of London’s exhibition in The Illustrated Times (January). Visits James Hunt at Ore, near Hastings, to receive help with speech hesitation (April). Publishes The Formula of Plane Trigonometry (June). Attends Oxford University debate on endowment of Greek professorship (November).
Context: 1861–65: American Civil War between the Union and seceding Confederacy. Russia abolishes serfdom. 1861–67: French intervention in Mexico and the creation of the Second Mexican Empire, ruled by Maximilian I of Mexico. Modern Italy became a nation-state belatedly — on March 17, 1861, when most of the states of the peninsula were united under king Victor Emmanuel II of the Savoy dynasty. Dickens writes “Great Expectations“. U.S. civil war begins (April). Queen Victoria calls for British people to remain neutral in American civil war (May). Albert, the Prince Consort, dies (December).
Previous (1860) – Index – Next (1862)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
“Timeline Index: 1861”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1861&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Dodgson and his friend Robinson Duckworth, fellow of Trinity, rowed the three children up the Thames from Oxford to Godstow, picnicked on the bank, and returned to Christ Church late in the evening: “On which occasion,” wrote Dodgson in his diary, “I told them the fairy-tale of Alice’s Adventures Underground, which I undertook to write out for Alice.” Visits Isle of Wight and meets the Tennysons and Camerons (April). Becomes editor, College Rhymes (July). Composes medley-song, “Miss Jones,” with help from his sisters (September).
 - An illustration of “Alice in Wonderland” by Sir John Tenniel
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Context: 1862–1877: Muslim Rebellion in northwest China. The first Emancipation Proclamation, issued on September 22, 1862 by United States President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War, declared the freedom of all slaves in any state of the Confederate States of America.
Previous (1861) – Index – Next (1863)
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Sources
Carroll:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (1): Illustrations for Alice in Wonderland”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/alice/gallery1.html>
History:
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
The MacDonald’s, his friends, urge him to publish the manuscript of “Alice”. Macmillans agree to publish it and John Tenniel to illustrate it. Attends celebrations in Oxford to commemorate wedding of Prince and Princess of Wales (March). Journeys to Tenby, West Wales, to visit relatives–Smedleys and Pooles (April). Vaccinated against smallpox (May). Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Deanery, Christ Church, Oxford (June). Spends a few days photographing Rossetti family in London (October).
 - Self-Portrait, 1863
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 - Dante Gabriel Rossetti, taken by Carroll in 1863
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Context: Formation of the International Red Cross is followed by the adoption of the First Geneva Convention in 1864. 1863–1865: Polish uprising against the Russian Empire. The biologist T.H. Huxley wrote “Man’s Place in Nature“. Edouard Manet‘s submissions to the Salon of 1863, The Picnic, Le Déjeuner sur l’Herbe among them, were rejected and appeared at the Salon des Refusés. The Battle of Gettysburg, which took place during the American Civil War in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was the largest battle ever fought in North America.
Previous (1862) – Index – Next (1864)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll, 1863.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009.
© Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 17 Oct. 2009
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/97087/Lewis-Carroll>.
“Dante Gabriel Rossetti.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009.
© Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 17 Oct. 2009
<http://cache-media.britannica.com/eb-media/77/19577-004-6C497A6C.jpg>.
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1863”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1863&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
Introduced by Tom Taylor to John Tenniel; asks latter to illustrate Alice’s Adventures (January). Tenniel consents (April). Spends a few weeks at Lambeth Palace photographing visitors (July). Visits Isle of Wight and photographs Farringford, the Tennyson’s home, and Mr. Weld (August). Having told the story and been begged by Alice Liddell to write it down, Dodgson eventually (after much delay) presented her with a handwritten, illustrated manuscript entitled Alice’s Adventures Under Ground in November 1864. Meets, for first time, Kate and Ellen Terry in person at their home (December). He was writing to George MacDonald‘s daughter, Mary, letters full of delightful nonsense in no way inferior to that in Alice. Although his letters, like the Alice books, can only be fully appreciated by adults, they are an additional proof that he wrote his nonsense primarily to give pleasure to children.
 - Ellen Terry, taken by Carroll
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 - Maria White, 11 July 1864 – taken by Carroll
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Context: 1864–66: The Chincha Islands War was an attempt by Spain to regain its South American colonies. 1864–70: The War of the Triple Alliance ends Paraguayan ambitions for expansion and destroys much of the Paraguayan population. First Geneva Convention, first to provide more humane treatment for wounded, signed (August). Jules Verne, Pioneer of Science Fiction writes “Journey to the Center of the Earth“. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Richard Strauss are born.
Previous (1863) – Index – Next (1865)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1864”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1864&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
After the possible alternative titles Alice Among the Fairies and Alice’s Golden Hour were rejected, the work was finally published as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in 1865 under the Lewis Carroll pen name, which Dodgson had first used some nine years earlier. In June 1865, Lewis Carroll had fifty copies of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland bound up for presentation to family and friends. Meets Sophie Anderson, painter, at her home (April). Alice reprinted–becoming first published edition (November). Letter of complaint from undergraduates at Christ Church, Oxford, published in The Times (November). Sees Henry Dunbar at Olympic Theatre, London (December).
