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Contrariwise: Literary Tattoos

The original literary tattoo blog! Over 600 tattoos from books, poetry, music, and other sources.

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Theme Weeks

Alice Week, Day 7

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Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland comes out in theatres today!

This is Slithy Toves’ Jabberwocky tattoo:

I’ve been an Alice fan since my grandmother bought me the complete works of Carroll when I was 11. Something from Alice seemed like a natural choice for my tat, and being a voracious reader, I loved the idea of using a line of text rather than an image.

twasbrillig

‘Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
 Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

– Excerpt from the nonsense poem ‘Jabberwocky‘ from Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.

Have a great weekend!

Alice Week, Day 6

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This is Kerry’s tattoo:

This quote specifically holds a place in my heart because I think it represents the constant struggle to find yourself, and to hold on to it when you do. I’ve been asking myself this question my whole life and I don’t know if I’ll ever have a full answer.

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“Dear, dear! How queer everything is to-day! And yesterday things went on just as usual. I wonder if I’ve been changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I’m not the same, the next question is, Who in the world am I? Ah, THAT’S the great puzzle!”

And she began thinking over all the children she knew that were of the same age as herself, to see if she could have been changed for any of them.

– Chapter 2 of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

Alice Week, Day 5

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feet_tats

Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!
How I wonder what you’re at!
Up above the world you fly,
Like a teatray in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle little bat!
How I wonder what you’re at!

– “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat” as recited by the Mad Hatter in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

This is Katie’s tattoo:

Why did I pick that line?  I knew I wanted some sort of bat tattoo that wasn’t too goth and I knew I wanted to get an Alice in Wonderland quote on my two feet so voila.  Since Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is one of my absolute all time favorites I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t think of this for months and months!

Alice Week, Day 3

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This is Tim’s tattoo:

My tattoo is of the Cheshire Cat from Lewis Carol’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (original art by John Tenniel 1865). The Cheshire Cat is the only creature in Wonderland who uses logic. Though his words often seem mocking and bizarre, his process is always logical. To me the Cheshire Cat symbolizes the fragility of the border between genius and insanity.

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Alice: Would you please tell me which way I ought to walk from here?
Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.
Alice: I don’t much care where —
Cat: Then it doesn’t matter which way you walk.
Alice: — so long as I get somewhere.
Cat: Oh, you’re sure to do that, if you only walk long enough.

Alice Week, Day 2

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penn-alice

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“The chief difficulty Alice found at first was in managing her flamingo.”

– From “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by John Tenniel.

This is Jennifer C.‘s tattoo:

When I was young, I would lose myself in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”. It was the most imaginative story I had ever heard. This illustration comes from the amazing John Tenniel – his images were always my favorite.

Alice Week, Day 1

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Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll are 2 of my favourite books of all time.  Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland comes out on March 5th, so it’s a perfect time for an Alice theme week!

wereallmadhere

“But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Alice remarked.
“Oh, you can’t help that,” said the cat: “We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.”
“How do you know I’m mad?” said Alice.
“You must be,” said the cat, “Or you wouldn’t have come here.”

This is Jessica‘s tattoo.  She says:

In a moment of dazed insanity, I impulsively decided that I needed these words somewhere I could easily see them. When I’m losing my mind, I look at my arm and remember that I’m not the only crazy person… everyone is nuts.