Rest in peace Edward Wakeling 🕯

 

(Edward Wakeling with manuscript replica of one of Charles Dodgson's diaries, photo via Keithpp, circa July 2010)

Devestated to hear of the passing of perhaps the only world expert in Lewis Carroll, Edward Wakeling. Wakeling's dedication to his subject matter unearthed many key documents and his lagacy shall hopefully be of someone who changed Carroll academia forever for the better. In later years Wakeling spoke out against misreadings of Carroll in the press and media and was not afraid to correct other biographers or read new research. His openess was rare in Carroll scholarship and he showed great integrity. 

He will be sorely missed.

The new ARTE documentary about Carroll might be the best documentary ever made about this author

Watch this beautiful Documentary here (in French) or here (in german with optional autotranslated english subtitles) 

Unlike other things in the past, ARTE TV very much did their research here, featuring in the documentary prominantly is Oxford based Alice scholar Franziska Kholt and World expert on Lewis Carroll Edward Wakeling. The documentary is mainly about the path from Dodgson telling what would become Alice's adventures in Wonderland to the Liddell sisters and friends to the publishing of the expanded story, and the original draft manuscript eventually being given to Alice Liddell. In particular the documentary elaborates on what this meant for culture. Also features some very beautiful views of Oxford and surrounding places. 

The documentary also dismantles what Leach termed "the carroll myth" and explains why Carroll's reputation soured in the 20th century, a fault that lies with badly informed extremely early psychology hack writers and misunderstandings between the societal treatment of children in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Unfortunately this documentary hasn't quite had an English language release yet (although according to this page, it is coming) but I will update if/when this happens. For now, English language readers will have to autotranslate the youtube subtitles. Not perfect, but hopefully offers some glimpses into how good this piece is. 

Please enjoy :) 

SOURCES:

IMAGES: ARTE distribution DE

New documentary featuring Carroll out in 2020 (by ARTE)

Franziska Kohlt's blog and twitter informs us that there is a new documentary on the way, featuring herself as well as Edward Wakeling. This will air in France and Germany. 

A new series of TV documentaries on famous books and their origins, manuscripts and authors will be hitting the screens in early 2020 – and last week we started filming for the first episode in Oxford, which is about the origins of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – and some, perhaps unexpected, links and sources (including what the University of Oxford’s crest has to do with Alice’s dream)! I am extremely honoured to appear on it as expert alongside collector and Carroll scholar extraordinaire Edward Wakeling.
The documentary will be available on French and German Television, and online after it’s aired, for those elsewhere!

I welcome the idea of a thoroughly researched documentary with world experts and scholars.

However considering the disaster in 2015 with the BBC documentary, I am also extremely nervous. 



As to date there has been no progressive and considerate documentary. I hope ARTE do their research and can present us with a nuanced look at Carroll, his life, and the era he lived in. 

Please. Please.

 

I have great respect for many biographers and a high regard for a few. But some just didn't do their homework.

Dodgson himself must take some of the blame. His rigorous attempts to protect his privacy and to shun all forms of publicity made successive generations suspect that he had something to hide - some dark secret that if revealed would tarnish his reputation for ever - some dreadful error of judgement that would cause society to shun him - or some awful characteristic that would repel even the most broad-minded of souls. He had a public name but not a public face.
After his death, the custodians of his literary estate did little to release the truth. They followed the social sensitivities of the late Victorian and early Edwardian age - the private life of Lewis Carroll was not for public consumption. His literary legacy fared badly - many of his papers and personal effects were destroyed in the name of haste and expediency, but other motives were in play. Highly important documents were removed from the scope of future research - his 24 volume letter register containing summaries of all correspondence received and sent since 1860, his complete photographic catalogue of all pictures taken from 1856 to 1880, the drafts and proofs of many publications, and parts of his thirteen volume diary.

So biographers are bereft of key primary source material. But to indulge in highly spurious speculation is not the way forward.

Edward Wakeling, 2003.