 - “Alice in Wonderland”, 1st edition
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 - Dymphna Ellis (child friend), 25 July 1865, taken by Carroll
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Context: 1865–77: Reconstruction in the United States; Slavery is banned in the United States by the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. 1865-April 9, Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War. 1865-April 15, 1865, United States President Abraham Lincoln is assassinated while attending a performance at Fords theater, Washington, D.C.. William Butler Yeats, Irish Poet is born, together with Rudyard Kipling.
Previous (1864) – Index – Next (1866)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1865”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1865&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
The first edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was withdrawn because of bad printing, and only about 21 copies survive—one of the rare books of the 19th century—and the reprint was ready for publication by Christmas of the same year, though dated 1866. Invents “Condensation of Determinants”–reads before Royal Society (May). Goes to Haymarket Theatre to see Edward Askew Sothern perform in Lord Dundreary Married and Done For (June). Travels to Whitburn and Whitby (September). Publishes letters in Pall Mall Gazette and The Times on “Science of Betting” (November).
 - “Alice in Wonderland”, illustration by John Tenniel
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Context: 1866: Successful transatlantic telegraph cable follows an earlier attempt in 1858. 1866: Austro-Prussian War results in the dissolution of the German Confederation and the creation of the North German Confederation and the Austrian-Hungarian Dual Monarchy. 1866–1868: Famine in Finland. 1866–69: After the Meiji Restoration, Japan embarks on a program of rapid modernization. Jules Verne‘s novel “From the Earth to the Moon” -the imaginative story of an attempt, made shortly after the U.S. Civil War, to send a projectile to the moon.
Previous (1865) – Index – Next (1867)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (1): Illustrations for Alice in Wonderland”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/alice/gallery1.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1866”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1866&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
Begins work on “Through the Looking Glass“. Publishes “The Organization of Charity” in Pall Mall Gazette (January). Sees amateur production of A Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing performed at Olympic Theatre to aid family of C. H. Bennett (May). He also published many mathematical papers under his own name, toured Europe on an extended visit (in 1867). The only occasion on which (as far as is known) he travelled abroad was a trip to Russia with Henry P. Liddon, via France, Belgium, and Germany (July to September), which he recounts in his “Russian Journal” which was first commercially published in 1935.
 - Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel
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Context: Nebraska admitted to the Union as thirty-seventh state (February). Dominion of Canada established (March).
Karl Marx publishes Das Kapital. The United States purchased Alaska from Russia. Canadian Confederation formed. Principality of Serbia passes the Constitution which defines its independent from Ottoman Empire. International recognition followed in 1878. Frank Lloyd Wright and Madame Curie are born.
Previous (1866) – Index – Next (1868)
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Sources
Carroll:
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1867”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1867&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
Next (1868-1898)
No Comments »
First of all, I would like to assess the significance of this analysis model over the traditional media, as I have experienced: connecting ideas in such an environment as the hypertextual is simple and provides insightful responses from the reader, since he can choose the desired path to the information, make a detour through the links to gather answers to the questions that the text has raised, and therefore obtain a global view of the subject, rather than sticking to a fixed text. In this paper, a great deal of external links have been offered in each post, as well as the internal ones that support its integrity by creating paths from one date to another, back to the beginning or to the index, giving choices to the visitor. Moreover, to the chronology of the author has been attached a context which aims to touch those issues that brought about the most relevant historical events of the century. Subsequently, my purpose is to collect some of these events and relate them to the author, with the idea of showing how history relates to particular biographies.
Lewis Carroll was immerse in the Victorian Era’s society, which ranged from 1837 to 1901, in parallel to Queen Victoria’s reign. It was a period whose main characteristic was the peace, the so-called Pax Britannica, interrupted by the Crimean War, which had to do with a struggle of powers and influence. His society was immerse in a process of industrialization, which was promptly consolidated during this time, and the requests of the workers to improve their status. Nevertheless, population still lived in towns as a general rule. Dickens, contemporary of Carroll, did show these issues in “Our Mutual Friend“ -among other novels- by means of realistic descriptions.
This raging of industry and technology due to the implementation of machinery affected the way in which art was thought and produced, thus emerged Romanticism as the dominant tendency of the end of the century. Romanticism did not only strive for a fantastic and nature-respectful world, which was clearly a concern of Lewis Carroll, but also saw beauty and innocence in the image of children, welcoming their nudity as much as their tales: Carroll was subsequently accused of pedophilia due to his collection of nudes from children. Perhaps this was true, but in general terms nudity in children was not labelled as depraved, but instead it was more common than rare and generally well-regarded. In addition to these, it has been thought that Carroll was uninterested in women of his age, which could be false – the result of the diaries’ manipulation and disappearance of some pages which could have covered this subject.
On the one hand, he had an overwhelming talent for imaginative tales, which essentially were a manner of Escapism -by ‘escapism’ I mean the romantic exercise of rejecting reality, either by travelling through time (Medieval), space (the exotic) or to invented worlds, as Carroll did. On the other hand, he had a deep interest in mathematics, ultimately considered absolute and flawless, and the challenges of logic. He did not seem to be shaken nor affected by world’s changes, since he did not leave his peaceful sanctuary in Oxford, besides travelling across Europe once on a trip to Russia. Perhaps he was satisfied enough with his inner self and his surroundings not to expose his ideology.
