Alice's Descent into Wonderland

Alice chases a White Rabbit down a rabbit-hole and undergoes a series of bewildering size changes, setting the stage for her journey through a surreal world.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Boredom on the Riverbank

The Languid Afternoon A Restless Child Alice, drowsy and listless, sits beside her sister on a grassy bank, finding the book her sister reads utterly dull—no pictures, no conversations. She longs for diversion, even considering the mundane task of making a daisy-chain. The heat of the day amplifies her inertia, and she drifts into a state of half-sleep, her mind wandering to her cat, Dinah, and the possibility of a more interesting world. The Unexpected Rabbit Suddenly, a White Rabbit with pink eyes scurries past, muttering about being late. To Alice, this is not remarkable until the Rabbit pulls a watch from its waistcoat pocket—a sight that ignites her curiosity. She has never seen a rabbit with a watch or a waistcoat. Burning with curiosity, she springs up and chases the Rabbit across the field, just in time to see it disappear down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge. Without a moment's hesitation, she follows, plunging into the unknown.

Falling Down the Well

The Interminable Fall A Journey Through the Dark The rabbit-hole descends like a tunnel, then abruptly dips into a deep well. Alice falls slowly, with ample time to observe her surroundings. She notices cupboards, bookshelves, maps, and pictures lining the walls, and even takes a jar of marmalade from a shelf—only to find it empty. She chatters to herself, speculating on the fall's distance and her geographical location, mixing childish logic with schoolroom facts. Contemplating the Absurd During the fall, Alice's thoughts drift to her cat, Dinah, and the oddness of the situation. She wonders if she might fall through the earth and emerge among people who walk upside down, which she mistakenly calls "Antipathies." Her monologue reveals her growing acceptance of the impossible, as she imagines herself brave enough to tumble down stairs. The fall ends abruptly as she lands on a heap of sticks and leaves, unhurt but disoriented.

The Locked Hall and the Tiny Door

Enclosed in a Hall of Doors A Maze of Locks Alice finds herself in a long, low hall lit by lamps, lined with locked doors. She tries each door in vain, growing increasingly despondent. She spots a three-legged glass table bearing a tiny golden key, but it opens none of the large doors. On her second circuit, she discovers a low curtain hiding a small door, about fifteen inches high. The key fits, and she opens the door to reveal a passage leading to a beautiful garden, which she longs to enter. The Frustration of Size Alice is too large to fit through the door. She wishes she could "shut up like a telescope," and the thought that many out-of-the-way things have happened makes her believe the impossible is possible. She returns to the table, finding a bottle labeled "DRINK ME." Cautiously, she checks for poison, a habit from childhood lessons, and then drinks it, shrinking to ten inches high. But she forgets the key on the table, now impossibly out of reach, and begins to cry.

Growing and Shrinking in Confusion

A Cycle of Transformation The Giantess Alice eats a cake labeled "EAT ME" and grows to over nine feet tall, her head striking the ceiling. She retrieves the key but now cannot fit through the door at all. Overwhelmed, she cries a pool of tears. She then picks up the White Rabbit's fan and gloves, fanning herself, which causes her to shrink again to about two feet high. She realizes the fan is the cause and drops it just in time to avoid disappearing entirely. The Pool of Tears Alice slips and falls into the pool of her own tears, now waist-deep. She swims about, encountering a Mouse and other creatures that have also fallen in. She tries to converse with the Mouse, first in English, then in French, but offends it by mentioning her cat, Dinah. The Mouse bristles, but eventually agrees to tell its story on the shore. Alice's emotional state swings from despair to curiosity as she struggles to adapt to the constant changes.

The Caucus-Race and the Mouse's Tale

An Absurd Assembly A Race to Dry Off A group of wet, miserable animals gather on the shore, including a Duck, a Dodo, a Lory, and an Eaglet. The Mouse attempts to dry them with a dry history lecture, but it fails. The Dodo proposes a Caucus-race: everyone runs in a circle without clear rules. After half an hour, they are dry, and the Dodo declares everyone a winner, with Alice distributing comfits from her pocket as prizes. She receives a thimble as her own prize, and the absurdity of the event leaves her bewildered but amused. The Mouse's Offense Alice asks the Mouse to tell its history, hoping to understand its hatred of cats and dogs. The Mouse begins a tale in the shape of a tail, but Alice's inattention and misinterpretation of the word "tail" enrage it. The Mouse stalks off, and the other animals depart when Alice mentions Dinah's prowess as a mouser. Left alone, Alice feels lonely and cries again, but soon hears the pattering of feet—the White Rabbit returning.

early in the story, before the fall

immediately after entering the rabbit-hole

after landing, in the long hall

shortly after the first size change, in the hall

after the pool of tears, on the shore