alice is a fictional character and the main protagonist of lewis carroll's children's novel alice's adventures in wonderland ( 1 8 6 5 ) and its sequel, through the looking - glass ( 1 8 7 1 ). a child in the mid - victorian era, alice unintentionally goes on an underground adventure after accidentally falling down a rabbit hole into wonderland ; in the sequel, she steps through a mirror into an alternative world.. 