We observe, through the analysis of both his biography and his chronology, how deeply interested he was in children’s mind, as he never quitted writing to them, and still conceived this friendships as pure and childish even when they were already grown to adults. This was one of the few things that he maintained during his life-time, as he did not continue photographing. Next to this, his fantastic nonsensical poems and tales, dedicated to children, to which he devoted his writing production. Logic and mathematical essays also tried to fit in children’s interests by creating the “Game of Logic“, which nevertheless did not succeed as they were too complicated.
Through the tracking of his activities and the scope of his hobbies, it is revealed that he was as much a mathematician as a writer, and was stricken by the same issues that overran society -although it did attract not much interest from him: Darwin’s theories, new art concepts -impressionism- and such. In his late years he became more interested in solving logic problems, and went so far as to creating games that would send to his child friends, at the same time that was dealing with adaptations and versions of Alice, his greatest success.
We could state that Lewis Carroll was not a prolific author, but his tales achieved immortality, specially the adventures of Alice in their several forms. He created a fantastic world under the premises of romanticism, escaping from reality and merging every child’s dream and imagination into a story that would not follow the Aristotelian principles of causality, but could recreate the intricate labyrinth of a young mind in creative process, and satisfy its desires.
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To better understand how this paper works, you need to know its features and the essential idea it carries out:
Firstly, a chronological list of major events is shown, under the name of Core Index summarizing in less than a line the content of the link provided – each date is further developed in a post, and every post is jointed to the previous and subsequent dates, as well as linked to the Archive or Sources.
Under each date, a context will be presented to reveal specific and general information about the environment that might have affected Carroll’s society and, therefore, Carroll himself. It is possible to circumscribe the author’s tendencies when such an information is offered, thus adding the context to the biographical data is one of the most significant points of this commentary.
Our principal interest is whether Carroll was influenced by the major events of the century or not; if he expressed through his literary output any preoccupation about his surroundings, and in which way he did it. Also of primary concern to us is the analysis of those likings and habits (mathematics, drawing) that might have developed his inner self, further discerned in his work. You may check this topic in the Conclusion.
The data featured in this blog has been extracted from, at least, 10 different sites, including every detail that came across. Nevertheless, the chronology developed is less extensive than a book regarding the matter -Lewis Carroll’s life and authorship-, so it may be recommendable to do a further reading for your research. Although, if your interest is superficial, this site will prove useful as it contains most of the chronological information available on the internet.
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Lewis Carroll’s first biography appeared, officially sanctioned by the family, within months of his death in 1898. Dies at Guildford (January 14) at his sisters’ home, “The Chestnuts” in Guildford, of pneumonia following influenza. He was 2 weeks away from turning 66 years old. He is buried in Guildford at the Mount Cemetery. Three Sunsets and Other Poems published posthumously (January).
Memorial cards for the Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson Context: The Spanish-American War – a military conflict between Spain and the United States that began in April 1898. The United States gains control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines after the Spanish-American War. 1898–1900: The Boxer Rebellion in China is suppressed by an Eight-Nation Alliance. 1898–1902: The One Thousand Days war in Colombia breaks out between the “Liberales” and “Conservadores”, culminating with the loss of Panama in 1903.
Previous (1897) - Index
Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: In Memoriam”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc8.html>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“About Lewis Carroll”, Classic Authors
© 2009 Cyber Studios Inc. Oct 2009
<http://www.classicauthors.net/Carroll/>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1898”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1898&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
The exploitation of the Alice books in their various guises, translations and adaptations, still kept him busy, and he made a number of small verbal changes for a new edition in 1897. At Christmas, 1897, he was busily engaged on Part II of Symbolic Logic when he caught a feverish chill which turned to bronchitis. Gives several sermons to congregations of children. Discovers a number of rules of rapid division and multiplication. Decides to send back all letters addressed to “Lewis Carroll, Christ Church” as “not known at this address”.
Context: Gojong, or Emperor Gwangmu, proclaims the short-lived Korean Empire: lasts until 1910. “Dracula“, by Bram Stoker. “Nymphéas, effet du soir”, Claude Monet, 1897.
Previous (1896) - Index - Next (1898)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1897”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1897&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
His last book, Part I of Symbolic Logic, appeared in 1896; it went through four editions within a year. “Lewis Carroll is among the immortals of literature, C. L. Dodgson was soon forgotten, except by the very few.” — Claude M. Blagden, Student of Christ Church from 1896.
Carroll in 1895 by an unknown photographer Context: 1895–1896: Ethiopia defeats Italy in the First Italo–Ethiopian War. Olympic games revived in Athens. Klondike Gold Rush in Canada. Greece was the birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games in 1896.
Previous (1893) - Index - Next (1897)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Lewis Carroll: A Myth in the Making”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/carroll/dreamchild/dreamchild1.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: In Memoriam”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc8.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1896”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1896&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Produced the second volume of Sylvie and Bruno (1889), Sylvie and Bruno Concluded (1893). These were an unsuccessful attempt to re-create the Alice fantasies. Each volume ran to four hundred pages. Moreover, they were both prefaced by rambling apologetic addresses such as a clergyman might make from the steps of the chancel, involving good works and moral reflections of every kind. He also published “Syzygies and Lanrick” (word games). Curiosa Mathematica”, Part 2″. “Pillow Problems”.
Sylvie and Bruno Concluded, illustration Context: The Scream, Edvard Munch‘s most significant motif.
