The Walrus and the Carpenter

“Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carroll (1871)

Another poem from Carroll’s Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, “Jabberwocky” uses wordplay and a fantasy setting to imagine the killing of a creature called “the Jabberwock.” It is widely regarded as one of the most important examples of the nonsense genre in English.

“The Owl and the Pussy-Cat” by Edward Lear (1870)

Edward Lear was a contemporary of Lewis Carroll and, like him, a pioneer in the genre of nonsense literature. In Lear’s poem, an Owl and a Pussy-Cat embark on a whimsical adventure together, much as the Walrus and the Carpenter in Carroll’s poem. Both poems employ playful language and anthropomorphism to explore an unlikely friendship in a fantasy setting.

“The Dentist and the Crocodile” by Roald Dahl (1989)

Dahl’s poem describes a Crocodile who urges a dentist to work on his teeth, especially those at the back of his mouth. The Crocodile’s ostensible attempt to trick the dentist recalls the Walrus and Carpenter’s manipulation of the oysters in Carroll’s poem.

The Annotated Alice: The Definitive Edition edited by Martin Gardner (1999)

A comprehensive annotated edition of Carroll’s two Alice novels.