The Destruction of Hegemony

Lewis Carroll's magnificent nonsense poem, “Jabberwocky,” is a stunning portrayal of the struggle between the old world bourgeoisie (the Jabberwock) and the burgeoning proletariate class (the son). While it is not clear whether or not Carroll ever openly supported Marxist ideas, it is well known that Karl Marx lived within the lifetime of Carroll. It is obvious from inference of the text that Marxist ideology is a central theme. A new world order supplants the old; the boy defeats the Jabberwock.

The father lives in fear of the Jabberwock and the other creatures of the borogove. The Jabberwock is an archetype of those oppressive misers who long held sway during the Industrial Revolution by alienating the working class. The father shows us the desperation and hopelessness the working class had in the old world. The Jabberwock, the Jubjub bird and the Bandersnatch rule over the father not because they actually have any power, they are just animals after all, but they simply rule from the desperation inherent in the system. The father is afraid of these animals because of his own mind.

Let us consider the Jabberwock. We are not told much about this creature, but we do know that he has eyes of flame, lives in the wood and does not seem to like the boy resting up against a tree. Taking the third as important, why might the Jabberwock not like the boy resting in his wood? The answer is simple: The boy should be at work. There are two reasons why the animal might be offended by this act: One, the boy is not producing and is losing the boss money; two, rest affords one the luxury of thought. In line twelve, we see that the boy is lost in thought; it is thought that puts an end to the cycle of oppression.

The boy is an Übermensch, a transcendent savior of the people. We as readers have in this boy an example of how we can overcome and overthrow our capitalist oppressors. Starting in line nine, the boy is actively seeking out the Jabberwock to do away with him. In line eleven, the boy stops to think, reminiscent of the thought that went into producing such works as Capital and The Communist Manifesto or into creating the speeches that fueled the fires of the Bolshevik revolution. The boy kills the Jabberwock by cutting off his head. This means that when we are fighting against the evils of capitalism, we should start at the top and get rid of the aristocracy before instituting social reform.

“Jabberwocky” is a poem to read your children as they go to sleep: It is cute and fun, but it is so much more. It is a stirring work that wakes in the mind of every revolutionary the desire to rise up and defeat their oppressors. The first and last stanzas are the same, they tell the reader that all is good. Before revolution, during the twilight of capitalism, there is hope in the mind of the proletariate and all those who dare to dream for something better. After revolution, we have a glorious future in the embrace of communism and the equality of peoples.