Growing up in an Extraordinary World: My essay for English 304

Growing up in an Extraordinary World
Puberty happens during a person’s transformation from childhood to adulthood. This transformation is possible through the increasing function of the brain which affects the growth of the body. Puberty occurs in many stages, and at different times for each individual. Lewis Carroll and Phillip Pullman’s female heroes Lyra and Alice have to deal with the unfamiliar and often uncomfortable process of puberty. Both girls do so with more freewill than the average adolescent. Both characters are ultimately forced to ponder their identity and self while confronting the changing world around them in extraordinary circumstances.
Both Carroll and Pullman show the difficulties of growing up but add a new dimension by showing a surreal world which is only possible in fantasy. In Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, Carroll depicts a strange world of wonder that Alice enters and travels through during her journey from childhood to adulthood; from innocence to experience. Everything is very curious to Alice. She goes through her wonderland meeting many interesting creatures without questioning their origin or their means of existence. In Pullman’s Dark Materials he presents Lyra, who begins as an innocent girl who is protected by scholars at Jordon College in Oxford. However, Lyra quickly realizes the complexities of the world around her, and goes through adolescence unlike other girls her age.
Alice is portrayed by Carroll as a logical, dauntless, and curious girl who refuses to read a book without pictures. Although her adventures happen in a dream, Alice’s vivid imagination is what spurs her outrageous thoughts in her unconscious state. Throughout her adventures, Alice fails to leave a stone unturned. She is in a constant hunt for strange company; anything to keep her curious mind sharp and satisfied. Alice does not segregate or judge, but simply accepts anyone or anything that comes across her path. She never knows in which direction to go, which thrusts her into a constant whirlwind of ambiguity. We find Alice’s unstable idea of herself quite evident when she finds the Caterpillar’s question of her identity difficult to answer; after continually growing smaller and taller due to her pill consumption.
To contend with Alice, Lyra Belacqua is portrayed as a wiry, ruthless, and fearless girl that has been raised as an orphan at Jordan College. She does not let her orphan-status affect her happiness. She spends hours running around the neighborhood playing with children of a lower class without the slightest disdain. One day she eavesdrop on a complex conversation involving dust that soon affects those living around her, and has no choice but to act. She is sent into a whirlwind of events that she must participate in, in order to survive. Lyra goes through many trials and seems to manage every difficult situation she receives triumphantly.
One trait Lyra and Alice share is their ability to put complete trust in the people or beings they come in contact with. As both stories progress and the girls go through more experiences however, they learn to be more cautious of the company they keep. Lyra happily goes to live with Marisa Coulter, who turns out to be a conniving woman who wants power at any cost. Lyra takes this experience, learns from her trusting ignorance, and goes on to meet many noble creatures along her journey that help her succeed. Alice uses sincerity with the Queens she meets, but soon realizes that some Queens are cruel, and being polite will not get her anywhere in the wonderland of her dreams. She becomes aware of her blind trust and goes on to conform, ultimately becoming a Queen by playing by the rules of the adult world.
Ultimately, what sets Lyra apart from Alice is her amazing ability to manipulate the adults around her. Initially, the adult figures in Lyra's life do not give her any credit as she begins her journey to the North. Alice avoids the Queen of Hearts chopping off her head, but that is the extent of her control of the adults in her world. As Pullman’s Dark Materials develops, the adults that come in contact with Lyra grow to protect her, fight alongside her, and ultimately respect her. Lyra is slow in understanding the reason for her tasks that continually put her life in danger. Eventually Lyra becomes successful in using the tools and company she has been given to her benefit as well as theirs. Lyra reappoints the polar bear king to his throne and shows her cruel mother how to love. She gives Mary Malone the strength to stand up for herself and make new scientific discoveries and frees millions of ghosts from the Land of the Dead.
One experience that stands out in Pullman’s Dark Materials is love. Although Alice loves her cat Dinah and Lyra loves her daemon Pantalaimon, Lyra falls in love with a boy named William Parry. Throughout the story Lyra continually builds a bond with Will. Their relationship begins in strictly work-related terms; to save the world. Lyra is loud and ruthless while Will is quiet and strong. Lyra and Will build a trust and are willing to risk their lives for one another. After the heroes have completed their faithful mission together they recognize and embrace their love for one another openly and relentlessly. A few days after their indescribable discovery they are forced to part. Lyra has to make the ultimate sacrifice which is losing her first love in order to preserve safely in the world for the rest of time.
Lyra and Alice deal with the unfamiliar and uncomfortable process of puberty under extraordinary circumstances. In the end of Alice’s story she becomes a Queen while Lyra saves the world. Both girls realize that they have accomplished quite a bit in their childhood. Whether the events happen in reality or in dreams, both girls must cope with the next stage in their lives that is adulthood. Lyra and Alice go through many stages in their detailed journeys and learn a lot about themselves. Their adventures turn Lyra and Alice into young women who apprehensively have new experiences to look forward to, while looking back on their fond memories of the childhood that all adults are forced to leave behind.