Previous (1892) - Index - Next (1896)
Sources
Carroll:
“About Lewis Carroll”, Classic Authors
© 2009 Cyber Studios Inc. Oct 2009
<http://www.classicauthors.net/Carroll/>
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“File: Sylvie and Bruno” Wikimedia Commons. 13 June 2007
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sylvie_and_Bruno.gif>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1893”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1893&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
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Resigns post as Curator and publishes several short texts on logic.
Context: J.R.R Tolkien is born.
Previous (1891) - Index - Next (1893)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1892”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1892&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
Sees Alice Liddell again (now Mrs Hargreaves) after a long separation and also makes peace with her mother.
Syzygies on the name of his young friend Beatrice Earle, 10 June 1891. Context: “Femmes de Tahiti (Sur la plage)”, by Gauguin.
Previous (1890) - Index - Next (1892)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1891”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1891&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
To his adoring artist friend Gertrude Thomson he was “not exactly an ordinary human being of flesh and blood. Rather … some delicate, ethereal spirit, enveloped for the moment in a semblance of common humanity.” (Harper’s Monthly Magazine, July 1890, 254; Illustrated News, 4 April 1891, 435; Interviews and Recollections, 235). Publishes The Nursery “Alice.”
Gertrude Thompson Context: By the 1890s the weekend was common as many people had Saturday afternoon off. The Wounded Knee Massacre, the last major armed conflict between the Lakota Sioux and the US, was the last battle in the American Indian Wars. This event represents the end of the American Old West. Agatha Christie is born.
Previous (1889) - Index - Next (1891)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll: A Myth in the Making”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/carroll/dreamchild/dreamchild1.html>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lclctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1890”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1890&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
No Comments »
Publishes his last novel, Sylvie and Bruno, illustrated by Harry Furnis. Sylvie And Bruno was Carroll’s last attempt at imaginative literature on a large scale. Dodgson invented The Wonderland Postage-Stamp Case in 1889.
Sylvie and Bruno, illustration Context: The Eiffel Tower, Paris: a tower 300 metres high conceived as part of preparations for the World’s Fair of 1889. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad establishes the Ahmadi Muslim Community. End of the Brazilian Empire and the beginning of the Brazilian Republic. In 1889 in Britain the Gas Workers and General Labourers Union was formed. Also in 1889 a Seaman’s Union and the General Railway worker’s Union was formed.
Previous (1887) - Index - Next (1890)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Sylvie and Bruno”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap6.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1889”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1889&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
The Game of Logic (1887). Carroll’s attempt at making formal logic fun for children includes a game board with tokens and a formidably difficult accompanying text on propositions and syllogisms. Teaches logic in a Girl’s Senior School in Oxford. Meets Isa Bowman, another favourite child friend.
"The Game of Logic" Corrected proof for Ninth Paper on Logic (Oxford, 1887). Context: “The Kiss“, a marble sculpture by the French sculptor Auguste Rodin -the sculpture appeared originally as part of a group of reliefs decorating Rodin’s monumental bronze portal The Gates of Hell.
Previous (1886) - Index - Next (1889)
Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1887”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1887&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
Publishes facsimile of Alice’s Adventures Under-Ground. Gives lectures at Lady Margaret Hall (one of the Women’s colleges in Oxford University).
A design for the play of "Alice", done in 1886 Context: Russian-Circassian War ended with the defeat and the exile of many Circassians. Imam Shamil defeated. Coca-Cola: The product that has given the world its best-known taste was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886. Dr. John Stith Pemberton, a local pharmacist, produced the syrup. The Statue of Liberty was built in New York.
Previous (1885) - Index - Next (1887)
Sources
Carroll:
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1886”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1886&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Publishes several articles on proportional representation. Also publishes A Tangled Tale.
A Tangled Tale, cover "Where Does the Day Begin?", manuscript notes about a mathematical problem Context: 1884–85: The Berlin Conference signals the start of the European “scramble for Africa“. Attending nations also agree to ban trade in slaves. 1884–85: The Sino-French War led to the formation of French Indochina. ”The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson is published.
Previous (1883) - Index - Next (1886)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Charles Lutwidge Dodgson: A Chronology of His Life” , Edward Wakeling 2004-Jul-19
© The Library of Congress. Oct 2009
<http://memory.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Logic, Mathematics and Puzzles”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc6.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1885”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1885&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Works on a stage adaptation of “Alice”. His humorous and other verses were collected in 1869 as Phantasmagoria and Other Poems and later separated (with additions) as Rhyme? and Reason? (1883). The 1883 volume also contained The Hunting of the Snark, a narrative nonsense poem that is rivalled only by the best of Edward Lear.
Context: Krakatoa Eruption, Indonesia -erupted repeatedly, massively and with disastrous consequences. “Thus Spake Zarathustra“, Nietzsche -a 19th-century literary masterpiece, tremendously influential in the arts and in philosophy, uses the Persian religious leader Zarathustra to voice the author’s views. Franz Kafka and Benito Mussolini are born, as well as Walter Gropius, Founder of Bauhaus, 1919.
Previous (1882) - Index - Next (1885)
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Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“File:SnarkFront.svg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SnarkFront.svg>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1883”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1883&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
Carroll aged about 60 Elected Curator of the Common Room by his colleagues. Publishes another work on mathematics. He became a member of the Society for Psychical Research at its inception in 1882.
