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Mad Hatter: “Why is a raven like a writing-desk?” “Have you guessed the riddle yet?” the Hatter said, turning to Alice again. “No, I give it up,” Alice replied: “What’s the answer?” “I haven’t the slightest idea,” said the Hatter
Lewis Carroll
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote highlights the absurdity and ambiguity of life and knowledge.

In this dialogue from Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland', the Mad Hatter poses a riddle to Alice that ultimately has no answer, emphasizing the whimsical and nonsensical nature of the world around them. The interaction reflects a theme of exploring the limitations of logic and understanding, suggesting that not all questions have clear or meaningful answers, provoking thought about the nature of inquiry itself.

Themes

RavenWriting-DeskRiddleAbsurdityPhilosophyKnowledge

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about the unpredictable nature of life, this quote can be used to illustrate that some questions don't have answers.

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