Jabberwocky
by Lewis Carroll · 1871 · 1 Min. Lesezeit · 28 Zeilen
“Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carroll is a nonsense poem about a young hero who hunts and kills a frightening creature. It opens in a strange landscape where unfamiliar animals move and make sounds described through invented words. A speaker warns his son about the Jabberwock’s biting jaws and catching claws, along with two other dangerous creatures. Armed with a vorpal sword, the young hunter searches for his enemy, then pauses beside a Tumtum tree. The Jabberwock arrives through the woods with flaming eyes and burbling noises. After a quick fight, the hunter carries its severed head back and receives an excited welcome. The opening stanza then returns unchanged, placing the completed adventure within the same mysterious world where it began.
Was es bedeutet, Zeile für Zeile
Zeilen 1 bis 4: The opening presents an unfamiliar landscape filled with oddly named creatures and actions. Most details resist exact definition, but familiar sentence patterns make the scene feel understandable. The sounds of the invented words suggest movement, mood, and animal calls without explaining precisely what anything looks like.
Zeilen 5 bis 8: A speaker warns his son against three creatures, especially the Jabberwock. Its jaws and claws give readers concrete reasons to fear it, even among unfamiliar names. Repeated warnings establish danger and prepare for an adventure in which the son will face the threatened monster.
Zeilen 9 bis 12: The hunter takes his sword and searches a long time for his enemy. He eventually rests beside a named tree and pauses to think. These ordinary actions give the story a clear direction, while the unusual descriptions of the weapon, enemy, and tree keep its setting strange.
Zeilen 13 bis 16: The pause ends when the Jabberwock approaches through the woods. Flaming eyes make its danger vivid, while invented descriptions and a burbling noise give its arrival an odd, almost comic quality. The monster comes to the hunter just as he stands absorbed in thought.
Zeilen 17 bis 24: The fight happens rapidly, with counting and sharp sound effects suggesting repeated sword strokes. The hunter kills the Jabberwock and carries its head back as proof. The welcoming speaker calls him a boy, invites an embrace, and bursts into joyful cries, turning the earlier warning into a celebration.
Zeilen 25 bis 28: The poem repeats its opening stanza exactly. After the danger and celebration, the strange creatures continue their unexplained activities. This return gives the adventure a circular shape: the hero’s task is finished, but the larger world remains as mysterious as it was before.
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Drei Fragen zum Nachdenken
- How do the invented words suggest meanings or feelings even when their exact definitions remain unclear?
- What details make the Jabberwock seem frightening, and what details make its appearance or defeat seem funny?
- How does repeating the opening stanza affect your sense of what the hero’s victory has changed?
3 Monate kostenlos
200.000+ Klassiker. Jedes Format, zum Einstieg kostenlos.
eBooks und 15-Minuten-Zusammenfassungen sowie jedes Buch zum Selbstkostenpreis gedruckt, auch im Großdruck.
