"The Walrus and the Carpenter" is a narrative poem by Lewis Carroll that appeared in his book Through the Looking-Glass, published in December 1871. The poem is recited in chapter four, by Tweedledum and Tweedledee to Alice. The poem is composed of 18 stanzas and contains 108 lines, in an alternation of iambic trimeters and iambic tetrameters. The rhyme scheme is ABCBDB, and masculine rhymes appear frequently. The rhyming and rhythmical scheme used, as well as some archaisms and syntactical turns, are those of the traditional English ballad.
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The Walrus and the Carpenter are the eponymous characters in the poem, which is recited by Tweedledum and Tweedledee to Alice. Walking upon a beach one night when both sun and moon are visible, the Walrus and Carpenter come upon an offshore bed of oysters, four of whom they invite to join them; to the disapproval of the eldest oyster, many more follow them. After walking along the beach (a point is made of the fact that the oysters are all neatly shod despite having no feet), the two main characters are revealed to be predatory and eat all of the oysters. After hearing the poem, the good-natured Alice attempts to determine which of the two leading characters might be the more sympathetic, but is thwarted by the twins' further interpretation:
"I like the Walrus best," said Alice, "because you see he was a little sorry for the poor oysters."
"He ate more than the Carpenter, though," said Tweedledee. "You see he held his handkerchief in front, so that the Carpenter couldn't count how many he took: contrariwise."
"That was mean!" Alice said indignantly. "Then I like the Carpenter best—if he didn't eat so many as the Walrus."
"But he ate as many as he could get," said Tweedledum.
This was a puzzler. After a pause, Alice began, "Well! They were both very unpleasant characters—"
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The characters of the Walrus and the Carpenter have been interpreted both in literary criticism and in popular culture. British essayist J.B. Priestley[1] argued that the figures were political. In the Kevin Smith movie Dogma, a character suggests that the poem is an indictment against organized religions. In this latter interpretation, the Carpenter represents Christianity, since Jesus was a carpenter, while the Walrus, being fat and good-natured, like Buddha, represents Buddhism, or alternatively the Walrus with its tusks represents Hinduism, since the Hindu god Ganesha, having an elephant's head, has tusks. Loki points out that the Walrus and the Carpenter trick the oysters into following them then proceed to devour them—suggesting that religion cleverly lures its followers to certain destruction.
But in The Annotated Alice, Martin Gardner notes that when Carroll gave the manuscript for Looking Glass to illustrator John Tenniel, he gave him the choice of drawing a carpenter, a butterfly, or a baronet (since each word would fit the poem's metre). Since Tenniel, rather than Carroll, chose the carpenter, the character's significance in the poem is probably not in his profession. Gardner cautions the reader that there is not always intended symbolism in the Alice books, which were made for the imagination of children and not the analysis of "mad people".
Many portions of the Alice tales can be tied only to sheer whimsy, and while Carroll's life observations do make themselves obvious from time to time, it is possible that "The Walrus and the Carpenter" is not one of them. On the other hand, Carroll's character the Duchess says in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland that "everything's got a moral, if only you can find it".[2]
The Beatles' song "I Am the Walrus", written by John Lennon, was partly inspired by this poem. Lennon later realized that the poem was possibly an indictment of capitalism and was dismayed that he had chosen the walrus (the capitalist), who was the antagonist in Lennon's eyes.[3]
"The Walrus and the Carpenter" is adapted in almost every film adaptation of Through the Looking-Glass and almost any version of Alice in Wonderland that incorporates Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Notable exceptions are the 1972 film and Tim Burton's 2010 adaptation (however the picture of the Walrus is seen on the palace wall).
In Disney's Alice in Wonderland(1951), an adapted version of the poem is narrated in song and spoken word by Tweedledee and Tweedledum. In this virtuoso performance, character actor J. Pat O'Malley performs all five voices, including that of Mother Oyster.[4] This version also differs somewhat on the ending, wherein the Walrus eats all the oysters and is chased down the beach by the hammer-wielding Carpenter. Mr. Walrus also appears at the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts as a meetable character, although this character makes very rare appearances. Walrus and Carpenter later appear in House of Mouse, voiced by Jim Cummings.
In the 1985 film adaptation, the Walrus and the Carpenter are portrayed by Karl Malden and Louis Nye, respectively.
In Harriet the Spy (film), the character's Harriet and Ole Golly (played by Michelle Trachtenberg and Rosie O'Donnell, respectively) recite the poem to one another.
In the 1999 television adaptation, the Walrus and the Carpenter are portrayed by Peter Ustinov and Pete Postlethwaite, respectively.
In the 2009 Television film, the Walrus and the Carpenter are portrayed by Dave Ward and Timothy Webber, respectively
In the 2011 video game Alice: Madness Returns, the Carpenter has become a theatrical producer, and he has trasformed the oyster eating scene in a metaphorical opera/ballet aptly named "Totentanz" (Dance of the Death), with the Walrus in the Grim Reaper part.