In "Through the Looking-Glass," Lewis Carroll uses the dream motif to blur the lines between reality and fantasy by setting the entire narrative in a dream world where everything is reversed. This fantastical world reflects the real world in its chaos and strangeness, thereby parodying reality. The unpredictability and the nonsensical elements of the dreamscape demonstrate how Carroll perceives the crookedness of the real world to be greater than that of fantasy . The dream context makes it difficult to distinguish between the real and fantastical, especially as Alice’s memories from real life intermittently disrupt her experiences in the looking-glass world . The story concludes ambiguously, questioning who was dreaming—Alice or the Red King—and juxtaposes this with a poem that poses the philosophical query, "Life, what is it but a dream?" This further blurs the line between dream and reality, suggesting their interchangeable nature .

The underlying philosophical question posed at the end of "Through the Looking-Glass" is, "who it was that dreamed it all?" This question blurs the lines between Alice’s dream and reality, asking whether it was Alice dreaming of the Red King, or the Red King dreaming of Alice. This unresolved question highlights the novel's exploration of reality by challenging the conventional distinctions between dream and waking life, suggesting that both states might be equally viable as experiences . This inquiry, encapsulated by the closing poem's final line, "Life, what is it but a dream?", suggests a philosophical stance that views life itself as a dream-like, ephemeral experience, thus intertwining the themes of reality, fantasy, identity, and existence into the narrative’s resolution . The philosophical inquiry encourages reflection on the nature of reality itself, implying that the reality experienced is subject to the perspectives and perceptions involved .

The metaphor of the chess game in "Through the Looking-Glass" reflects Alice's journey and the theme of coming-of-age by framing her adventure as a series of calculated moves and challenges that ultimately lead to her maturation. As Alice navigates through the looking-glass world, she takes on the role of a pawn aiming to reach the eighth square where she will become a queen, symbolizing her transformation from childhood to adulthood . This journey through the chessboard reflects the structured yet unpredictable path toward growing up, where each move represents lessons and experiences gained. The transformation into a queen once she reaches the final square serves as a metaphor for maturity and the culmination of Alice's developmental journey across the fantastical landscape .

The confrontation between Alice and the Red King in "Through the Looking-Glass" embodies the tension between dream and reality by fundamentally challenging Alice's perception of existence. When Tweedledum and Tweedledee suggest that Alice is merely a figment of the Red King's dream, it forces her to question her reality, despite her insistence on being real . This paradoxical situation places Alice at the center of a narrative that blurs the distinction between dreaming and living. The dissolution of certainty regarding her existence reflects the broader theme of the instability and ambiguity between what is dreamed and what is real, extending the novel's exploration of existential dilemmas . This tension is further underscored by the final philosophical question of who was dreaming, accentuating the intertwined nature of both states and questioning the foundation of reality .

Tweedledum and Tweedledee in "Through the Looking-Glass" serve to explore themes of identity and existential crisis by presenting Alice with the paradox of existence. They suggest to Alice that the sleeping Red King is dreaming of her, implying that she is merely a creation within his dream. Despite Alice’s insistence on her reality, their repeated assertions reduce her to tears, instilling a sense of identity crisis. This scenario highlights the blurred lines between dream and reality, challenging Alice's sense of self and existence as she grapples with the notion of being a part of someone else's dream . This exploration of identity is compounded by the narrative’s ending, which questions reality and dreams, accentuating existential doubt .

The poem "A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky" at the end of "Through the Looking-Glass" encapsulates themes of nostalgia and childhood by reflecting on the transience of Carroll's relationship with the real Alice Liddell and the fleeting nature of childhood itself. The poem's imagery of a drifting boat under a sunny sky evokes a sense of wistfulness and longing, capturing Carroll's bittersweet reflection on the passing of time and the impermanence of youth. It metaphorically aligns the concluding phase of Alice's dream journey to maturity within the story with the fading memories of childhood shared with Alice Liddell . Carroll's nostalgic yearning for childhood, represented as a serene retreat from adulthood, manifests in the poem's serene yet wistful rhythm, reinforcing childhood's portrayal as a cherished yet evanescent fantasy .

"Through the Looking-Glass" employs parody to reflect real-world phenomena and critique society by creating a mirror-world that exaggerates the absurdities and contradictions seen in the real world. This mirrored universe serves as a counterpart where everything is reversed, embodying the chaos and disorder Alice encounters, which parallels the complexities of the adult world. By embedding nursery rhymes and nonsensical elements into the narrative, Carroll generates a satire of societal norms and behaviors. For instance, the nonsensical logic of characters like Tweedledum and Tweedledee and other inhabitants of the looking-glass world functions as a reflection of societal pretenses and inconsistencies . Through the satirical depiction, Carroll invites reflection on how the fantastical crookedness ironically mirrors, and perhaps, highlights the more profound distortions found in society, underscoring the story as a critique of Victorian social structures and the difficulties of navigating reality .

Memory plays a dual role in the construction of fantasy in "Through the Looking-Glass." On one hand, Alice’s memory serves as a constant underline of reality that threatens to pierce through the fabric of her fantasy in the looking-glass world. Her recalling of nursery rhymes, such as the "old song" about Tweedledum and Tweedledee with clock-like regularity, exemplifies how memory anchors her to reality . On the other hand, Carroll uses Alice’s memory as a tool to navigate the fantasy, but also as a threat to his creative power, as the intrusion of memory challenges the fantastical elements he constructs . This tension between memory serving both as a guide and a disruptor highlights how intertwined and ultimately inseparable memory is in sustaining the dreamlike state of the narrative. Carroll's sense of nostalgia further compounds this, as memory becomes a vehicle for exploring the fleeting nature of childhood and his own longing for the past .

In "Through the Looking-Glass," Lewis Carroll uses characters metaphorically to express his longing for a return to childhood innocence by imbuing them with characteristics that reflect his nostalgia. The White Knight epitomizes this longing through his gentle, protective demeanor towards Alice, symbolizing Carroll himself and his nurturing relationship with the real-life Alice Liddell . The Knight's actions and the chivalric, archaic environment he inhabits evoke a sense of romanticized nostalgia for the carefree days of childhood. Through Alice's encounters with fantastical yet familiar entities, Carroll constructs a narrative backdrop that juxtaposes whimsy against the encroaching responsibilities of adulthood, reflecting his desire to retreat into the innocence and simplicity of youth . Moreover, these encounters highlight Carroll’s yearning for a simpler time, using Alice’s dream-as-reality adventure to wistfully comment on the loss of childhood innocence .

The White Knight in "Through the Looking-Glass" symbolizes Lewis Carroll himself through his compassionate behavior toward Alice, reflecting Carroll's own feelings toward the real-life Alice Liddell. The White Knight's act of rescuing Alice and guiding her safely to the eighth square, where she becomes a queen, symbolizes Carroll's role in Alice's transformation from childhood to adulthood. This transformation is a metaphor for the end of childhood, drawing on themes of nostalgia and longing for the past. Carroll's nostalgia is evident in how he approaches childhood as a fantasy for adults, using the White Knight to express his own yearning for the simplicity and innocence of youth as a retreat from the complexities of adult life .