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Context: 1882: The British invasion and the subsequent occupation of Egypt. James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, Hendrik Willem van Loon, Franklin Roosevelt, 32nd US President, all of them are born in 1882.
Previous (1881) - Index - Next (1883)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1882”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1882&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
In 1881 he gave up the Mathematical Lectureship he had probably never much liked, and began a life of increasing leisure and some eccentricity.
Context: By 1881 about two thirds of the population in Britain lived in towns. First electrical power plant and grid in Godalming, Britain. 1881–1899: The Mahdist War in Sudan.
Previous (1880) - Index - Next (1882)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Dodgson abruptly ceased photography in 1880 (last photograph taken on July 15). Over 24 years, he had completely mastered the medium, set up his own studio on the roof of Tom Quad, and created around 3,000 images. Fewer than 1,000 have survived time and deliberate destruction. His reasons for abandoning photography remain uncertain. Dodgson recorded experiencing his first episode of migraine with aura, describing very accurately the process of ‘moving fortifications’ that are a manifestation of the aura stage of the syndrome. Indeed a condition, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, has been named after it.
Winter view of Tom Quad (the Great Quadrangle) in the snow Context: 1880–1881: the First Boer War, between the British and the settlers of Dutch origin. Schliemann excavated a Mycenaean grave shaft and discovered The Mask of Agamemnon.
Previous (1879) - Index - Next (1881)
Sources
Carroll:
“File: Tom Quad, Christ Church 2004-01-21.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tom_Quad,_Christ_Church_2004-01-21.jpg>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1880”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1880&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
Author of a fair number of books on mathematics, none of enduring importance, although Euclid and his Modern Rivals (1879) is of some historical interest.
Euclid and his Modern Rivals Context: Anglo-Zulu War in South Africa. 1879–83: Chile battles with Peru and Bolivia over Andean territory in the War of the Pacific. Paul Cézanne, one of the creators of modern art, called the “solidifier of Impressionism”, paints “Apples, Peaches, Pears, Grape”. Leon Trotsky and Joseph Stalin are born. Also Albert Einstein.
Previous (1878) - Index - Next (1880)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
Euclid and His Modern Rivals (Paperback), Amazon.com
©Amazon.com 2009. Oct. 2009.
<http://www.amazon.com/Euclid-Modern-Rivals-Lewis-Carroll/dp/0486229688>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1879”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1879&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Begins inventing word games.
Context: 1878: First commercial telephone exchange in New Haven, Connecticut.
Previous (1877) - Index - Next (1879)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Spends the summer by the sea at Eastbourne where he is to spend every August from now on, occupies rooms with the same landlady annually until 1897.
A panoramic view of Eastbourne, as seen from the west on Beachy Head Context: Great Railroad Strike in the United States may have been the world’s first nationwide labor strike. 1877–78: Following the Russo-Turkish War, the Treaty of Berlin recognizes formal independence of the Principality of Serbia, Montenegro and Romania. Bulgaria becomes autonomous.
Previous (1876) - Index - Next (1878)
Sources
Carroll:
“File:Eastbourne Panorama, England – May 2009.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eastbourne_Panorama,_England_-_May_2009.jpg>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
In 1876, Dodgson produced his last great work, The Hunting of the Snark, a fantastical “nonsense” poem, exploring the adventures of a bizarre crew of variously inadequate beings, and one beaver, who set off to find the eponymous creature; illustrated by Henry Holiday. Becomes interested in logic.
"The Hunting of the Snark", illustration by Henry Holiday Photography of Alexandra Kitchin, a child friend, taken by Carroll in 1876 Context: The Bulgarian revolt against Ottoman rule. 1876–1879: 13 million Chinese died of famine in northern China. 1876–1914: The massive expansion in population, territory, industry and wealth in the United States is referred to as the Gilded Age.
Previous (1875) - Index - Next (1877)
Sources
Carroll:
“File:Lewis Carroll – Henry Holiday – Hunting of the Snark – Plate 9.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lewis_Carroll_-_Henry_Holiday_-_Hunting_of_the_Snark_-_Plate_9.jpg>
“File:Alexandra Kitchin 2.jpg”, Wikimedia Commons.
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alexandra_Kitchin_2.jpg>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
No Comments »
Meets Gertrude Chataway who is to become one of his most faithful child friends.
"St. George and the Dragon", 1875. Xie Kitchin & her brothers Context: The famous writers Edgar Wallace, John Buchan and Burroughs, the creator of Tarzan, are born in 1875. In 1875 a Public Health Act strengthened previous acts. All local authorities were forced to appoint Medical Officers of Health who could prosecute people who sold food or drink unfit for human consumption. The councils were also required to provide refuse collection. In 1875 the Artisan’s Dwellings Act was passed which gave councils the power to demolish slums but large scale slum clearance did not begin till the 20th century.
Previous (1874) - Index - Next (1876)
Sources
Carroll:
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1875”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1875&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
This was The Hunting of the Snark, the longest and best sustained nonsense poem in the English language. The last line came into his mind while he was walking at Guildford in July 1874; the poem was not ready for publication until 1876.
