Lewis Carroll
Alice in the Wonderland
(Through the mirror and what Alice saw there)
The White Pawn (Alice) starts and becomes Queen in eleven moves
1. Alice meets the Black Queen
2. Alice via d3 ( Railway goes to d4 (Tweedledee and Tweedledee)
3. Alice meets the White Queen (with shawl)
4. Alice goes to d5 (bench, river, shop)
5. Alice goes to d6 (Humpty Dumpty)
6. Alice goes to d7 (forest)
7. White horse takes the Black Horse
8. Alice goes to d8 (coronation)
9. Alice becomes Queen
10. Alice "castles" (feast)
11. Alice takes the Black Queen and wins the game
1. The Black Queen moves to h5
2. White Queen goes to c4 (catches the shawl)
4. The White Queen moves to f8 (leaves an egg on the shelf)
5. The White Queen goes to c8 (escaping from the Black Horse)
6. Black Knight goes to e7
7. White Knight goes to f5
8. The Black Queen goes to e8 (“exam”)
9. Queens "castle"
10. The White Queen goes to a6 (soup)
DRAMATIS PERSONAE (SETUP BEFORE THE GAME STARTS)
Figures: Tweedledee, Unicorn, Sheep, White Queen, White King, Old Man, White Knight, Tweedledee
Pawns: Daisy, Zay Ats, Oyster, Little Lily, Doe, Oyster, Chick Chick, Daisy
Figures: Humpty Dumpty, Carpenter, Walrus, Black Queen, Black King, Raven, Black Knight, Lion
Pawns: Daisy, Stranger, Oyster, Tiger Lily, Rose, Oyster, Frog, Daisy
Child with a cloudless brow
And with a surprised look,
Let everything change around
And you and I are not close,
Let the years separate us
Please accept my story as a gift.
I only see you in my dreams,
I can't hear your laughter, dear,
You have grown up, and about me,
I probably forgot (*1).
I've had enough for now
You will listen to my story.
It started many years ago
Early July morning,
Our boat glided in harmony
With my story.
I remember this blue path
Even though the years have been saying: forget it!
My dear friend, the days will fly by,
And he tells you: “Go to sleep!”
And it will be too late to argue.
We look so much like guys
That they don’t want to go to bed.
All around - frost, blinding snow
And empty as in the desert,
We have joy, children's laughter,
The fire is burning in the fireplace.
A fairy tale saves you from adversity
Let her save you.
Although there is a slight sadness in the air
In my fairy tale,
Even though summer is over, let it be
Its colors do not fade,
Breath of evil this time too
Don't be saddened by my story.
Since the chess problem given on the previous page has puzzled some readers, I should obviously explain that it is composed in accordance with the rules - so far as the _moves_ themselves are concerned.
It is true that the _order_ of black and white is not always observed with due strictness, and the "castling" of the three Queens simply means that all three end up in the palace; however, anyone who takes the trouble to arrange the pieces and make the indicated moves will be convinced that the “check” of the White King on the 6th move, the loss of the Knight by Black on the 7th and the final “checkmate” of the Black King do not contradict the laws of the game (*2 ).
The new words in the poem "Jabberwocky" caused some controversy regarding their pronunciation; I should obviously give clarification on _this_ point. "Hlivkie" should be pronounced with emphasis on the first syllable; “grunted” - on the third; and “Zelyuki” are on the last one.”
For the sixty-first thousand of this edition, new clichés were made from wooden forms (since they were not used directly for printing, they are in the same excellent condition as in 1871, when they were made); the entire book was typed in a new font. If, artistically, this reissue is in any way inferior to its predecessors, this will not be through the fault of the author, publisher or printer.
