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The Wizard of Oz (1939) character analysis
The Wizard of Oz (1939) character analysis
Essays on symbolism in literature
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The Wizard of Oz is story about a farm girl named Dorothy, who lives in a small grey town in Kansas with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. One day, a cyclone appears and carries the farmhouse away with Dorothy and her dog, Toto inside. After the crazy ride, the house finally lands in the magical land of Oz. While in Oz, Dorothy is praised by the people of the town for killing the evil Witch of the East, but she explains to them she wishes to do nothing but get back to Kansas. Dorothy soon finds out it’s no way for her to get back to Kansas unless she goes to see the great and powerful Oz. On her journey, Dorothy meets a living Scarecrow, a man made entirely of tin, and aLion while trying to get to the Emerald City hoping that the Great Oz can help her return home. The book, written by L. Frank …show more content…
Buam originally in 1900, inspired The Wizard of Oz movie made in 1937. The movie was great to watch, however it differs from the book in many ways. One difference between the book and movie is the beginning. In the book, Dorothy is immediately swept up by the cyclone and taken to The Land of Oz. However, the film features the farmhands, Zeke, Hunk, and Hickory, who help Uncle Henry around the farm. The film also introduces an opening antagonist, which happens to be the neighbor, Miss Gulch, who doesn’t care for Dorothy’s dog and tries to take him away. This leads Dorothy to run away and introduces the next character, Professor Marvel. The professor checks his crystal ball and says that Aunt Em is very sad and misses Dorothy. Dorothy panics and she and Toto try to run home before the cyclone comes. The second difference between the book and the movie is the gifts that were given to the Scarecrow, the Lion, and the Tin Man. In the book, the Oz gives the Scarecrow a brain, which is a mixture of bran, pins and needles and straw to hold it in place. He also gives the Tin Man a heart, red satin heart stuffed with sawdust into the breast and then patches it with a soldering iron, and he gives the Lion a green drink, telling him that once he drinks it, it will have courage. On the other hand, in the movie the Oz gives them tokens to confirm and symbolize those attributes. The Scarecrow gets a diploma, the Tin Man gets a ticking clock shaped like a red heart, and a medal the Lion. The last difference between the book and the movie is the way the it is portrayed.
In the book, readers are led to believe that Dorothy’s adventure is real. The book describes the Land of Oz as a place that has never been civilized and has been cut off from the rest of the world. Yet, the movie portrays the story as a dream Dorothy is having with the people in her life as the characters. At the start of the film several characters are introduced before Dorothy encounters Oz which include the farm hands named Hunk, Hickory, and Zeke, Mrs. Gulch, and the professor. Later when Dorothy enters the land of Oz, the people that she knew at her home in Kansas transform into the characters in the land of Oz. Hunk becomes the Scarecrow, Hickory transforms into the Tin man, Zeke is the Lion, and Mrs. Gulch transforms into the Wicked Witch of the West. The Wizard of Oz is without a doubt one of the most entertaining children’s stories of all time. The differences between the book The Wizard of Oz and the 1939 film version The Wizard of Oz are numerous, but largely minor. The film's basic plot is not very different than the original novel, The Wizard of Oz, but quite a bit less
detailed.