Context: “Der Ring des Nibelungen“, Wagner; “The Mysterious Island“, Verne. Robert Frost, best known for his poem “The Road Not Taken” and the poet Amy Lowell are born, as well as Sir Winston Churchill. The Société Anonyme Coopérative des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, and Graveurs, better known today as the Impressionists organize and present their first public group exhibition at the Paris studio of the photographer Nadar. The British East India Company is dissolved. 1874–1875: First Republic in Spain.
Previous (1872) - Index - Next (1875)
Sources
Carroll:
“A biography of Lewis Carroll: Later Verse”, Derek Hudson
© 2000 Philip Atkinson
<http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/hudsond/carroll/chap5.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1874”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1874&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
Carroll aged about 40 Visits family and relatives at Southwick and Whitburn, near Sunderland (April). Publishes The New Belfry (June).
Spends holiday at Bognor Regis with some of his sisters (August and September). Guest of Salisbury family at Hatfield House for New Year (December).
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Context: Arthur Orton, the Tichborne Claimant, found an imposter (March). Smallpox epidemic in London (July).Yellowstone National Park is created. In February 17, 1872, Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jocinto Zamora (Gomburza), all Filipino priests, were executed by the Spanish colonizers on charges of subversion.
Previous (1871) - Index - Next (1874)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1872”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1872&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
Late in 1871, a sequel—Through the Looking-Glass And What Alice Found There—was published (dated 1872; actually published December 1871). Tenniel reluctantly agrees to illustrate it. Visits Lord Salisbury and family at Hatfield House (July). Attends brother’s wedding at Sleights, near Whitby (August). Travels to Scotland, visiting studio and home of Sir Noël Paton (September).
Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel Context: 1871–1872: Famine in Persia is believed to have caused the death of 2 million. 1871–1914: Second Industrial Revolution 1870s-90s: Long Depression in Western Europe and North America. In 1871 bank holidays were created and trade unions were definitely made legal.
Previous (1870) - Index - Next (1872)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
No Comments »
He became a member of the Society for Psychical Research at its inception in 1882, and an active campaigner against vivisection during the 1870s. Spends five days at home of Henry Holiday, artist and illustrator, taking photographs July). Visits Margate, Kent, for five weeks (August and September). Alice was an immediate success, with 20,000 copies printed by 1870.
Margate Pier, taken in 1890 Context: In the 1870s in Britain some skilled workers were given a week’s annual paid holiday. In the 1870s water supplies were created in most towns. As a result of these measures towns were much healthier and cleaner by the end of the 19th century than at the beginning. Charles Dickens dies (June). Republic proclaimed in France (September). “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea“, written by Verne. Rosa Luxemburg, a Polish-born German Marxist revolutionary, and Lenin, Founder of the Soviet Republics, are born. 1870–71: The Franco-Prussian War results in the unifications of Germany and Italy, the collapse of the Second French Empire, the breakdown of Pax Britannica, and the emergence of a New Imperialism.
Previous (1869) - Index - Next (1871)
Sources
Carroll:
“Brief bio: After Alice”, The Carroll Myth
© The Carroll Myth, 2009. Oct. 2009
<http://www.carrollmyth.com/briefbiography3.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
“Margate Pier, Margate, Kent”, ViewFinder
© English Heritage 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://viewfinder.english-heritage.org.uk/search/detail.aspx?uid=78161>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1870”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1870&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
No Comments »
His humorous and other verses were collected in 1869 as Phantasmagoria and Other Poems. Sister, Mary Charlotte Dodgson, marries Charles E. S. Collingwood at Guildford (April). First Chapter of “Through the Looking Glass” is sent to Macmillans.
Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel Context: First Transcontinental Railroad completed in United States. Disestablishment of Irish Church (July).The Suez Canal, Egypt opens -a canal linking the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. Grigori Rasputin, Russian Mystic; Chamberlain, British Prime Minister; Mahatma Gandhi; Henri Matisse, Fauvist are born this year.
Previous (1868) - Index - Next (1870)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1869”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1869&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
No Comments »
His father died (June 1868), plunging him into a depression that lasted some years. Reads Dickens’ Our Mutual Friend (January). Dodgson’s father, Archdeacon Charles Dodgson, dies (June). Brothers and sisters move to “The Chestnuts,” Guildford (September). Publishes letter in Oxford University Herald about Woodstock Election (November).
"The Chestnuts" Context: Benjamin Disraeli becomes premier of Great Britain (February). General Ulysses Grant elected eighteenth president of United States (November).
Disraeli resigns and William Gladstone becomes premier (December)
Previous (1867) - Index - Next (1869)
Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll” Keith Parkins September 2005 rev 5
© Keith Parkins 1998-2005. Oct 2009
<http://www.heureka.clara.net/art/carroll.htm>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
No Comments »
Begins work on “Through the Looking Glass“. Publishes “The Organization of Charity” in Pall Mall Gazette (January). Sees amateur production of A Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing performed at Olympic Theatre to aid family of C. H. Bennett (May). He also published many mathematical papers under his own name, toured Europe on an extended visit (in 1867). The only occasion on which (as far as is known) he travelled abroad was a trip to Russia with Henry P. Liddon, via France, Belgium, and Germany (July to September), which he recounts in his “Russian Journal” which was first commercially published in 1935.
Through the Looking Glass, illustrated by John Tenniel Context: Nebraska admitted to the Union as thirty-seventh state (February). Dominion of Canada established (March).
