Bandersnatch
Encyclopedia
A Bandersnatch is a fictional
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...

 creature from Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , better known by the pseudonym Lewis Carroll , was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, as well as the poems "The Hunting of the...

's 1872 novel Through the Looking-Glass
Through the Looking-Glass
Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There is a work of literature by Lewis Carroll . It is the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...

and 1874 poem "The Hunting of the Snark
The Hunting of the Snark
The Hunting of the Snark is usually thought of as a nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll in 1874, when he was 42 years old...

". Although neither poem describes the appearance of a Bandersnatch in great detail, in "The Hunting of the Snark" it has a long neck and snapping jaws, and both works describe it as ferocious and extraordinarily fast. Through the Looking-Glass implies that Bandersnatches may be found in the world behind the looking-glass
Mirror
A mirror is an object that reflects light or sound in a way that preserves much of its original quality prior to its contact with the mirror. Some mirrors also filter out some wavelengths, while preserving other wavelengths in the reflection...

, and in "The Hunting of the Snark", a Bandersnatch is found by a party of adventurers after crossing an ocean. Bandersnatches have appeared in various adaptations of Carroll's works; they have also been used in other authors' works and in other forms of media.

Description

Carroll's first mention of a Bandersnatch, in the poem "Jabberwocky
Jabberwocky
"Jabberwocky" is a nonsense verse poem written by Lewis Carroll in his 1872 novel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, a sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...

" (which appears in Through the Looking-Glass
Through the Looking-Glass
Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There is a work of literature by Lewis Carroll . It is the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...

), is very brief: the narrator of the poem admonishes his son to "shun / The frumious Bandersnatch"—this particular portmanteau being a concise way of describing the creature's fuming and furious nature. Later in the novel, the White King says of his wife (the White Queen), "She runs so fearfully quick. You might as well try to catch a Bandersnatch!"

In "The Hunting of the Snark
The Hunting of the Snark
The Hunting of the Snark is usually thought of as a nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll in 1874, when he was 42 years old...

", while the party searches for the Snark, the Banker runs ahead and encounters a Bandersnatch:

And the Banker, inspired with a courage so new

It was matter for general remark,

Rushed madly ahead and was lost to their view

In his zeal to discover the Snark.
But while he was seeking with thimbles and care,

A Bandersnatch swiftly drew nigh

And grabbed at the Banker, who shrieked in despair,

For he knew it was useless to fly.
He offered large discount—he offered a check

(Drawn "to bearer") for seven-pounds-ten:

But the Bandersnatch merely extended its neck

And grabbed at the Banker again.
Without rest or pause—while those frumious jaws

Went savagely snapping around—
He skipped and he hopped, and he floundered and flopped,

Till fainting he fell to the ground.
The Bandersnatch fled as the others appeared

Led on by that fear-stricken yell:

And the Bellman remarked "It is just as I feared!"

And solemnly tolled on his bell.

In other media

Anna Matlack Richards's A New Alice in the Old Wonderland
A New Alice in the Old Wonderland
A New Alice in the Old Wonderland is a novel by Anna Matlack Richards, written in 1895 and published by J. B. Lippincott of Philadelphia. It is, according to Carolyn Sigler, one of the more important "Alice imitations", or novels inspired by Lewis Carroll's Alice books.It concerns Alice Lee, an...

(1895) contains a broader description given of the Bandersnatch with the poem Bandersnatchy. In this poem another hero sets out to slay the frumious Bandersnatch so as to gain respect from his people against the hero who slew the Jabberwock (a story he would sit and tell till after ten o'clock). It is necessary to be armed with a vorpal sword or a winxy pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...

, because one never can tell what a Bandersnatch might do. According to the hero, the Bandersnatch is a queer thing that whizzles overhead causing him to believe it is up a tree, only to his surprise its legs are awfully high. It pleads the hero not to shoot only to fool him and fly away. The hero grabs its tail and cuts it off as his trophy. The hero describes the creature as being extremely long legged with a long tail as well and the ability to fly extremely fast. It could be understood that the Bandersnatch perhaps camouflages itself as a tree, given the explanation understood by the hero's description. There is an illustration by the author's daughter, Anna Richards Brewster, of the hero's encounter with the Bandersnatch.

