Lewis Carroll Biography

Lewis Carroll (1832 - 1898) –The Popular English Author

The English author, Lewis Carroll is known for his popular writing Alice in the Wonderland. His full name is Charles Lutwidge Dodgson and besides being an author, he was also a mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer.

Born: January 27, 1832, Daresbury, United Kingdom
Died: January 14, 1898, Guildford, United Kingdom
Full name: Charles Lutwidge Dodgson
Siblings: Edwin Dodgson, Skeffington Hume Dodgson, More
Education: Christ Church, Oxford (1850–1852)

Birth Details

He was born as Charles Dodgson on January 27, 1832 at Daresbury, Cheshire. His father was a Vicar.

Personal Biography

Lewis Carroll received unconventional education that included home schooling as well as school education at a boy’s boarding school. He was home schooled till the age of 12.  He received his religious education from his mother who instilled moral values and religious beliefs in him at a very tender age. He became interested in mathematics at a very young age and this interest was developed by his father who was a brilliant mathematician and scholar.

Lewis Carroll matriculated from the Christ Church College, Oxford on May 23, 1850 and became a resident in the same college in the following year. He received Butler scholarship and after receiving his B.A. degree he was made “Master of the House”.

Career and Achievements

The academic record of Louis Carroll was exemplary and he is still remembered by kids as well as adults for his famous writing, “Alice in Wonderland”.

Apart from this famous book, Lewis Carroll had also written mathematical treatises, stories and poems that were humorous as well as serious. He started his writing career quite early when he was studying at the famous Richmond School. He wrote a mystery story, “The Unknown One” for his school magazine.

Excellent marks, prizes and appreciation marked his school life. To keep himself occupied and amused, he edited several magazines during holidays between the years 1845 to 1850.

In 1855, Lewis wrote “The Comic Times” and “The Train”. In 1856, Lewis penned his first poem, “Solitude”. In 1855, he was made lecturer in Mathematics and was appointed at the Christ Church College. He held this position till 1881.

In 1887, he was ordained a deacon but he did not proceed for priest’s order, although he preached from time to time.

During a picnic on July 4, 1862, Lewis Carroll started telling a story to Alice Liddell, a childhood friend and it was here that the concept of “Alice in the Wonderland” developed. Originally this book appeared as “Alice’s Adventures Under Ground”. In 1871, its sequel, “Through the Looking Glass” came.

Lewis Carroll also published several mathematical works like Condensation of Determinants in 1866 and An Elementary Treatise on Determinants in 1867.

His last great work was produced in 1876, “The Hunting of the Snark” which is an excellent “no-nonsense” poem.

Lewis Carroll was also very much interested in photography and used to excel in this area also.

His later years remained more or less same and he continued to stick to his position at Christ Church College, Oxford. He died on 14th January 1898.

Quotes

“"Begin at the beginning,", the King said, very gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop”
- Lewis Carroll

“"But I don't want to go among mad people," said Alice. "Oh, you can't help that," said the cat. "We're all mad here."”
- Lewis Carroll

“"The time has come," the walrus said, "to talk of many things: Of shoes and ships - and sealing wax - of cabbages and kings”
- Lewis Carroll

“But I was thinking of a way To multiply by ten, And always, in the answer, get The question back again”
- Lewis Carroll

“Courtesy while you're thinking what to say. It saves time.”
- Lewis Carroll

“Curiouser and curiouser!”
- Lewis Carroll

“Everything's got a moral, if only you can find it.”
- Lewis Carroll

“He was part of my dream, of course - but then I was part of his dream too.”
- Lewis Carroll

“His answer trickled through my head - Like water through a sieve”
- Lewis Carroll

“I can't explain myself, I'm afraid, because I'm not myself, you see”
- Lewis Carroll

“I can't go back to yesterday - because I was a different person then”
- Lewis Carroll

“If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.”
- Lewis Carroll

“I'm very brave generally, he went on in a low voice: only today I happen to have a headache.”
- Lewis Carroll

“It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards.”
- Lewis Carroll

“It's as large as life, and twice as natural!”
- Lewis Carroll

“No good fish goes anywhere without a porpoise”
- Lewis Carroll

“Off with her head!”
- Lewis Carroll

“Oh, 'tis love, 'tis love that makes the world go round”
- Lewis Carroll

“One of the secrets of life is that all that is really worth the doing is what we do for others”
- Lewis Carroll

“She generally gave herself very good advice, (though she very seldom followed it)”
- Lewis Carroll

“Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”
- Lewis Carroll

“That's the reason they're called lessons, because they lesson from day to day.”
- Lewis Carroll

“The rule is, jam tomorrow and jam yesterday - but never jam today.”
- Lewis Carroll

“Twinkle, twinkle little bat How I wonder what you're at! Up above the world you fly, Like a tea-tray in the sky”
- Lewis Carroll

“We called him Tortoise because he taught us.”
- Lewis Carroll

“What I tell you three times is true.”
- Lewis Carroll

“When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less.”
- Lewis Carroll

“Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.”
- Lewis Carroll

“Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?”
- Lewis Carroll

“You could not see a cloud, because / No cloud was in the sky: / No birds were flying overhead - / There were no birds to fly.”
- Lewis Carroll