Karl Marx publishes Das Kapital. The United States purchased Alaska from Russia. Canadian Confederation formed. Principality of Serbia passes the Constitution which defines its independent from Ottoman Empire. International recognition followed in 1878. Frank Lloyd Wright and Madame Curie are born.
Previous (1866) - Index - Next (1868)
Sources
Carroll:
“A Tenniel Gallery (4): Illustrations for Through the Looking Glass”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/lookingglass/gallery4.html>
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1867”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1867&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
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The first edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was withdrawn because of bad printing, and only about 21 copies survive—one of the rare books of the 19th century—and the reprint was ready for publication by Christmas of the same year, though dated 1866. Invents “Condensation of Determinants”–reads before Royal Society (May). Goes to Haymarket Theatre to see Edward Askew Sothern perform in Lord Dundreary Married and Done For (June). Travels to Whitburn and Whitby (September). Publishes letters in Pall Mall Gazette and The Times on “Science of Betting” (November).
"Alice in Wonderland", illustration by John Tenniel Context: 1866: Successful transatlantic telegraph cable follows an earlier attempt in 1858. 1866: Austro-Prussian War results in the dissolution of the German Confederation and the creation of the North German Confederation and the Austrian-Hungarian Dual Monarchy. 1866–1868: Famine in Finland. 1866–69: After the Meiji Restoration, Japan embarks on a program of rapid modernization. Jules Verne‘s novel “From the Earth to the Moon” -the imaginative story of an attempt, made shortly after the U.S. Civil War, to send a projectile to the moon.
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (1): Illustrations for Alice in Wonderland”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/alice/gallery1.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1866”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1866&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
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After the possible alternative titles Alice Among the Fairies and Alice’s Golden Hour were rejected, the work was finally published as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in 1865 under the Lewis Carroll pen name, which Dodgson had first used some nine years earlier. In June 1865, Lewis Carroll had fifty copies of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland bound up for presentation to family and friends. Meets Sophie Anderson, painter, at her home (April). Alice reprinted–becoming first published edition (November). Letter of complaint from undergraduates at Christ Church, Oxford, published in The Times (November). Sees Henry Dunbar at Olympic Theatre, London (December).
"Alice in Wonderland", 1st edition Dymphna Ellis (child friend), 25 July 1865, taken by Carroll Context: 1865–77: Reconstruction in the United States; Slavery is banned in the United States by the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. 1865-April 9, Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War. 1865-April 15, 1865, United States President Abraham Lincoln is assassinated while attending a performance at Fords theater, Washington, D.C.. William Butler Yeats, Irish Poet is born, together with Rudyard Kipling.
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Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Alice”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc7.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“Timeline Index: 1865”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1865&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
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Introduced by Tom Taylor to John Tenniel; asks latter to illustrate Alice’s Adventures (January). Tenniel consents (April). Spends a few weeks at Lambeth Palace photographing visitors (July). Visits Isle of Wight and photographs Farringford, the Tennyson’s home, and Mr. Weld (August). Having told the story and been begged by Alice Liddell to write it down, Dodgson eventually (after much delay) presented her with a handwritten, illustrated manuscript entitled Alice’s Adventures Under Ground in November 1864. Meets, for first time, Kate and Ellen Terry in person at their home (December). He was writing to George MacDonald‘s daughter, Mary, letters full of delightful nonsense in no way inferior to that in Alice. Although his letters, like the Alice books, can only be fully appreciated by adults, they are an additional proof that he wrote his nonsense primarily to give pleasure to children.
Ellen Terry, taken by Carroll Maria White, 11 July 1864 – taken by Carroll Context: 1864–66: The Chincha Islands War was an attempt by Spain to regain its South American colonies. 1864–70: The War of the Triple Alliance ends Paraguayan ambitions for expansion and destroys much of the Paraguayan population. First Geneva Convention, first to provide more humane treatment for wounded, signed (August). Jules Verne, Pioneer of Science Fiction writes “Journey to the Center of the Earth“. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Richard Strauss are born.
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Sources
Carroll:
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Photographs of Children”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc5.html>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1864”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1864&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
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The MacDonald’s, his friends, urge him to publish the manuscript of “Alice”. Macmillans agree to publish it and John Tenniel to illustrate it. Attends celebrations in Oxford to commemorate wedding of Prince and Princess of Wales (March). Journeys to Tenby, West Wales, to visit relatives–Smedleys and Pooles (April). Vaccinated against smallpox (May). Prince and Princess of Wales visit the Deanery, Christ Church, Oxford (June). Spends a few days photographing Rossetti family in London (October).
Self-Portrait, 1863 Dante Gabriel Rossetti, taken by Carroll in 1863 Context: Formation of the International Red Cross is followed by the adoption of the First Geneva Convention in 1864. 1863–1865: Polish uprising against the Russian Empire. The biologist T.H. Huxley wrote “Man’s Place in Nature“. Edouard Manet‘s submissions to the Salon of 1863, The Picnic, Le Déjeuner sur l’Herbe among them, were rejected and appeared at the Salon des Refusés. The Battle of Gettysburg, which took place during the American Civil War in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was the largest battle ever fought in North America.
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll, 1863.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009.
© Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 17 Oct. 2009
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/97087/Lewis-Carroll>.
“Dante Gabriel Rossetti.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009.
© Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 17 Oct. 2009
<http://cache-media.britannica.com/eb-media/77/19577-004-6C497A6C.jpg>.
“Who was Lewis Carroll” Britain Unlimited 2002-09
© Britain Unlimited. Oct. 2009
<http://www.britainunlimited.com/Biogs/Carroll.htm>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“Timeline Index: 1863”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1863&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
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Dodgson and his friend Robinson Duckworth, fellow of Trinity, rowed the three children up the Thames from Oxford to Godstow, picnicked on the bank, and returned to Christ Church late in the evening: “On which occasion,” wrote Dodgson in his diary, “I told them the fairy-tale of Alice’s Adventures Underground, which I undertook to write out for Alice.” Visits Isle of Wight and meets the Tennysons and Camerons (April). Becomes editor, College Rhymes (July). Composes medley-song, “Miss Jones,” with help from his sisters (September).
An illustration of "Alice in Wonderland" by Sir John Tenniel Context: 1862–1877: Muslim Rebellion in northwest China. The first Emancipation Proclamation, issued on September 22, 1862 by United States President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War, declared the freedom of all slaves in any state of the Confederate States of America.
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Sources
Carroll:
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“Lewis Carroll”, Chris Fleetwood
© Castle View Richmond, Yorkshire and the Dales, 2009. Oct 2009.
<http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/parade/hq69/Pages/carroll.html>
“A Tenniel Gallery (1): Illustrations for Alice in Wonderland”, Victorian Web 2004
© Victorian Web. Oct 2009
<http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tenniel/alice/gallery1.html>
History:
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
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He delayed the process for some time but eventually took deacon’s orders on 22 December 1861 (he was ordained deacon of Church of England by Wilberforce in Christ Church Cathedral). Begins “letter register” numbering all correspondence sent and received chronologically (January). Reviews Photographic Society of London’s exhibition in The Illustrated Times (January). Visits James Hunt at Ore, near Hastings, to receive help with speech hesitation (April). Publishes The Formula of Plane Trigonometry (June). Attends Oxford University debate on endowment of Greek professorship (November).
Context: 1861–65: American Civil War between the Union and seceding Confederacy. Russia abolishes serfdom. 1861–67: French intervention in Mexico and the creation of the Second Mexican Empire, ruled by Maximilian I of Mexico. Modern Italy became a nation-state belatedly — on March 17, 1861, when most of the states of the peninsula were united under king Victor Emmanuel II of the Savoy dynasty. Dickens writes “Great Expectations“. U.S. civil war begins (April). Queen Victoria calls for British people to remain neutral in American civil war (May). Albert, the Prince Consort, dies (December).
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
History:
“XIX Century” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 9 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIX_century>
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
“Timeline Index: 1861”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1861&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
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Dodgson became deeply troubled by an unexplained sense of sin and guilt at this time (the early 1860s), and frequently expressed the view in his diaries that he was a “vile and worthless” sinner, unworthy of the priesthood. Contributes “A Photographer’s Day Out” to The South Shields Amateur Magazine (early in the year). Makes pilgrimage to Daresbury and Richmond–places associated with his early life (Easter). Attends meeting of British Association at Oxford during which Wilberforce and Huxley debate Darwin’s Origin of Species. Photographs several delegates (June/July).
Takes holiday at Whitby, Yorkshire (late summer). Meets Queen Victoria and members of Royal Family at Christ Church Deanery, Oxford (December). Publishes A Syllabus of Plane Algebraical Geometry (month unknown).
Thomas Combe, 1860, Superintendent of the Oxford University Press Context: By the 1860s the 10 hour day was common, but not universal. In ‘sweated industries’ such as making matchboxes and lace people were paid piece rates (i.e. they were paid so much for each one they made). People often worked in their own homes and very often they had to work from dawn to dusk to make a living. Max Havelaar,written by a former official of the Dutch East Indian Civil Service under the pen name Multatuli, was first published in Holland in 1860: it ignited a major political and social brouhaha. November 6, 1860 – Abraham Lincoln, who had declared “Government cannot endure permanently half slave, half free…” is elected president, the first Republican. J. M. Barrie, writer of Peter Pan, born (May). Great Eastern arrives in New York (June). Prince of Wales visits United States (August). First patent issued for Yale lock.
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Sources
Carroll:
“Lewis Carroll”, Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 17 Oct 2009
© Wikipedia.org. Oct. 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>
“The Lewis Carroll Scrapbook Collection: Timeline 1855-1872″
© Edward Wakeling, March 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://rs6.loc.gov/intldl/carrollhtml/lctime.html>
“A Lewis Carroll Centenary Exhibition: Carroll at Oxford”, Harry Ransom Center
© Harry Ransom Center The University of Texas at Austin 2007. Oct. 2009
<http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/carroll/lc3.html>
History:
“England in the XIX Century”, Tim Lambert.
© LocalHistories.org. Oct. 2009
<http://www.localhistories.org/19thcentengland.html>
“Timeline Index: 1860”, Timeline Index
© Timeline Index 2004. Oct. 2009
<http://www.timelineindex.com/content/search.php?s=1860&sb.x=0&sb.y=0>
“U.S. Civil War 1861-1865″ The History Place. The History Place 1996
© 2009 The History Place™. Oct. 2009
<http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/index.html>
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