Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory as Judeo-Christian Allegory

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Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory as Judeo-Christian Allegory

In the classic children's film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which is based on the novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the author and writer of the screenplay, Roald Dahl presents the viewer with a strikingly vivid metaphor that compares fundamental Judeo-Christian beliefs with, that's right, candy. The basic figures in the religion are given representational roles in the film that do not hide, but instead sugar coat their meaning. Even the basic concepts of the religion are cleverly placed in the film so that their symbolism is both recognizable and utilitarian. Overall, the film metaphorically presents the dichotomy of Christianity within the candy context.

The work centers on the world's love for the candy made by Gene Wilder's Willy Wonka, an eccentric, who for as long as anyone can remember, has been holed up in his factory to avoid industrial espionage, especially by the infamous Slugworth. Then one day Wonka announces that he is to hold a contest with five winners who will be allowed into his factory for a tour and then given a lifetime supply of his chocolate, a prize which is far more desirable to the characters than any other. This is the point in the film at which, "the plot kicks in," according to Chris Hicks of Deseret News. The winners are to be decided by a game of sorts. Five Golden Tickets are hidden in Wonka Bars and those who find them are the winners. As the excitement grows, the number of available Wonka Bars dwindles. Wonka madness ensues as the narrating newscasters in the film keep the viewer up to pace with the action through constant "this just in" style reporting.

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...ch of Roughcut.com describes Dahl's works in general as being, "filled withmischievous, indelicate humor." Overall, the film is a great children's movie, as it was intended to be, because it focuses on the results and consequences of certain child-like habits. However, on a more adult level, the film meets with dogma and doctrine from the Judeo-Christian theologies in places that are undeniably intentional. Described by Wm. Humphrey of Film.com, "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is a grand example of cinematic confectionery - disguising the dark message at its center with a sweet, chocolatey exterior." The film's equivalencies of repentance, redemption, paradise, sin, the wages thereof, and even the Godlike qualities of Wonka himself undeniably present a moral content to adults that is as strong if not stronger than that presented to children.

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