I take this opportunity to inform the public that Alice for Children, which hitherto cost 4 shillings without cover, is now sold on the same terms as ordinary shilling picture books, although I am sure that it is superior to them in every respect (for with the exception of the _text_ itself, which I have no right to judge). 4 shillings was a very reasonable price, considering the serious expense this book entailed on me; however, since Readers say: “For a picture book, no matter how good, we _don’t_ want to pay more than four shillings,” I agree to write off my expenses for its publication at a loss, and so as not to leave the little ones for whom it was written without it at all, I am selling it at such a price that for me it is equivalent to giving it away for nothing.
Christmas 1896
1. THROUGH THE MIRROR HOUSE
One thing was absolutely clear: the _white_ kitten had nothing to do with it; It's all the black's fault and no one else's. For half an hour now, the mother cat had been washing Snowflake’s face (and she steadfastly endured this torment) - so that, with all her desire, Snowflake could not do anything.
Do you know how Dina washed her kittens? With one paw she grabbed the poor thing by the ear and pressed it to the floor, and with the other she rubbed her entire face, starting from the nose, against the fur. As I already said, during this time she was working on Snowflake, and she lay quietly, did not resist, and even tried to purr - apparently, she understood that all this was being done for her own good.
Dinah had finished with little black Kitty earlier, and now, while Alice sat curled up on the corner of the spacious armchair, muttering something to herself half asleep, Kitty was having a lot of fun playing with the ball of wool that Alice had shaken in the morning; she happily chased it around the floor and, of course, unraveled it and completely tangled it. The threads were now lying on the rug in front of the fireplace, so tangled that it was scary to look at them, and Kitty was jumping on them, trying to catch her own tail.
Lewis Carroll
Alice Through the Looking Glass (with Color Illustrations)
Looking Glass House
One thing was absolutely clear: white the kitten has nothing to do with it; It's all the black's fault and no one else's. For half an hour now, the cat’s mother washed Snowflake’s face (and she steadfastly endured this torment) - so that, with all her desire, Snowflake did nothing could do.
Do you know how Dina washed her kittens? With one paw she grabbed the poor thing by the ear and pressed it to the floor, and with the other she rubbed her entire face, starting from the nose, against the fur. As I already said, at this time she was working on Snowflake, and she lay quietly, did not resist, and even tried to purr - apparently, she understood that all this was being done for her own good.
Dinah had finished with little black Kitty earlier, and now, while Alice sat curled up on the corner of the spacious armchair, muttering something to herself half asleep, Kitty was having a lot of fun playing with the ball of wool that Alice had shaken in the morning; she happily chased it around the floor and, of course, unraveled it and completely tangled it. The threads were now lying on the rug in front of the fireplace, so tangled that it was scary to look at them, and Kitty was jumping on them, trying to catch her own tail.
Oh, Kitty, how disgusting you are! - said Alice, catching her and lightly kissing her on the face, in order, apparently, so that she would better understand that the mistress was angry with her. - Didn’t Dina explain to you how to behave?
She looked reproachfully at Dina and added as sternly as possible:
- Not good, Dina, not good.
And then she climbed back into the chair, taking the wool and the kitten with her, and began to work on the ball again. But things went slowly for Alice, because she was distracted all the time - either talking to Kitty or muttering something under her breath. Kitty sat quietly on her lap, pretending to carefully watch Alice flail her wool; from time to time she extended her paw and quietly touched the ball, as if wanting to say that she would gladly help if she could.
Do you know what will happen tomorrow? - said Alice. “You would have guessed it yourself if you had sat with me in the window this morning.” Only you were busy - Dina washed you. And I watched the boys collect wood chips for the fire. You need a lot of wood for a fire, Kitty. It was terribly cold, and then it started snowing - they had to go home! But don't worry, Kitty! Tomorrow we'll go watch the fire!
Then Alice wrapped a little of Kitty's wool around her neck, just to see if it would suit her; Kitty began to struggle - the ball rolled onto the floor and unraveled again.