For example, Mama goes to the bank in the movie and is given a hard time about paying her mortgage, but this did not happen in the book. Another major difference is that the school bus scene, where the Logan kids played a trick on the white kids, was not shown in the movie, even though it was an important part of the story. There are some character changes as well. Lillian Jean, Jeremy, R.W, and Melvin are Simms’ in the book, but in the movie they are Kaleb Wallace’s children. However, the main plot difference is how the movie starts in the middle, summarizing everything from the first part of the book very briefly. Additionally, many scenes are switched around and placed out of order. Altogether, the plot and character changes contribute to my unfavorable impression of the
The narrative begins with Dorothy, who lives on a farm in a black and white setting presuming the absence of vitality and the insufficiency of a place that was in poverty at the time. However, when Dorothy is picked up by a twister and wakes up in the Land of Oz, she finds herself in a completely opposite environment full of life, beauty, and color filled with new found opportunities. On her quest to Emerald City, Dorothy is presented with a few characters who are The Tin Man, The Cowardly Lion, and The Scarecrow who all feel like they need something more to complete them and they all seek out the “all powerful” wizard to obtain the things they want. The items they yearn for were a brain, a heart, and courage. Three things that we learn to utilize with experiences we go through. The characters eventually realize that they have always had what they have been longing for after the many obstacles they came through on their journey. In the end, Dorothy says, “If I ever go looking for my heart's desire again, I won't look any further than my own back yard. Because if it isn't
In “The Wizard Of Oz”, Dorothy is a meek teenager while in “The Wiz” Dorothy was a 24 year old school teacher. Both scarecrows are quite smart despite not having a brain, but the Scarecrow portrayed in “The Wiz” is much more timid than the original. The Tinmen that are shown are probably the most different as far as characters go. In the original film, the Tinman is all silver. They find him in the woods where he had been there for almost an entire year because he rusted. The Tinman in “The Wiz”, however, is quite different. He appears to be a bunch of random parts put together and is not silver at all. For the most part, their personalities are the same except the Tinman in “The Wiz” cries an alarming amount of tears. Both cowardly lions have the same personality, as in “believe they’re cowards but are actually the bravest of the four.” They both also used the be kings, but when found the lion in the “Wizard Of Oz” is found in a forest while in “The Wiz” the lion was a statue in front of a library. The last comparison are the two wizards. Both wizards first appeared as a giant floating head, but the discoveries of them were different. I personally feel like the discovery in the original film was more realistic. The group discovered him after Toto pulls back the curtain. In “The Wiz”, he is discovered sleeping in his bed. Dorothy begins to yell at him, but they do not
The first major connection in The Wizard of Oz was the Scarecrow. The scarecrow was used to symbolize the farmers and their struggles in America in the 18th century (Foner, Eric 636-640). The scarecrow made of straw was vulnerable with no brain. The scarecrow had little control over the circumstances he was facing just as the farmers did in the 18th century. The western farmers had issues with overproduction and when prices fell farmers suffered ended up losing their farms (Foner, Eric
Frank Baums, The Wizard of Oz is arguably one of the most popular films made. Even though it was released in 1939, nearly three-quarters of a century ago, the film continues to entertain audiences and speak to them in a personal way. The question that comes to the mind when analyzing this film is: What is it about this film that gives it such timelessness? When reflecting on the film’s timeless qualities, it seems clear the plot is one of the things that enable it to maintain its relevance. Primarily, the plot of The Wizard of Oz is timeless because it is such an excellent example of the heroic journey, both in literally and cinematically. This journey of self-awareness is a metaphor for growth, which is something we all search to discover at some time in our lives.
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 film directed by Victor Fleming, which follows Dorothy Gale on her journey through the magical land of Oz. Dorothy is swept away from a farm in Kansas to the land of Oz in a tornado and embarks on a quest to see the Wizard who can help her return to her home in Kansas. The director, uses a number cinematic techniques such as camera angles, lighting, colour and dialogue to portray a central theme of There’s no place like home.
In relation to occult symbolism, the above quotes have illustrated these features. Toto, the inner voice, led Dorothy along her trek . Glinda, the guide, gave Dorothy the resources to lead her in the direction to what she ultimately desires, a way to return to Kansas. Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion searched for a want or need, while supporting Dorothy. In whole, each of these characters displayed good behavior in assisting the young girl in her exploration to illumination and enlightenment. “Like Dorothy’s journey, ours lead to a better self-understanding and, hopefully, to wisdom. But what does “wisdom” mean? I suspect it consists precisely in having discovered the brightness, the enchantment inside everything we have encountered all our lives.”