In Larry Niven
Larry Niven
Laurence van Cott Niven / ˈlæri ˈnɪvən/ is an American science fiction author. His best-known work is Ringworld , which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics...

's "Known Space
Known Space
Known Space is the fictional setting of some dozen science fiction novels and several collections of short stories written by author Larry Niven. It has also in part been used as a shared universe in the Man-Kzin Wars spin-off anthologies sub-series....

" mythos (1965 to present), there is a heavy-gravity species somewhat resembling a giant slug
Slug
Slug is a common name that is normally applied to any gastropod mollusc that lacks a shell, has a very reduced shell, or has a small internal shell...

 which upon their discovery were immediately given the genus and species "Frumious bandersnatch
Bandersnatch (Known Space)
The Bandersnatch is a fictional alien species in Larry Niven's Known Space universe. The species is named for Lewis Carroll's Bandersnatch.-Characteristics:...

".

In a letter from May 15, 1966, C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...

 wrote, "No one ever influenced Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...

—you might as well try to influence a bandersnatch."

In the 1985 Nightcrawler
Nightcrawler (comics)
Nightcrawler is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel Universe. He has been associated with both the X-Men and Excalibur, originally appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Len Wein and artist Dave Cockrum, he debuted in Giant-Size X-Men #1...

 limited series, Lockheed
Lockheed (comics)
Lockheed is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. He is an alien dragon that is the longtime companion of Shadowcat , a member of the X-Men and Excalibur. He was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Paul Smith and first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #166...

 is repeatedly mistaken for a "frumious bandersnatch".

In the book Sign of Chaos
Sign of Chaos
Sign of Chaos is the Locus Award nominated third novel in the second Chronicles of Amber series by Roger Zelazny, and the eighth book overall...

(1987), part of Roger Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber, the protagonist encounters a Bandersnatch. The creature is described as segmented, with a side-to-side gait, leaving a trail of steaming saliva, and hissing like a leaky pressure cooker. The Bandersnatch suffered a heart-attack after having a cardiac arrest spell cast on it, implying that its general anatomy is analogous to normal animals.

"Bandersnatch" is a name used many times in the Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy
is a media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and is developed and owned by Square Enix . The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science-fantasy role-playing video games , but includes motion pictures, anime, printed media, and other merchandise...

 video game series (1987 to present). The name is given to various enemies in many installments of the game in both the Japanese and English-language versions. In most of the games, it is a common enemy that does not create much difficulty for the player, and it usually has qualities of wolves or lions in appearance. In Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy IX
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth title in the Final Fantasy series. The game introduced new features to the series like the 'Active Time Event', 'Mognet' and a unique equipment and skill system.Final Fantasy IXs...

, however, the Bandersnatch is a slightly stronger enemy with a strange appearance that seems to be a large demonic poodle with an expansive toothy grin. It is summoned by the antagonists during an important story scene in the game.

The video game Resident Evil Code: Veronica
Resident Evil Code: Veronica
Resident Evil Code: Veronica, released in Japan as , is the fourth installment in Capcom's Resident Evil survival horror series, originally released for the Dreamcast in 2000...

(2000) features the commonly found enemy type "Bandersnatch". It is depicted as a yellowish, large-sized, bipedal creature possessing massive strength and as being one-armed (their one arm being extendable and using it as a long-range weapon).

In the online role playing game Kingdom of Loathing
Kingdom of Loathing
Kingdom of Loathing is a browser-based, multiplayer role-playing game designed and operated by Asymmetric Publications, including creator Zack "Jick" Johnson and writer Josh "Mr. Skullhead" Nite. The game was released in 2003...

 (2003), the Bandersnatch is a possible companion familiar. It appears with a large, toothy maw, and wings on its back. Its abilities and actions are usually described using portmanteaus (as in Jabberwocky).