You know,” Alice continued as they settled back into the chair, “I was so angry with you, Kitty, when I saw what you had done. I almost opened the window and sat you down in the snow! You deserve it, minx! What can you say in your defense? Now listen and don't interrupt me! (Here she shook her finger at Kitty.) I'll tell you everything! First of all, you squeaked when you were washed this morning. Yes, you have nothing to object to, I heard it with my own ears! What are you saying there? (Alice fell silent, pretending to listen to Kitty.) Did she hit you in the eye with her paw? It's your own fault, there was no need for you to open your eyes! If you had closed your eyes tighter, this wouldn't have happened! Don't make excuses, please! Better listen! Secondly, you pulled Snowflake away from the saucer by the tail when I poured her milk. Oh, that's it, are you thirsty? Haven't you thought about her? And thirdly, as soon as I turned away, you immediately unwound all the wool. Three whole offenses, Kitty, and you haven’t paid for one yet! Well, wait, I’ll punish you for everything at once - in a week!
What would happen if me did they also begin to punish for everything at once? (She thought aloud, more to herself than to Kitty.) What would happen then? end of the year? I should be in jail, no other way! What if I were left without lunch for every offense? Then one fine day I would be left without a hundred lunches at once! Well, This not so scary yet! It would be worse if you had to eat all a hundred lunches at once!
Do you hear the snow rustling against the glass, Kitty? How fluffy and soft he is! How he caresses towards the windows! Snow, that's right loves fields and trees, since he is so gentle with them! He covers them with a white feather bed so that they are warm and comfortable, and says: “Sleep, dear ones, sleep until summer comes.” And having risen from their winter sleep, Kitty, they will put on a green outfit and start dancing in the wind. Oh, how beautiful it is! - Here Alice clapped her hands and dropped the ball again. - It would be nice to have all this and really it was! After all, in the fall the forest really is so sleepy. The leaves of the trees turn yellow and he falls asleep.
Listen, Kitty, can you play chess? Don't laugh, honey, I'm asking you seriously. When we played today, you looked at the board as if you understood all the moves: and when I said “Check!”, you purred! Oh, Kitty, what a time it was. good move! And I, of course, would have won if it weren’t for that nasty horse! How did he get close to my figures! Kitty, honey, let's play as if we...
I can’t even tell you how often Alice repeated this phrase! Just yesterday she had a long argument with her sister; Alice told her: “Let's play as if we were kings and queens,” and her sister, who loves precision in everything, said that this was impossible, because there were only two of them. In the end, Alice had to give in. “Okay,” she said, “ You you will be one king and queen, and I all the other kings and queens at once!” And one day she scared her old nanny to death by shouting right in her ear: “Nanny, let’s play as if I’m a hungry hyena and you’re a bone!”
But we digress. So Alice said to Kitty:
Kitty, honey, let's play like you're the Black Queen! You know, if you sit on your hind legs and press your front legs to your chest, you will look just like the Black Queen. Come on, try it, darling!
And Alice took the Red Queen off the table and put it in front of Kitty so that she could see who to imitate. But nothing came of this idea - mainly because, according to Alice, Kitty never wanted to raise her paws properly. Then, as punishment, Alice brought her to the Mirror over the fireplace - so that she could see how gloomy she looked.
If you don’t correct yourself this very minute, I’ll put you there, in the Looking-Glass House. Well, what are you on This will you say?
You know, Kitty, if you’ll be silent for just a minute,” Alice continued, “and listen to me, I’ll tell you everything I know about the Looking-Glass House. First of all, there is this room that starts right behind the glass. It's exactly the same as our living room, Kitty, only it's the other way around! When I climb onto a chair and look in the Mirror, I can see all of her except the fireplace. Oh, how I wish his see! I'm so interested to know whether they have a fireplace in the winter or not. But no matter how you look at this Mirror, the fireplace will not see, unless our fireplace starts smoking - then smoke will appear there too. Only this, it’s true, they did it on purpose - so that we would think that they also have a fire in the fireplace. And the books there are very similar to ours - only the words are written backwards. I am this exactly I know, because one day I showed them our book, and they showed me theirs!