The Wizard of Oz the movie demonstrated all three stages Joseph Campbell's theory of the hero’s journey. The first stage or known as the departure of the hero. The hero in the movie is Dorothy. Dorothy’s call to depart is to run away from home to protect her dog Toto from being taken away from her inferior neighbor. While running away Dorothy comes upon Professor Marvel, a fortuneteller. Professor Marvel tells her that her Aunt Em is in danger and needs her assistance back on the farm. When returning to the house a twister hits the ground. As the winds started to get heavier the hero’s house moved across the air uncontrollably, but then she leaves home and enters a new world of talking animals and colorful objects. In the new world of the Oz
...lf-confidence. The Scarecrow was the one who believed that he had no brain even with him coming up with brilliant and clever solutions to the many problems that they faced on their journey. The tin man believed that he didn’t have a heart, but cries when bad things are brought upon the creatures they come to encounter. The lion believed that he had no courage even though he was the one brave enough to continue the journey, he always stated how brave he was and pushed forward even when the others did not want to. A famous quote from Carl L. Bankston III of Salem Press stated that "These three characters embody the classical human virtues of intelligence, caring, and courage, but their self-doubts keep them from being reduced to mere symbols of these qualities” (). This is an important quote because it highlights the self-confidence that Baum explored in his story.
Scene: This scene in the film comes just after the house has been picked up in the twister. Dorothy's house has been lifted up into the sky and suddenly dropped back down to earth in the middle of the Land of Oz. In the scene itself, Dorothy leaves her home to see that she is "Not in Kansas anymore," and finds the new and amazing world of the munchkin city in front of her. She also meets Gwendela the good witch as her journey in Oz begins.
...s. The Scarecrow represents farmers, agricultural workers, ignorant of many city things but honest and able to understand things with a little education. The Tin Man, He represents the industrial worker whose heart has been torn out by the evils of factory work and industrialism. W.J. Bryan embodied the role of the cowardly lion. Bryan was a very loud and booming public speaker but was viewed as a coward because he did not support the Spanish-American war. OZ is the US. The emerald city is Washington D.C. filled with greenbacks and the wizard is the president. Dorothy and her “party” follow the yellow brick way, or gold standard, to find the wizard and fix her problem. When all along they way to fix her problem of how to get back home was to tap her ruby red shoes which were silver thus in the original book thus representing the Populists push for a silver standard.
the film that was produced after the book, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”. The main
The Wizard of Oz is a fiction story written by L. Frank Baum. The story has two main settings. The first setting is, Dorothy’s home, the Kansas prairies. The prairies are described as dry and gray. The second setting is the land of Oz. Oz is opposed from Kansas, it is colorful, bright, and full of joy. The Wizard of Oz has a grate theme or message behind the story. The message is that we all have good qualities in us, but it is up to us to use them.
These two films are not only similar on these surface levels, but also in their narrative structure and intent as well. Dorothy and Alice, both find themselves trapped in a world of their own fantasy, but with no context on how to navigate their way home. They are then lead by an array of strange characters who guide them on their journey. Dorothy meets the scarecrow, the tin man, the cowardly lion, and so on. While Alice crosses paths with the white rabbit, the cheshire cat, the mad hatter, and so on. With the assistance of their companions, both heroines maneuver their way through the challenges each fantasy presents. Perhaps the biggest similarity these films share narratively, is the underlying emphasis on empathy and perspective. Both
The Wizard of Oz is a film created by MGM Studios in 1939, directed by Victor Fleming and starring Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, Frank Morgan as the Wizard and Margaret Hamilton as The Wicked Witch of the West. The Wizard of Oz is commonly known as the classic film of American cinema and is loved by many people. It can be classified as a Family, Fantasy, Musical film due to the touching messages told throughout the film, the magical special effects featuredn and the beautiful musical numbers highlighted in the film.