The story of Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, is a captivating story that follows a young girl Alice, as the protagonist, on her journey down the rabbit hole and through Wonderland. The text itself is often called a children's story, rather than a particular type of folklore literature, however by reading the text from a perspective other than that of a children's book, the reader notices many folklore symbolisms that become evident throughout the story. Analyzing the text, it can be argued that Alice in Wonderland is actually a fantastic tale, which contains an abundance of important fairy-tale elements. To determine whether a story is classified as a fairy tale or another children's literary work, Axel Olrik, a Danish folklorist, created a set of eighteen "epic laws of popular fiction" that provide guidelines for defining a piece of writing for children. Consistent with Olrik's first Law of Popular Fiction, Alice in Wonderland begins quietly with Alice sitting in the bank reading a story with her sister, bored and daydreaming senselessly. This “Law of Opening” discusses the formalized opening sentences that begin folklore narratives with the least important settings and actions (Green 226). Many arguments associated with the “Law of Opening” refer specifically to the opening and closing words typical of many fairy tales such as “Once upon a time” and “Happily ever after”, but the subtle opening of the story refers to this . also the law (Bottigheimer). Alice appears to be distracted, naive, and perhaps even clueless because she doesn't understand the use of a book without pictures or conversation, implying that her sister is reading aloud to her from a textbook in which she...half of paper... irytale. Many scenes in the story are certainly more absurd than what is usually found in a folklore tale, or simply do not follow the exact guidelines of a fairy tale, but with much analysis, the fairy-tale elements and symbolism become apparent. Extremely entertaining, Lewis Carroll takes readers through Alice's adventures, which are wonderful examples of the charm that fairy tales possess. Works Cited1. Bottigheimer, Ruth B. "Folktales and Fairy Tales." Europe, 1450 to 1789: Early Modern Encyclopedia. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. October 24, 2011.2. Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; And, Through the Looking Glass.New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.3. Green, Thomas A. "Epic Laws." Folklore: an encyclopedia of beliefs, customs, tales, music and art. vol. 1. American Libraries, 1997. 225-27. Press. 4.