The further off from England the nearer is to France-_x000D_ _x000D_ Then turn not pale, beloved snail, but come and join the dance.
Lewis CarrollRead
She [Alice] went on "And how do you know that you're mad?" "To begin with," said the Cat, "a dog's not mad. You grant that?" "I suppose so," said Alice. "Well, then," the Cat went on, "you see, a dog growls when it's angry, and wags it's tail when it's pleased. Now I growl when I'm pleased, and wag my tail when I'm angry. Therefore I'm mad."
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote explores the concepts of sanity and madness through an absurd logic.
In this whimsical exchange between Alice and the Cheshire Cat, Lewis Carroll presents a nonsensical yet profound reflection on the nature of sanity. The Cat's reasoning, where it inverses typical behavior of a dog, challenges conventional understanding of madness and invites the reader to question the stability of normality, suggesting that what is considered sane or mad is often subjective and can defy traditional logic.
Themes
MadnessSanityLogicPhilosophyAbsurdity
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote in a discussion about mental health and the perception of sanity.
More from Lewis Carroll
All quotes →To the Looking-Glass world it was Alice that said 'I've a sceptre in hand, I've a crown on my head. Let the Looking-Glass creatures, whatever they be, Come and dine with the Red Queen, the White Queen, and me.
Lewis CarrollRead
So she was considering in her own mind...whether the pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of getting up & picking the daisies.
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Once she remembered trying to box her own ears for having cheated herself in a game of croquet she was playing against herself, for this curious child was very fond of pretending to be two people.
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Rule Forty-two. All persons more than a mile high to leave the court.
Lewis CarrollRead
Crawling at your feet,' said the Gnat (Alice drew her feet back in some alarm), `you may observe a Bread-and-Butterfly. Its wings are thin slices of Bread-and-butter, its body is a crust, and its head is a lump of sugar.' And what does IT live on?' Weak tea with cream in it.' A new difficulty came into Alice's head. `Supposing it couldn't find any?' she suggested. Then it would die, of course.' But that must happen very often,' Alice remarked thoughtfully. It always happens,' said the Gnat.
Lewis CarrollRead
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