Jabberwocky

 

Jabberwocky  1871

by LEWIS CARROLL    (Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson)      born: January 27, 1832 - died: January 14, 1898

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun

The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:

Long time the manxome foe he sought--

So rested he by the Tumtum tree,

And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came!

One two! One two! And through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!

He left it dead, and with its head

He went galumphing back.

"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"

He chortled in his joy.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

∞∞∞∞∞∞§§§§§§§∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞§§§§§§§§∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞§§§§§§§§∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

BRAINSTORMING ideas for paragraph topics: 
feel free to use the extra info for padding your introduction and conclusion if it is congruous

• --> Bio on Lewis Carroll 

• --> written in 1871 - background info on the time period

• --> History of nonsense stories / could include  a look at specific words / could include an example of how we understand the nonsense words based on syntax and similarity of sounds / could include how many nonsense words are in the book and a closer look at a couple  

• --> Analyze the literal v. the possible figurative meaning(s) of the story. What might it represent?

• --> Take a look at the many ways this has been interpreted in performance situations.

• --> Dive deeper into the weapon used. What does that tell us about the story, the character, the time period, etc. ?

• --> Compare to other stories that result in victory over a foe or threat.

(Possibly St. George and the Dragon, Abayoyo, David and Goliath, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Beowulf

• -->  Look at the alternate POV. What might the the story be from the Jabberwock's perspective?

• --> Why is this an appealing story & poem for both children and adults?  Analysis of Carroll's "Jabberwocky" 

• --> What is the Jabberwocky? What does it represent? What other beasts is it like? 

• --> A comparison to Voldemort from Harry Potter, Grendel from Beowulf, Frankenstein, Dracula, the Kraken from Norse Mythology, Scylla from Homer's Odyssey,  Balrog from Lord of the Rings, or Smaug from The Hobbit

https://interestingliterature.com/2020/05/best-fictional-monsters-in-literature/

• --> Which of the "Seven Basic Plots" is Jabberwocky?  
Why might it be compared to Beowulf or Lord of the Rings?  

https://interestingliterature.com/2016/01/22/a-short-analysis-of-jabberwocky-by-lewis-carroll/

• --> A discussion of the topic clincher that Lewis uses in the book. Is it effective. Why? or why not? What does it mean?