Jabberwocky

Happy New Year! I'm off to a slow writing start in 2023, but I am on it, and editing has begun on my NaNoWriMo manuscript of Lizzy through the Looking-glass, a continuation of Darcy in Wonderland. I am going to be very honest with you. I have tried in the past to keep my works apolitical, unwilling to alienate the large percentage of my readers who possess ideological views in stark contrast to my own. My rapid dismissal from a certain blogging consortium nearly three years ago after actually opening my mouth regarding what I perceived as a pretty obvious miscarriage of justice did, at first, seem to support that stance. But I am a big believer in not overly trusting one's immediate feelings and reactions to a trauma. Time's perception often changes things. Politics don't really have much of a place in most of the stories I choose to write, just as they really don't in Austen's, either, but my eldest child (the inspiration for my version of Alice) came out as non-binary last spring, and I must write about it. At a time when books on such subjects are being censored, it feels urgent to unflinchingly challenge societal prejudice towards people experiencing gender dysphoria. Lizzy through the Looking-glass has presented itself as my medium, so that is what this book is about. 

OK, so that's the overall theme, but my approach to the story is the same as I took with its predecessor: encapsulating Carroll's fantasy within the orderly world the Darcys' inhabit, parodying and blending the contrasting voices of Austen and Carroll into one wacky tale. For the most part, this task comes easily to me. I have been imbibing the works of both authors for practically my entire life. I had only one big stumbling block imposing this treatment on Through the Looking-glass, and its name is Jabberwocky. It's Carroll's most famous and beloved poem, and for good reason. The musicality of this nonsensical poem is unparalleled. The words may have little meaning, but they paint a vivid picture, nonetheless, and have inspired countless adaptions, interpretations, as well as musicians (more than one band has taken the name, and many have set the poem to music), dance crews, and even its own film. This ground feels pretty sacred. How do I meddle with it?

Well, I have a plan, though I have yet to execute it. I jumped over the poem in November, realizing I would never hit my word count if I got bogged-down in it. In preparation for tacking this hurdle, I have been reciting the poem (like Neil Gaiman above, I memorised it as a child), reading the poem, and listening to the poem A LOT. Living and breathing Jabberwocky. Youtube has been of great assistance. I have dotted this post with some of my favorite versions that I have found on the platform. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Tschüss!

NaNoWriMo 2022

So, I'm writing. That's the good news. Not what I planned to write. On the eve of November, new inspiration hit, and instead of working (again) on Tales of Less Pride and Prejudice, I began a sequel to Darcy in Wonderland, the long planned Lizzy through the Looking-glass, premised loosely upon recent events in my eldest child's dynamic development. I'm making steady progress, which is great! The word count is currently just shy of 5500. We'll see if I can keep it up. 

It will be in the same vain as Darcy in Wonderland, only my Alice is older than Carroll's is in Through the Looking-glass. I don't want to go into too much detail now (need to writing it, not about it), but here is a small taste. I'm enjoying delving into a poetic parody again:

 

NaNo Update: My parody of Carroll's parody of 'The Sluggard" by Isaac Watts

Just popping in to share a but of fun I've been having with my NaNoWriMo story, Darcy in Wonderland. I'm just under 35,000 words as I write this, a bit behind after a crazy viral thing that took me down for four full days last week, but still on track to finish 50,000 words before the end of the month. Some of the hardest earned words in those 35,000 are my responses to the many poems Lewis Carroll includes in Alice in Wonderland. I just got though the episode with the Mock Turtle, which is very verse heavy, and I'm in need of a short reprieve. 

In that scene Alice is asked to recite a famous moral poem by Isaac Watts (1674-1748), and the words come out quite nonsensical instead. Thought I do a quick side by side comparison of Watts' original, Carroll's version, and my own Austen inspired variation. This is very rough still, but I'd still love to hear what thoughts you have on it: please share them!

First, Isaac Watts:

'Tis the voice of the sluggard; I heard him complain,
"You have waked me too soon, I must slumber again."
As the door on its hinges, so he on his bed,
Turns his sides and his shoulders and his heavy head.

"A little more sleep, and a little more slumber;"
Thus he wastes half his days, and his hours without number,
And when he gets up, he sits folding his hands,
Or walks about sauntering, or trifling he stands.

I pass'd by his garden, and saw the wild brier,
The thorn and the thistle grow broader and higher;
The clothes that hang on him are turning to rags;
And his money still wastes till he starves or he begs.

I made him a visit, still hoping to find
That he took better care for improving his mind:
He told me his dreams, talked of eating and drinking;
But scarce reads his Bible, and never loves thinking.

Said I then to my heart, "Here's a lesson for me,"
This man's but a picture of what I might be:
But thanks to my friends for their care in my breeding,
Who taught me betimes to love working and reading. 
                                                                    (1715)

Next:, Mr. Carroll's, with interrupting dialogue omitted:

'Tis the voice of the Lobster: I heard him declare

"You have baked me too brown, I must sugar my hair."

As a duck with its eyelids, so he with his nose

Trims his belt and his buttons, and turns out his toes.

When the sands are all dry, he is gay as a lark,

And will talk in contemptuous tones of the Shark;

But, when the tide rises and sharks are around,

His voice has a timid and tremulous sound.

I passed by his garden, and marked, with one eye,

How the Owl and the Panther were sharing a pie:

The Panther took pie-crust, and gravy, and meat,

While the Owl had the dish as its share of the treat.

When the pie was all finished, the Owl, as a boon,

Was kindly permitted to pocket the spoon;

While the Panther received knife and fork with a growl,

And concluded the banquet by eating the owl. 

                                                                    (1865)

And my own:

’Tis the voice of the Lobster: In tones not muted,

‘Take no pleasure in novels? Intolerably stupid!’

Like a lady when shopping for muslins and lace,

Our minds shout agreement, even as our hearts race.

‘Little boy and girls should be tormented,’ he said,

But only so long as it is good for their heads:

‘To torment or instruct: words found synonymous.’

All precision of language has now gone amiss.”

“I passed by his garden, and to my surprise,

Something shocking indeed was happening inside.

‘Indeed! Of what nature!’ The questions were fret.

‘More horrible than anything we’ve met with yet.’

‘Good heaven! A riot? Give me peace of mind!’

‘I expect murder and everything of that kind.’

 Laughing, ‘The riot is only in your own brain!

The confusion there might drive anyone insane.’

                                                                              (2016)