Alice in Wonderland

Nothing but a Pack of Cards

Claire Carlisle

18 Jan 2026 — 1 min read

Photo by Fiona Murray-deGraaff / Unsplash

Alice in Wonderland, first published in 1865, features a spunky child who challenges absurd, tyrannical authority through dialogue – by asking questions and articulating simple rebuttals that expose the irrational thinking of those in power.

While observing the trial of the Knave of Hearts, accused of stealing the Queen’s tarts, Alice objects as the White Rabbit presents nonsensical evidence to the jury. She challenges the King’s demand for a verdict before deliberation and the Queen’s insistence on a sentence before a verdict has even been reached. As intimidation and threats escalate, Alice sees through the facade.

“‘Stuff and nonsense!’ said Alice loudly. ‘The idea of having the sentence first!’
‘Hold your tongue!’ said the Queen, turning purple.
‘I won’t!’ said Alice.
‘Off with her head!’ the Queen shouted at the top of her voice. Nobody moved.
‘Who cares for you?’ said Alice (she had grown to her full size by this time). ‘You’re nothing but a pack of cards!’”

Earlier in the story, Alice encounters the Cheshire Cat and asks, “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” the Cat replies.
“I don’t much care where—”
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,”
“—so long as I get somewhere.”
“Oh, you’re sure to do that,” says the Cat, “if you only walk long enough.”

The Cheshire Cat – an enigmatic figure who disappears at will, leaving only his grin behind – is pure Neptune, currently conjunct Saturn in the anaretic degree of Pisces. Here, certainty dissolves and meaning blurs. Yet within the riddle sits Saturn’s quiet instruction: keep walking. Even inside confusion, commitment shapes reality.

Today, January 18, the New Moon falls in Capricorn. The Sun, Moon, Mercury, and Mars convene in this sign, forming a powerful trine with Uranus – the planet of revolution and awakening – in Taurus. The moment calls for grounded disruption: truth spoken plainly, authority questioned calmly, illusion punctured by reason.

Alice is Uranus.
So are we.

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