Well, Kitty, do you want to live in the House of Mirrors? I wonder if they will give you milk there? However, I don’t know if you can drink mirror milk? Won't it hurt you, Kitty... And then there is a corridor. If you open the door wide in our living room, you can see a piece corridor in that house, it is exactly the same as ours. But, who knows, suddenly, where he is not visible, he is completely different? Oh, Kitty, how I would like to go through the Looking Glass! There must be so many miracles there! Let's play like we can get there! Suddenly the glass will become thin as a spider's web, and we will step through it! Look, it really does melt away like fog. It’s not at all difficult to get through it now...
What a fabulous secret
Hidden in black and white!
The costume is incredibly beautiful
With just these two flowers,
And in young maximalism
The two colors argue every now and then.
There are two bases in symbolism:
The color of the night is black, the color of the morning is white.
How beautiful is monochrome
On old films!
It is not brightness that reigns in them, but modesty,
But what a rich set of shades.
I love the colors of old films
And in them - brunettes and blondes,
Black and white suits are charming.
Their two-tone color is invaluable.
You, my dear, are so distant,
You look at me with mockery:
“You don’t need to be a maximalist,
Everything in our life is mixed up.”
But my character is rebellious
I couldn't change it.
I divide the world into evil - the color is black -
And I divide it into goodness - the color is white.
I think about you with longing.
Your harshness hurts my heart.
I'm sad when I'm not with you,
But I will not betray childishness.
Humpty Dumpty
In the Looking Glass everything is two-sided,
Everything is ambiguous and strange.
You won’t understand where the lie is and where the truth is,
Up, and down, and left, right.
It turns out that you go left.
In our world through the looking glass
Just like in real life.
It can also be confused
Evil, good, and intelligence, and stupidity.
You think you're going right
It turns out that you go left.
You think you're the White Queen
It turns out that you are the Black Queen.
1
How many different destinies
It's on the chessboard!
Someone is judging someone else's life,
Someone is suffering in sadness.
Someone in sad, gloomy thoughts,
Someone lives in joy.
And in my trifling poems
Let's talk about chess.
2
The castle is lush and spacious
Rising among the fields
And the Black King lives there
With my Queen.
There is a wide garden around the castle
And there is no limit for him.
In the magnificent castle that high
There is no way for anyone.
And royal spouses,
It’s like hell, the two of them live together,
They hate everything about each other
They were sick of the family home.
There is no more beautiful queen
Her eyes are so black
Burning, fiery and passionate,
But they are always sad.
Tired of living young
The Queen's look is sad,
I stopped trusting people
And the King is to blame for this.
And in another beautiful palace
White rules the King.
There is no happy fate for him.
My heart was tormented by pain.
Queen, which is whiter
swan wing,
The King is getting colder
And I couldn’t fall in love.
How hard it is for her without love
Respond to your husband's affections
Wasting golden years
Happiness can never be known.
3
Sad Queen Black,
She is sadder than all the queens.
In a dark brocade robe,
Wearing a dark veil,
She was sitting under the window.
A black horse came to the window.
Black Knight, brave horseman,
He pulled the veil from her lips.
He smiled and shed tears.
“I love you dearly.
Give me money,” he said, “
And I'll buy a carriage.
We will escape to foreign lands
Together, the falcon is faster.
Give me gold coins
There are few of them in this life.”
Queen, believing boldly,
I gave him the money.
The Black Knight commanded her,
So that she would wait for him.
4
To the Queen of White Mountain
Looking out the window in the evening.
Stars in the sky, stars in the sea
They will burn in the evening.
And under the windows in the little garden
The chrysanthemums have bloomed.
The Black Knight is closer to night
Appears in the distance.
Approaches the Queen:
"Ah, in the anxiety of vanity
The mystery gently covers
Your lovely features."
Money for a carriage again
The Black Knight asked
And she gave the coins.
Wait until you have enough strength
She promised. Moonbeam
Beamed. Through the thick forest
The Knight was riding - an evil homewrecker
The king and his wife.
5
Both Queens are in the castles
Near the windows there is darkness and light:
"Black Knight, where are you, where are you?"
Nobody will give them an answer.
Summer charm
Can't return now forever.
In the blue moonlight
The first snow is turning silver.
Alice and the White Knight
White knight.
I must be dreaming in reality?
You are a dream, tenderness, a young star.
Now I just realized why I live:
To fall in love with you forever.
Alice.
My mind constantly tells me
That angels fly in the sky
But a bright angel stands before me.
A miracle happened before my eyes.
White knight.
Hurry up and mount the white horse,
Go with me to a high castle.
Please, Alice, agree
To become my beloved wife.
Alice.
You are so beautiful, white paladin,
Lighter and softer than fog...
White knight.
Now you are alone, and I am alone.
You will be my lucky talisman.
Alice.
But I can’t be your wife.
Let me continue my journey.
White knight.
I will love and appreciate you
Much more than any king.
Alice.
But I love the earthly youth.
Forgive me, White Knight, my refusal.
I will not be a wife to a king,
Not a knight - I love only once.
White knight.
To understand your purity, Alice
A low earthly youth cannot.
You can't cure his blindness.
Please, stay with me!
Alice.
I know you are beautiful, good for everyone -
Soul, face, feeling, and mind.
But I won’t take pearls—a copper penny.
My happiness lies in a rude earthly youth.
White knight.
For me, you are my beautiful idol.
I pray to you, love you and honor you.
The youth of the earth will destroy you,
Your beauty will be blown by the wind.
Alice.
I made my own choice,
At least I know that trouble awaits me.
You will be happy with another girl,
And I am no longer with anyone and never again.
Serenade of the White Knight to Alice
Everyone is looking at the white crow:
Some with misunderstanding, some with affection,
Some with envy, some with surprise,
Some with indignation, some with fear.
I look at her in love,
White like a bride.
Happy is he who is with the black sheep
Arm in arm, we'll go through life together.
It's sad to live for a snow-white crow
And fly across the blue expanses.
After all, no one sees a tender soul,
The white raven does not fly to the crow.
Just believe, everything will be different.
The white raven is missing you.
To get to your house,
He will overcome all limits.
Queen Alice
I entered Through the Looking Glass as a girl,
From there I emerge as a queen.
I received a golden crown,
But I don't know how I'll see
Am I worthy to bear a high title,
After all, I have to have a lot inside.
My eyes are beautiful and deep,
But now I need wisdom more.
Perhaps I gave the world a little
But I did good as best I could,
I chose my path according to my heart,
She chose her deeds after her heart.
I hope that my mistakes will be forgiven,
If I couldn’t do something.
It's never too late to try
What didn't work out, start again from scratch.
The fairy tale “Alice Through the Looking Glass” was a continuation of the story about the adventures of the girl Alice through imaginary worlds.
The second work of the duology includes puns and some characters invented during Lewis Carroll’s work on the first book “Alice in Wonderland”.
History of creation
While teaching girls the game, as Alice Lidell recalled, Carroll came up with different stories based on the moves of chess pieces. Another girl Alice, a distant relative of the writer, involuntarily suggested the idea of a fairy tale to send the heroine to the room that exists behind the mirror. In 1871, the first edition of the fairy tale appeared, which had the long title “Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Saw There, or Alice Through the Looking Glass.”
Description of the work. Main characters
The plot of the story is based on a chess game: a pawn passes the entire field and becomes a queen. Alice finds herself in a fairy-tale world behind a mirror, rushing after a black kitten. Having become a white pawn, Alice moves from field to field, meeting different characters who introduce her to the world of absurdity and nonsense that reigns through the Looking Glass. Having reached the eighth field, she becomes a queen, who, however, is treated like a servant. Angry, Alice quarrels with the figures and... wakes up.
The heroes of the fairy tale are the animated chess pieces with which the white pawn interacts. In different fields, Alice meets new characters. So, on the fourth field, the mirror twins Tweedledum and Tweedley take her to the sleeping Black King, warning her that she exists only in his sleep. Alice did not dare to wake up the chess piece.
Humpty Dumpty, a fairy tale character who came into it from English folklore. He can not only transform into himself from chicken egg, but also speaks in familiar words, producing speech that is incomprehensible to logical comprehension.
Two characters have been transferred to Through the Looking Glass from Wonderland: Zai Ats - the Mrtovsky Hare and Blockhead Chick - the Hatter.
Analysis of the work
The author used the famous literary device. The action takes place in the main character’s dream, but throughout the entire story one can only guess about this, based on the chaos and nonsense reigning at the scene and in the heads of the characters. What prevents her from finally recognizing what is happening as a dream is the determination with which Alice tries to find a reasonable explanation for what is happening.
The text of the work includes many riddles, charades, and puns, designed in the limerick genre. “Alice Through the Looking Glass” continues the trend of ironic absurdism, which distinguished the first fairy tale of the dilogy.
Final conclusion
Carroll's contemporaries refused to consider the fairy tale "Alice Through the Looking Glass" as a children's fairy tale. It really could only be understood by the author’s little girlfriends, for whom he came up with his puns and limericks. It is possible to understand and appreciate the game with which the writer filled the work with brilliant erudition. The English writer Woolf wrote that Carroll's books cannot be classified as children's literature, but in them adults become children.
Lewis Carroll
Alice in the Wonderland
(Through the mirror and what Alice saw there)
The White Pawn (Alice) starts and becomes Queen in eleven moves
1. Alice meets the Black Queen
2. Alice via d3 (the railway goes to d4 (Tweedledum and Tweedledee)
3. Alice meets the White Queen (with shawl)
4. Alice goes to d5 (bench, river, shop)
5. Alice goes to d6 (Humpty Dumpty)
6. Alice goes to d7 (forest)
7. White Horse takes on Black Horse
8. Alice goes to d8 (coronation)
9. Alice becomes Queen
10. Alice "castles" (feast)
11. Alice takes the Black Queen and wins the game
1. The Black Queen moves to h5
2. The White Queen goes to c4 (catches the shawl)
4. The White Queen moves to f8 (leaves an egg on the shelf)
5. The White Queen goes to c8 (escaping from the Black Horse)
6. Black Knight goes to e7
7. White Knight goes to f5
8. The Black Queen goes to e8 (“exam”)
9. Queens "castle"
10. The White Queen goes to a6 (soup)
DRAMATIS PERSONAE (SETUP BEFORE THE GAME STARTS)
Figures: Tweedledee, Unicorn, Sheep, White Queen, White King, Old Man, White Knight, Tweedledee
Pawns: Daisy, Zay Ats, Oyster, Little Lily, Doe, Oyster, Chick Chick, Daisy
Figures: Humpty Dumpty, Carpenter, Walrus, Black Queen, Black King, Raven, Black Knight, Lion
Pawns: Daisy, Stranger, Oyster, Tiger Lily, Rose, Oyster, Frog, Daisy
Child with a cloudless brow
And with a surprised look,
Let everything change around
And you and I are not close,
Let the years separate us
Please accept my story as a gift.
I only see you in my dreams,
I can't hear your laughter, dear,
You have grown up, and about me,
I probably forgot (*1).
I've had enough for now
You will listen to my story.
It started many years ago
Early July morning,
Our boat glided in harmony
With my story.
I remember this blue path
Even though the years have been saying: forget it!
My dear friend, the days will fly by,
And he tells you: “Go to sleep!”
And it will be too late to argue.
We look so much like guys
That they don’t want to go to bed.
All around - frost, blinding snow
And empty as in the desert,
We have joy, children's laughter,
The fire is burning in the fireplace.
A fairy tale saves you from adversity
Let her save you.
Although there is a slight sadness in the air
In my fairy tale,
Even though summer is over, let it be
Its colors do not fade,
Breath of evil this time too
Don't be saddened by my story.
Since the chess problem given on the previous page has puzzled some readers, I should obviously explain that it is composed in accordance with the rules - so far as the _moves_ themselves are concerned.
It is true that the _order_ of black and white is not always observed with due strictness, and the "castling" of the three Queens simply means that all three end up in the palace; however, anyone who takes the trouble to arrange the pieces and make the indicated moves will be convinced that the “check” of the White King on the 6th move, the loss of the Knight by Black on the 7th and the final “checkmate” of the Black King do not contradict the laws of the game (*2 ).
The new words in the poem "Jabberwocky" caused some controversy regarding their pronunciation; I should obviously give clarification on _this_ point. "Hlivkie" should be pronounced with emphasis on the first syllable; “grunted” - on the third; and “Zelyuki” are on the last one.”
For the sixty-first thousand of this edition, new clichés were made from wooden forms (since they were not used directly for printing, they are in the same excellent condition as in 1871, when they were made); the entire book was typed in a new font. If, artistically, this reissue is in any way inferior to its predecessors, this will not be through the fault of the author, publisher or printer.
I take this opportunity to inform the public that Alice for Children, which hitherto cost 4 shillings without cover, is now sold on the same terms as ordinary shilling picture books, although I am sure that it is superior to them in every respect (for with the exception of the _text_ itself, which I have no right to judge). 4 shillings was a very reasonable price, considering the serious expense this book entailed on me; however, since Readers say: “For a picture book, no matter how good, we _don’t_ want to pay more than four shillings,” I agree to write off my expenses for its publication at a loss, and so as not to leave the little ones for whom it was written without it at all, I am selling it at such a price that for me it is equivalent to giving it away for nothing.
Christmas 1896
1. THROUGH THE MIRROR HOUSE
One thing was absolutely clear: the _white_ kitten had nothing to do with it; It's all the black's fault and no one else's. For half an hour now, the mother cat had been washing Snowflake’s face (and she steadfastly endured this torment) - so that, with all her desire, Snowflake could not do anything.
Do you know how Dina washed her kittens? With one paw she grabbed the poor thing by the ear and pressed it to the floor, and with the other she rubbed her entire face, starting from the nose, against the fur. As I already said, during this time she was working on Snowflake, and she lay quietly, did not resist, and even tried to purr - apparently, she understood that all this was being done for her own good.
Dinah had finished with little black Kitty earlier, and now, while Alice sat curled up on the corner of the spacious armchair, muttering something to herself half asleep, Kitty was having a lot of fun playing with the ball of wool that Alice had shaken in the morning; she happily chased it around the floor and, of course, unraveled it and completely tangled it. The threads were now lying on the rug in front of the fireplace, so tangled that it was scary to look at them, and Kitty was jumping on them, trying to catch her own tail.
Oh, Kitty, how disgusting you are! - said Alice, catching her and lightly kissing her on the face, - in order, apparently, so that she would better understand that the mistress is angry with her. - Didn’t Dina explain to you how to behave?
She looked reproachfully at Dina and added as sternly as possible:
Not good_, Dina, _not good_!
And then she climbed back into the chair, taking the wool and the kitten with her, and began to work on the ball again. But things went slowly for Alice, because she was distracted all the time - either talking to Kitty or muttering something under her breath. Kitty sat quietly on her lap, pretending to carefully watch Alice flail her wool; from time to time she extended her paw and quietly touched the ball, as if wanting to say that she would gladly help if she could.