In the massive multiple online role playing games "Mabinogi" (2004) and "LaTale
LaTale
La Tale is a 2D side-scrolling online game developed by Actoz Soft. Gamers take the role of adventurers in a mythological fantasy world.It was launched in South Korea in February 2006 where it was well received...

" (2006), the Bandersnatch makes an appearance. In Mabinogi, a Bandersnatch is an ice monster located in "Par Dungeon". A normal Bandersnatch can only be killed with one of the fire spells, or a giant's stomp ability, due to their high defense. The Giant Bandersnatch can be killed as a normal monster, and is the boss of the dungeon. Both normal and giant Bandersnatch move slowly and will not normally attack unless first hit is activated. In Latale, the Bandersnatch is a dog like creature with strange markings and a massive jaw. It's an auto-aggressive monster that either lunges at the player or headbutts when its close to the player. It can be found in the first two rooms of the Treasure Vault Instance or King's Room.

In Pandora Hearts
Pandora Hearts
is a manga series by Jun Mochizuki. Originally starting serialization in the shōnen magazine GFantasy published by Square Enix in June 2006. Currently fourteen volumes have been released in Japan. The manga series was licensed for an English language release by Broccoli Books but has been dropped;...

(2006), Lily's chain is a large black dog named Bandersantch.

Seattle rock band Forgive Durden
Forgive Durden
Forgive Durden is an indie rock band from Seattle, Washington, who got their name from the novel Fight Club. They are signed to Fueled By Ramen...

 released a single entitled "Beware the Jubjub Bird
Jubjub bird
The Jubjub bird is a dangerous creature mentioned in Lewis Carroll's nonsense poems Jabberwocky and The Hunting of the Snark.In Jabberwocky the only detail given about the bird is that the protagonist should "beware" it. In The Hunting of the Snark however the creature is described in much greater...

 and Shun the frumious Bandersnatch!" (2006), a quote from Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky
Jabberwocky
"Jabberwocky" is a nonsense verse poem written by Lewis Carroll in his 1872 novel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, a sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland...

".

In the 2006 novel Ghosts of Onyx by Eric Nylund, the codename 'Bandersnatch' is used to warn UNSC troops for a radiological- or energy-based disaster. It was previously used on occasions where Covenant
Covenant (Halo)
The Covenant are a fictional theocratic military alliance of alien races who serve as the main antagonists in the Halo video game series. They are composed of a variety of diverse species, united under the religious worship of the enigmatic Forerunners and their belief that Forerunner ringworlds...

 troops had 'glassed' former human colonies.

In the 2010 film Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)
Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 American computer-animated/live action fantasy adventure film directed by Tim Burton, written by Linda Woolverton, and released by Walt Disney Pictures...

, the Bandersnatch appears as a large, white beast somewhat resembling a bulldog with long hair, black spots, a long tail, and multiple rows of sharp teeth. It is a creature under the control of the Red Queen
Red Queen (Through the Looking Glass)
The Red Queen is a fictional character in Lewis Carroll's fantasy novella, Through the Looking-Glass.- Overview :With a motif of Through the Looking-Glass being representations of the game of chess, the Red Queen could be viewed as an antagonist in the story as she is the queen for the side...

 until Alice
Alice (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland)
Alice is a fictional character in the literary classic, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel, Through the Looking-Glass, And What Alice Found There. She is a young girl from Victorian-era Britain.-Development:...

 returns its eye, which it had lost to the Dormouse
Dormouse (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland)
The Dormouse is a character in "A Mad Tea-Party", Chapter VII from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. He sat between the March Hare and the Hatter...

. It helps the girl escape and joins the White Queen's forces. In the video game adaptation of the film, it serves a similar role.

In the 2010 graphic novel Calamity Jack, sequel to Rapunzel's Revenge (published in 2006), the giant Blunderboar has a pet Bandersnatch named Lewis, presumably after Lewis Carroll. This Bandersnatch appears as a giant toadlike being with several small arms, a massive mouth, two eyes concealed beneath slits, and the ability to spit acid.
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