The Emerald City plays an important part in making the Land of Oz, in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Bau
m, multifaceted. Baum situated the Emerald City in the geographical center of Oz. Another interesting decision Baum made was also to make the city an emerald city instead of a golden or silver city like many other works of fiction. Baum carefully builds up the reputation of the Emerald City,
as well as using many different aspects to characterize the city.
The Emerald City appears in the novel as the most civilized or modern area in Oz. Surrounding the outside of the city are wide open fields and very few residents. When the companions take shelter with an elderly couple while traveling through this area, they hear about the grandeur of the wizard and the beauty of the Emerald City (Baum 113). Even while the elderly man tells them of the wizard’s great powers, he also warns of the difficulties involved in getting to meet him. This helps the reader to build expectations as to what
will happen in the Emerald City and the discrepancies in rumors help to foreshadow the wizard’s shortcomings. The Emerald City is completely walled in and the only entrance is through a large guarded gate. Outside of the emerald encrusted gate all that can be seen is the glow of green light emitting from the city. From this perspective the city becomes exclusive and to enter is made a privilege. The gate seems similar to immigration
centers like Ellis Island where many foreigners
came to gain entrance to the United States and often waited long periods of time to receive answers as to their admittance, just like the companions. The companions, similar to those immigrating, are looking to start a new life. They look to do this by asking the wizard to grant their wishes. Inside the city it is quite diffe
rent from the rest of th
e provinces for one striking reason; there are no wild animals (122). The only animal seen, besides the Cowardly Lion, is a domesticated cat that is made to seem abnormal (207). This shows an industrialized or “civilized” aspect of the Emerald City because unlike the Lion the cat cannot talk thus showing the human dominance over animals. This also coincides with Toto who cannot speak and is also under the jurisdiction of humans, i.e. Dorothy. The green glasses that are required to wear while in the city also serve to add perspective to the city. While they are presented as precautionary safety devices for the wearer’s eye
s, they are really safety items for the wizard’s fraud (117). These glasses disguise the fact that the Emerald City is not actually made entirely of emeralds.
For travelers in the Land of Oz, the Emerald City raises hope because it appears as a place where their desires will come true. However, in reality the Emerald City is actually a deception devised by the wizard. Works Cited
Baum, L. Frank. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Dover Publications: New York, 1960.
In addition to your comments on "no animal", the lion also feels extremely uncomfortable in the city. I think Baum is trying to make a connection between human and the city. The places where human inhibited and human dominated added all the human characteristics like greediness, judgements and social status. These factors are all unseen in other area of the lands.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is interesting that Baum chose to portray the Emerald City as the “civilized” section in the Land of Oz. However, like Corinne mentioned, there is another aspect of the Emerald City, Baum displayed the City as a facade. When you put the green glasses on, you are not seeing the true City. You are seeing what the Wizard wants you to see, the Wizard wanted to create a City that looks like it is perfect. But this City is far from perfect, its ruler is a humbug that hides so no one will find out who he really is, he keeps his true identity a secret. I think Baum is trying to link industry with secrets and deception, and he does that by showing his readers the Emerald City’s real character.
ReplyDeleteAlso the Emerald City is green, which is not a natural color. Green is mixed from the primary colors yellow and blue; Similarly, Emerald City is an artificial city created by Oz though ironically Emerald City is not even green. I thought the comparison you made on the Emerald City to the immigration centers like Ellis Island interesting. Before entrance, immigrants need to wear spectacles to see what the government wishes them to see. In turn, immigrants have to adopt native culture to be accepted.
ReplyDeleteI really like what you all are saying. The insight on how humans in the Emerald City are really different from all the other areas. That is what i was really trying to get at in my post, the stark difference between Emerald City and the Land of Oz. Angela, I really like your expansion on my Ellis Island idea and "seeing what the government wishes them to see". And your mention of immigrants having to adopt the culture. I agree and think this is very true of the Emerald City.
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