What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
30 minutes total
ByLewis Carroll
Grade6-8
Time30 minutes
Essential question
What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
Marked passage
Passage location
Chapter VI · Pig and Pepper
Start anchor
But I don’t want to go among mad people
End anchor
You must be, said the Cat, or you wouldn’t have come here.
Passage focus
We're all mad here
Ways to teach it
Listening
Listen to the exact passage; visual following is optional. Same question and evidence demand.
Solo
Read the exact passage independently.
Supported
Use narration and sentence highlighting while reading the same passage.
Teacher guide
Close
Name the single detail that most changed or sharpened your interpretation, and explain why.
Evidence
Lay out the Cat's reasoning step by step and identify where the conclusion is smuggled into the premise.
Mark
Number the Cat’s steps of reasoning. Circle any step that assumes the conclusion before proving it. Write CIRCULAR beside the point where 'you are here' becomes evidence that 'you are mad.'
Instructional move
Test circular reasoning inside comic dialogue
Notice
• What would the Cat need to prove independently for the argument to work? • How does the premise already contain the conclusion? • Why does circular reasoning sound playful in dialogue even though it proves nothing?
Strong answer
The Cat's proof is circular because being in a place where everyone is mad becomes the evidence that Alice is mad, which already assumes the rule it needs to prove. No independent test is supplied.
Think
Answer provisionally: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad? Choose the strongest interpretation you can defend from this passage alone.
Watch for
Do not get distracted by whether Wonderland really is mad. Evaluate the structure of the argument.
Why this passage
The Cat’s argument says Alice must be mad because she came to a place where everyone is mad. The conclusion is hidden inside the premise, so the proof never gives independent evidence for what it claims.
Write
Write a short evidence-based response to: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad? Use at least two details from the assigned passage and explain how they support your interpretation.
Student tasks
Mark
Number the Cat’s steps of reasoning. Circle any step that assumes the conclusion before proving it. Write CIRCULAR beside the point where 'you are here' becomes evidence that 'you are mad.'
Notice
What would the Cat need to prove independently for the argument to work? How does the premise already contain the conclusion? Why does circular reasoning sound playful in dialogue even though it proves nothing?
Think
Answer provisionally: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
Write
Write a short response using at least two pieces of evidence from this passage. Use evidence from the assigned passage. Show what you noticed and how the text supports your interpretation.
Ready-to-teach lesson
TumbleTA 6-12 · TEXT-BASED LESSON
BATCH 09 · 6-8 · LESSON 184
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll
What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
TOTAL TIME
PASSAGE
30 minutes
We're all mad here
FIND THE ANCHOR TEXT
Use the Anchor Text Table of Contents in the Enhanced Reader to open the START anchor. Then use the dropdown to select the END anchor.
SECTION / LOCATION
Chapter VI · Pig and Pepper
START
But I don’t want to go among mad people
END
You must be, said the Cat, or you wouldn’t have come here.
PASSAGE ID
sec-alice-02
THE MOVE
Test circular reasoning inside comic dialogue
WHY THIS PASSAGE
The Cat’s argument says Alice must be mad because she came to a place where everyone is mad.
The conclusion is hidden inside the premise, so the proof never gives independent evidence for what it claims.
MARK
Number the Cat’s steps of reasoning. Circle any step that assumes the conclusion before proving it.
Write CIRCULAR beside the point where 'you are here' becomes evidence that 'you are mad.'
NOTICE
What would the Cat need to prove independently for the argument to work?
How does the premise already contain the conclusion?
page 1
Why does circular reasoning sound playful in dialogue even though it proves nothing?
THINK
Answer provisionally: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad? Choose the strongest interpretation you can defend from this passage alone.
WRITE
Write a short evidence-based response to: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad? Use at least two details from the assigned passage and explain how they support your interpretation.
CLOSE
Name the single detail that most changed or sharpened your interpretation, and explain why.
STRONG ANSWER
The Cat's proof is circular because being in a place where everyone is mad becomes the evidence that Alice is mad, which already assumes the rule it needs to prove. No independent test is supplied.
EVIDENCE
Lay out the Cat's reasoning step by step and identify where the conclusion is smuggled into the premise.
WATCH FOR
Do not get distracted by whether Wonderland really is mad. Evaluate the structure of the argument.
SOLO
Read the exact passage independently.
SUPPORTED
Use narration and sentence highlighting while reading the same passage.
LISTENING
Listen to the exact passage; visual following is optional. Same question and evidence demand.
STUDENT PAGE · SAME PASSAGE, SAME THINKING
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll
What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
START ANCHOR
But I don’t want to go among mad people
page 2
END ANCHOR
You must be, said the Cat, or you wouldn’t have come here.
Use the Anchor Text Table of Contents in the Enhanced Reader to open the START anchor. Then use the dropdown to select the END anchor.
OPEN THE MARKED PASSAGE IN TUMBLELIT
SOLO: read independently. SUPPORTED: use narration + highlighting. LISTENING: listen to the exact passage. The question and evidence task stay the same.
1.MARK - Number the Cat’s steps of reasoning. Circle any step that assumes the conclusion
before proving it. Write CIRCULAR beside the point where 'you are here' becomes evidence that 'you are mad.'
2.NOTICE - What would the Cat need to prove independently for the argument to work? How
does the premise already contain the conclusion? Why does circular reasoning sound playful in dialogue even though it proves nothing?
3.THINK - Answer provisionally: What is wrong with the Cat's proof that Alice must be mad?
4.WRITE - Write a short response using at least two pieces of evidence from this passage.
Use evidence from the assigned passage. Show what you noticed and how the text supports your interpretation.
page 3
Original printable PDF
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