Original artwork, not a still
Through the Looking-Glass · 1872
Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The warning works because the dangers are named but never described, so readers fill the Jabberwock in themselves. It is a classic quest in miniature: a warning, a weapon, a monster and a return, all in a few stanzas. The line has become a hook for fantasy writers and a playful way to warn anyone off a big, vague danger.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Through the Looking-GlassShow the scene
This is the warning that opens the second stanza of "Jabberwocky", which Alice reads in Chapter I of Through the Looking-Glass. A speaker addresses his son, names the jaws that bite and claws that catch, and adds the Jubjub bird and the frumious Bandersnatch. The boy takes his vorpal sword, searches for the foe, rests by the Tumtum tree, and kills the Jabberwock with a snicker-snack of the blade, then is welcomed with a cry of Callooh! Callay! Alice calls it pretty but hard to understand.
Sources (2)
- Project Gutenberg: Through the Looking-GlassChapter I, Looking-Glass HouseReference checked
- Wikipedia: JabberwockyOrigin and publicationReference checked
Context reviewed
