Cyril Nadar Week#9 "Why? Because I Said So"
During winter break, I completed my annual reread of Alice's Adventure in Wonderland. I started this “tradition” in fourth grade and have been using the same copy since fifth grade (I borrowed the first one from the library). The text offers surprising insights on the power of language, primarily through the book’s antagonist, the Queen of Hearts.
One of the most iconic lines of Alice in Wonderland is “Off with their heads,” spoken profusely by the Queen of Hearts. What’s truly jarring about her obsession with these phrases is that she says them for the smallest things. It sets a dark and terrifying tone, no matter the instance, for it. For example, as the guards were painting roses red, the queen was infuriated (in her arbitrary anger) and called for their beheading. Imagine your mom saying that I am going to behead you for not cleaning up your room; it evokes undeserved dread and fear.
There is a concept of this called the “Performative Speech Acts,” which according to Wikipedia means “sentences which not only describe a given reality, but also change the social reality they are describing.” Our favorite president, Donald Trump lives by the “speech acts” through the phrase “fake news.” It immediately throws away the credibility and research done by the news simply because of his status as the president. This is terrifying to think about as people in power can simply dismiss the justification for their claims and people will still go along with it.
Cyril, I think it is really cool that you read the same book every year—I wish I had started a tradition like that earlier. Why did you pick Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland as the book you read every year? It is really interesting that the Queen of Hearts uses her power even in the smallest of situations—it reminds me of people who feel the need to control every situation they are in. I like that you included the humorous example of someone’s mom beheading them for not cleaning their room. It makes it easier to understand the gravity of what the Queen of Hearts does in the book. It is easy to abuse power once you have it and I think the Queen of Hearts is a very strong example of that. Power is one of those things that can take over one’s mind. It is an especially useful skill to understand where and when to use one’s power. This can also connect to the way our current president abuses his power with every chance he gets. He governs with himself in mind rather than serving the people.
ReplyDeleteDonald Trump uses his power to ensure the news and media are spreading only what he wants them to spread. As you said, it is scary to think about what the government could be hiding from us purely because of the power and ill intent of our president. The comparison between Donald Trump and the Queen of Hearts helps put in perspective how irrational, and frankly immature, our president is acting. Thank you for providing such an interesting perspective on our current political state, it was very interesting to read.
Alice in Wonderland is one of my favorite books! It’s really interesting to see parallels between such a whimsical, absurd setting and (what’s supposed to be) a position that holds immense gravitas: the presidency. The Trump Administration is particularly fascinating because, like the Queen’s card soldiers, the administration is rife with yes-men who care only about pleasing their president. People in key positions like Marco Rubio and JD Vance, just a few years ago, were openly critical of Donald Trump. For example, Rubio called Trump a “con artist” in 2016, and Vance labelled him as “America’s Hitler.” Now, both of those men are seated right next to the president having completely changed their tunes.
ReplyDeleteAnother interesting comparison between Trump and the Queen is that they both seem to have absolute power. Even as Trump’s executive orders are being blocked in courts, he still exercises an exorbitant amount of power, having eroded the system of checks and balances. January 20 marked the first year of Donald Trump’s presidency—during this time, he issued 228 executive orders, 66 more than his predecessor, Joe Biden, did in four years. In the end, I don’t think Donald Trump would be out of place in the world of Wonderland, especially as his demands (such as his insistence on the acquisition of Greenland) only become more absurd. In fact, maybe Trump would be right at home on the Queen of Hearts’ throne. Thanks for the insightful blog, Cyril!
Hi Cyril! I think that it's really interesting that you do an annual reread of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Like Oviya asked, why specifically that book? I remember in my childhood, I used to love “Alice Through the Looking Glass” and the animated movie profoundly, maybe because of how “whimsical” I found it. When I saw the quote, “off with their heads,” I immediately thought of Trump and of the Performative Speech Acts. Just like the Queen of Hearts, when Trump thinks of “foreigners” in our country––mind you, even U.S citizens––he is ultimately saying “off with their heads,” or essentially to deport them. In the movie “Alice Through the Looking Glass,” the Queen of Hearts’ childhood is revealed, and it is said that an externality essentially made her the villain we all know; I wonder if the same is true of Trump.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your point about how “terrifying” it is to think about how much the government is truly hiding, and how we might not even know everything that is going on simply because of what they deem is necessary to say, and how they can just as easily “dismiss the justification for their claims.” His status as president has brought so many changes to our society, and I’m worried about how much worse it could get.