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
He said he would come in,' the White Queen went on, `because he was looking for a hippopotamus. Now, as it happened, there wasn't such a thing in the house, that morning.' Is there generally?' Alice asked in an astonished tone. Well, only on Thursdays,' said the Queen.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote humorously highlights the absurdity of searching for nonexistent things.
In this whimsical exchange between Alice and the White Queen, Lewis Carroll illustrates the absurdity of the situation where the Queen claims someone is searching for a hippopotamus that does not exist. The conversation plays with the expectations of logic and reality, emphasizing the playful and nonsensical nature of life, especially in a fantastical context where even the most outrageous claims might be considered normal on certain days.
Themes
AbsurdityHippopotamusImaginationNonsenseWhimsy
In practice
Example use cases
In a casual conversation about quirky literature at a book club.
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.
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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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