WLIRP+Christina

World Literature Independent Reading Project Quarter 1 2009-2010 Note: In order for your book to qualify it must be by an author from a country other than the United States or the United Kingdom OR the primary setting must be outside of the United States or the United Kingdom.


 * Title: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass
 * Author: Lewis Carroll (Revd Charles Lutwidge Dodson)
 * Author’s Nationality: England
 * Setting (only list the primary settings): Wonderland
 * Total Pages: 110 / 124 (total 234 pages)
 * Original Publication Date: 1865
 * If your book is translated, who is the translator? If not translated write “NA” : NA
 * Do you currently have a physical copy of the book?: Yes
 * If you do not have a physical copy, how soon can you get one? (Write “NA” if you have a copy.) : NA

1. If you don’t already, obtain a physical copy of the book and bring it to class when instructed. 2. Become an expert on your book by the end of the first quarter. The quarter ends on October 15th, so you have about seven weeks to complete the book. Keep in mind that you will be reading this book in addition to assigned readings for class, so when the homework load is light read your book. This is also the book you should use for KIS Reads. 3. Read actively by taking notes in the book (use Post-its if it’s on loan), and make sure you understand the main conflicts, how the characters develop, and any major themes. 4. At the end of each weak, write a 100-200 word reflection about your reading. Use your notes or post-its for ideas. 5. Your book will be the basis of a writing project at the conclusion of the first quarter, so keep track of the book.
 * Directions:**

How many pages do you need to read per week to be completed by 15 October, 2009? Week 1: 31 August - 4 September: 14 pages Week 2: 7-11 September: 36 pages Week 3: 14-18 September: 36 pages Week 4: 21-25 September: 36 pages Week 5: 28 September - 2 October: 37 pages Week 6: 5-9 October: 37 pages Week 7: 12-15 October: 38 pages You must be completed with your book by Thursday, 15 October, 2009.
 * Once your selection has been approved, fill out the following:**

Reflection Week 3
How is your World Lit. reading going? Are you keeping up with your reading plan? What do you think about your book so far? What are the main conflicts? Are there any particularly interesting characters? Why? Have you noticed any major themes developing? Do you see any connections between your World Lit book and anything else you have read recently?

-To be honest, I could not keep up with my reading plan. I tend to procrastinate my reading the last day. According to the plan, I was supposed to read 86 pages until today, but I have only read about 59 pages. I will read the rest (27 pages) when I get home today. My book is very intriguing so far. I remember watching a Disney movie of //Alice's Adventures in Wonderland//, but I did not know that the book contained so many events. Alice is especially interesting to me because she seems to have a whimsical personality. When I was young, I thought Alice was a typical nice girl. However, as the story continues, I could easily see that Alice is a fickle girl. The Cat is an interesting character too, since he seems to know everything. I am looking forward to the role that the Cat might play further in the story. I am not sure if //Alice's Adventures in Wonderland// has revealed its major theme yet. The only theme that I am able to recognize right now is that curiosity can sometimes lead to adventures but also risks. I cannot see any connections between my World Lit book and anything else I have read recently because //Alice's Adventures in Wonderland// is a very unique book. Maybe Bernard Werber's books are a little bit similar to my World Lit book since they are also unique; but being unique is the only thing that they have in common.

Reflection 2 (After completing the book)
-Frankly, it was difficult to keep up with my reading plan, but I managed to finish the book in time. Now that I am done with the book, I am very glad that I chose //Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass// to be my world literature book. I had a lot of fun while reading it; not just because the storyline was interesting but because it evoked me of when I was young. I used to love watching the Disney film version of the book, //Alice in Wonderland//, when I was little. //Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass// contains an obvious theme of "growing up." Alice grows up mentally while she goes through her journey. This reminded me of //Siddhartha//, the book I read in the last summer break, written by Herman Hesse. The two main characters in each book experiences various things during his or her journey. If we go in deeply, what Alice and Siddhartha went through are different from each other; however, the basic storyline seems to be similar.

World Literature Book Presentation Outline

 * Introduction**: //Alice in Wonderland// contains two major journeys. The first journey happens when Alice, as a vey young girl, follows a white rabbit down a rabbit hole and encounters Wonderland, where she meets numerous unique characters. The next journey happens when Alice, who has grown a little bit since the last journey, goes into a looking-glass and finds herself in Wonderland the second time.

//Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass &// //Siddhartha-// The two stories are alike in that both Alice and Siddhartha, 1. The main characters of each story, go on a journey and meet various characters. 2. During their journeys, they often wander about their (true) identities, 3. As time pass by, they both grow up mentally. 4. Also, Siddhartha sometimes teaches lessons to other characters he encounters the journey, and in Alice's second journey, Alice teaches some characters lessons too.
 * Body**:

Although the two stories have some similarities, they differ in many ways. 1. Alice starts her journey just out of curiosity. Siddhartha, on the other hand, starts his journey to quench his thirst for truth, and to be enlightened. 2. Alice visits many characters that do not really give any good lessons. Siddhartha learns several lessons from the characters he meets. 3. In Alice's second journey, she tries to reach a higher social class; she tries to be the Queen. Nevertheless, Siddhartha does not care about his social class. He once //did// get tempted, but soon realized that it was useless. 4. It is important to recognize that Alice's adventures were extremely unrealistic since they happened in a dream. Siddhartha's journey was real.

//Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass// was truly an amazing story. I cannot imagine how Lewis Carroll could think of all those creative characters and events. Although I knew the Disney movie version of //Alice in Wonderland//, the book had so much more stories in detail and depicted the characters in Wonderland in a more fascinating way. I enjoyed the book a lot while reading. If one has ever watched the animated film version, which I'm pretty sure that most people have, I definitely recommend reading this book.
 * Conclusion**(Recommendation):

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