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The Jabberwocky and Postage Stamps

Lewis Carroll created more than just an endearing children’s story.  He was also a gadget freak who loved

What do you suppose he’s thinking about right now?

inventing in his spare time.  Among his innovations: an electric pen; a new kind of postal money order; a tricycle; a method of justifying right margins on a typewriter; and an early type of double-sided mounting square.  Carroll also came up with the idea of printing a book’s title on the spine of its dust jacket so that it could be found easily on a bookshelf.  Words he coined that are still in use today include the portmanteaus chortle (a combination of chuckle and snort) and galumph (a gallop plus triumph).  An inveterate puzzle solver, Carroll devised many card and logic games, improved backgammon, and created an early form of Scrabble.

Wow!  Who would have thought.  I’d always kind of placed Carroll into the role of drugged-out writer type with an outstanding imagination and perhaps a streak of pedophilia.  It may be harsh, but I honestly can’t think of a single complimentary thing about Mr. Carroll.  I even did a paper on him and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in AP English when I was a senior in high school and can’t remember anything especially nice. 

However, since reading the above, I’ve read several research articles on Mr. Carroll and it seems his character has been much maligned since Victorian times.  There is much more than meets the eye and, it would appear, his genius has been greatly underestimated.  Besides the items enumerated above, he was a mathematician, logician, politician, and photographer – the last of which has contributed to some of the more popular misconceptions.

Regardless, it’s always a pleasure to discover something new about someone, especially something really interesting.  He reminds me of the entry I wrote about JRR Tolkien and his astounding capacity for language.  I think I appreciate Mr. Carroll’s capacity for the absurd so much more knowing he was also a great thinker as well.

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