I just mentioned it because Matrix brings it up several times. And to be clear, i did so as an example of the stuff that's not a trans allegory, but one of the other layers the Matrix movies have. Besides having very clear representations of trans experiences like egg cracking, medical transition, feeling trans joy and empowerment for the first time, being deadnamed, being attacked by assimilationist elements from within your own community, finding your first transbian crush etc., they absolutely work as a metaphor for developing a revolutionary mindset and ridding yourself of false consciousness, for queer community outside of expressly trans spaces, for philosophical musings and for expanding your consciousness. And the latter is where Alice comes in, which has been cited over and over again as a metaphor for psychedelic experiences since the days of the beatnicks at the very least.
I could totally see how Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass can be perceived as trans metaphors, too. It's not like the Matrix movies, were we know they were made by two unouted trans women who intended it to be a trans allegory among a bunch of other stuff, but it's one of these cases were media has what Tolkien referred to as applicability - something that has not a 1:1 allegorical dimension that maps exactly and consistently towards another subject that is not explicitly mentioned in the medium, but always there as a foil to it. But that, instead, can be transferred to all kinds of subject matters in some ways, that has these nuances and parallels without being 100% a stand-in for a certain thing.
BTW if anybody wants to get deeper into the subject of the Matrix movies from a trans perspective, both Aranock and Sophie from Mars have taken this topic apart more thoroughly than i could ever hope to do here.
I just mentioned it because Matrix brings it up several times. And to be clear, i did so as an example of the stuff that's not a trans allegory, but one of the other layers the Matrix movies have. Besides having very clear representations of trans experiences like egg cracking, medical transition, feeling trans joy and empowerment for the first time, being deadnamed, being attacked by assimilationist elements from within your own community, finding your first transbian crush etc., they absolutely work as a metaphor for developing a revolutionary mindset and ridding yourself of false consciousness, for queer community outside of expressly trans spaces, for philosophical musings and for expanding your consciousness. And the latter is where Alice comes in, which has been cited over and over again as a metaphor for psychedelic experiences since the days of the beatnicks at the very least.
I could totally see how Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass can be perceived as trans metaphors, too. It's not like the Matrix movies, were we know they were made by two unouted trans women who intended it to be a trans allegory among a bunch of other stuff, but it's one of these cases were media has what Tolkien referred to as applicability - something that has not a 1:1 allegorical dimension that maps exactly and consistently towards another subject that is not explicitly mentioned in the medium, but always there as a foil to it. But that, instead, can be transferred to all kinds of subject matters in some ways, that has these nuances and parallels without being 100% a stand-in for a certain thing.
Thanks for clarification! I reread your comment and I misunderstood it the first time, now it makes more sense.
No problem!
BTW if anybody wants to get deeper into the subject of the Matrix movies from a trans perspective, both Aranock and Sophie from Mars have taken this topic apart more thoroughly than i could ever hope to do here.
I found YouTube links in your comment. Here are links to the same videos on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:
Link 1:
Link 2: