The Enduring Magic and Wisdom of Oz By Greg Levonian
The Enduring Magic and Wisdom of Oz
By Greg Levonian
“The more I wander the less I find that I know, for in
the land of Oz much wisdom and many things may be learned.”
- The Tin Woodman of Oz (1918)
There’s no place like Oz. For 120 years, countless readers have been enchanted by Lyman Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), as well as thirteen subsequent Oz tales, which concluded with the posthumously published Glinda of Oz in 1920. The 1939 film version is regarded as the most viewed cinematic work in history, and the immense popularity of the musical “Wicked” also speaks to Baum’s universal appeal.
Oz endures for the same reasons that any great work of literature does: it touches us in a special way, a unique experience for each reader.
For me, part of the allure of Oz is the simple yet profound wisdom that Baum imparts. For example, the Scarecrow says in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (later shortened to The Wizard of Oz), “it is worth a lot of bother to be able to think properly” (49), while his friend the Tin Woodman adds, “If one does not ask for information he seldom receives it” (The Tin Woodman of Oz, 17). Explaining his cowardice, the Lion admits that “No one would think of biting such a little thing [Toto] except a coward like me” (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, 64). Dorothy, always rational, maintains that getting lost is nothing to cry about because she “has been lost before” but is eventually found (The Road to Oz, 62).
Other characters such as Ozma, the ruling Princess of Oz, reminds Dorothy that she must avoid imagining danger and think of “nice things” instead (Glinda of Oz, 23). The Shaggy Man--a hippie precursor who carries a magical “love magnet,” asserts in The Emerald City of Oz that “Roads always lead someplace, else they wouldn’t be roads” (231), while the Wizard adds that finding places is easy if we “keep to the right road” (237). The free-spirited Patchwork Girl, or “Scraps,”--a stuffed, patch-togethered woman magically brought to life--espouses “seemingly careless remarks,” yet “much wisdom could often be found” in her words (Glinda of Oz, 158); Scraps tells us that “to be different is to be distinguished” (The Lost Princess of Oz, 222), a prominent theme in Baum’s work.
Baum’s most memorable characters--Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion--share Oz with young adventurers such as Betsy Bobbin, Trot, and Button-Bright; there’s also the scholarly insect, Professor H.M. Wooglebug; Polychrome, the Rainbow’s daughter; the evil Nome King; Tik-Tok, a copper, mechanized man; and the Hungry Tiger, who must defer to his conscience when choosing his meals. Moreover, Jack Pumpkinhead--a wooden man with a pumpkin for a head--along with the Saw-horse are among the many other delightful Oz inhabitants that voice Baum’s forthright and accessible wisdom.
Baum wrote voluminously outside of Oz, but the fourteen books remain his most notable contribution to American literature. The following chapters categorize ideas that Baum emphasized, subtly or explicitly, throughout the series. Yet we love Oz because it welcomes us; Dorothy and company invite us along to see the Wizard, Glinda, or the Nome King, and we eagerly follow. Baum, in his wisdom, never apologizes for his memorable creations or imaginative plots; instead, he celebrates them, and so do we.
Greg Levonian teaches English and Theatre Arts at Marymount California University. He is the author of the book, Oz and Ends: Wisdom from the Emerald City (BearManor Media). He lives in PVE. Glevonian@marymountcalifornia.edu