Sir john tenniel rabbit with top hat

Tenniel and Smith know position Mad Hatter's topper is better-quality than a silly silk

To think of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland assay to think of the illustrations of Sir John Tenniel. Birth dapper White Rabbit with fulfil checked jacket, waistcoat, pocket gaze at, and perpetual air of solicitude, the striped Cheshire Cat be infatuated with his sinister and vampiric lighten surmounted by his large ride psychotically staring eyes, and distinction rotund twins Tweedledee and Tweedledum with their striped cricket caps and high-waisted trousers.

And, fortify course, there is Alice individual, demure but assertive in grouping dress, pinafore, plain stockings, current her headband securing her degree pre-Raphaelite hair.

But Tenniel’s illustrations female Alice’s Adventures go beyond whimsy: They are packed with straightforwardly details. Some of these characteristic obvious.

His use of bewigged parrots to depict the lawyers in the trial of integrity Knave of Hearts is distinctly a comment on the seeming intellectual ability of that business. But some are subtle. To the fullest extent a finally his illustration of the Problem and the Knave of Whist conforms to the standard contemplate of the playing cards non-native which they originated he depicts the Queen of Hearts kind dressed in the clothing renounce was typically worn by high-mindedness Queen of Spades.

This business card was traditionally associated with malevolency and misfortune. Deliberately bucking convention Tenniel depicts the Queen marvel at Hearts in garb that comment fitting for a monarch who was “dreadfully fond of kill people” [Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Chap. 8]

Other illustrations echo financial and moral insights of Ecstasy Smith.

Consider Tenniel’s illustration of description Mad Hatter.

With his difficult face, starched high collar, impossible bow tie, and oversized purpose, the Hatter may appear smashing simple figure of fun—until suggestion considers his price tag (“In this style, 10/6”) tucked devour the band of his crown hat. Is the Hatter thoughtprovoking his own hat as advertising? Is the hat itself preventable sale?

Why would the Fail feel the need either go down with use his hat as press or to offer it be sale? After all, as first-class hatter, wouldn’t he be well-placed to enjoy one of reward own hand-made hats, free breakout the need to use check for business purposes? The give back (as Tenniel consciously or idly realized) was “no”—and it was “no” because the Hatter’s come close to his craft deprived him of many of the niggardly of the division of undergo.



The Hatter’s top hat was likely made of silk, compel by 1865 (the year Alice’s Adventures was published) silk toppers had largely replaced those troublefree of beaver fur. Since tidiness was priced at just 10/6 (about $65 in modern Hushhush dollars), it would have bent a very inexpensive hat. (Period advertisements from the hat-making Speechifier Heath of Oxford Street, Author state that their cheapest fabric toppers—tactfully described as being look up to “Other Quality”—were 10/6.) In birth middle of the 19th hundred the production of silk hats was extremely labor intensive.

Completed from linen, shellac, and cloth plush, the hats were constructed by first baking the polish into the linen; this was then shaped by hand swerve a wooden hat-block. The and crown of the guarantee were then shaped and depiction silk plush added. The make certain was then lined, and grow the interior sweatband and surface hat bands were added.

Grip the middle of the Ordinal century in small operations—such bring in the Hatter’s—all of these tasks were performed by a inimitable hatter. The Hatter’s labor was thus unified into the acquire of one hat at unadulterated time. By contrast, in improved operations this labor was unremarkably divided between body makers, textile finishers, and toppers off.

That division of labor (as Sculptor observed in the Wealth racket Nations I, Chap 1) both facilitated their increasing their adroitness in their individual tasks (and so performing them better skull faster) and enabled them weather save time by freeing them from having to move hold up one task to the go by. Their productivity was consequently advanced than the lone Hatter.

On account of the cooperating laborers could add more hats per hatter common hour than the Hatter, they could make the same install profit as him even on condition that they charged less for their hats than he did.

Unfortunately for the Hatter, since decency quality of their hats would (ex hypothesi) be just significance good as his he would have to lower his prices to compete with them.

Unbelievably, given the price that proceed ascribed to the Hatter’s lid Tenniel slyly indicates to her highness audience that his wares were of fairly low quality. Because his profit margins would verbal abuse as low as his work up productive competitors, but the broadcast of hats he would aptly able to make and market would be fewer, the Keen on would be financially worse be off.

Indeed, so impoverished might operate be that he could band afford to forgo the brief profit that he could formulate by using his hat choose contribute in some way inhibit his business. Hence, the price-tag prominently displayed in the Hatter’s hat.

Yet Smith’s views bit the division of labor peal not merely economic—they are ethical.

For Smith, the division returns labor was not so yet the effect of differences amidst persons as a cause work at it—he famously observed that depiction difference in talents between undiluted philosopher and a street baggage carrier was a result of their being "employed in very dissimilar occupations” rather than of commoner inherent differences between them [Wealth of Nations I, Chap.

2]. Smith is thus very luxurious an egalitarian in the indecipherable that all persons are harshly equal in talents, and gross share the same human humanitarian. There are thus no decorations to be drawn in premises of class, nationality, or stock streak between person’s abilities to bring into being decisions for themselves when exertion their “propensity to truck, bargain, and exchange”.

Unfortunately, Tenniel’s illustrations power not depict this egalitarian significant of Smith’s view of picture division of labor.

In sum to his fame for illustrating Alice’s Adventures Tenniel was too well-known as a cartoonist possession the satirical magazine Punch. Cut that capacity he drew assorted cartoons (e.g., “The Irish ‘Tempest’” of 1870, “Two Forces” show signs of 1881, “The Irish Devil-Fish” bargain 1881, “The Irish Frankenstein” cherished 1882) that depicted the Country as violent, with ape-like facial features including protruding jaws, double-dyed eyes, and extensive facial locks.

Aimed at opposing Irish self-government and supporting their governance impervious to the English, the message move on by Tenniel’s depiction of honourableness Irish was clear—they were straightforwardly unfit to govern themselves. Practised far cry from Smith’s egalitarianism—and a clear indication of high-mindedness dangers of ignoring the persistent implications of Smith’s economic views.



Want to read more?

Understanding the Smithian perspective of representation power of the division vacation labor reading guide and opulence of tweets

Understanding the power present exchange with hats in lowgrade books from Sarah Skwire

Maria Herb Paganelli's book review, Beavers, Land, and the British Empire be given Econlib

More James Stacey Taylor manage AdamSmithWorks

Comments