Maps and Utopian Constructions of Space in L. Frank Baum’S
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Goldberg 1 Rachel Goldberg 23 April 2012 “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”: Maps and Utopian Constructions of Space in L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Oz, as an imaginary space, was born over a hundred years ago. The world of Oz is one that is fictional, idealized, and magical. This dream landscape has romanced many, and has taken up an immense and prolific space in the American imagination. However, there has been an attempt and tendency to take this imaginary community that dwells in the fantasy realm, and grant it some permanence in American culture. Such desires to recreate and re-imagine Oz have led countless authors to construct sequels, prequels, alternate tales, contributing to a growing collection of Oz-related texts. There are many comic books. Oz has been the setting of over fifteen movies, including what is arguably the most-viewed movie of all time – MGM’s 1939 film version of The Wizard of Oz. Television shows have incorporated Oz; video games, theater, even “Munchkin” donuts have Oz to thank. Recently, the world of Oz has acquired even more attention, with the creation of Gregory Maguire’s Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which initiated an even bigger hit – the Broadway play Wicked: the Musical. The imaginary community of Oz has clearly impacted American imagination and has prompted many people to create adaptations and reinterpretations of this space. All these reconstructions of Oz point to a desire to take the imaginary world and make it visibly present in every-day American life. Therefore, such actions seem to imply that fictional Oz fills in a gap that Americans feel is missing in their own world. Goldberg 2 However, in order to understand the deep relationship between Oz’s idealized landscape and the American landscape, it is first important to look at Oz in its most original form. A discussion about the world of Oz has to start with its conception, which occurred in 1900 when L. Frank Baum wrote one of the most famous American tales, The Wizard of Oz. A look into Baum’s personal history, and the time period in which this classic novel was written, may help shed light on why Oz was so eagerly embraced by audiences in the early 1900’s, as well as why it also might still hold such power today. By realizing that turn-of-the-century events during Baum’s life may have inspired his desire to create Oz, Americans can begin to realize that Oz functions as a utopian space that provides Baum, as well as his compatriots, with a new America Dream. Oz, as an imaginary community, creates a space for Americans to re-imagine their own current communities. This utopian narrative restores faith in the hope of an idealized space, while also redefining this dream. Analyzing the physical geography of Oz, provided by details in Baum’s text, it becomes clear that Oz is viewed as a sort of dream space. Since the terrain of Oz is so desirable, it leads to a longing to try and “map” out this idealized world. Crucially, however, a discussion about the physical map of The Wizard of Oz is, ironically, a discussion about the lack of a tangible map. In his original tale, Baum supplies readers with no concrete visualization of Oz, but instead provides details that hint at the geography of this land. However, this, in many ways, says more about Oz than if Baum had provided an actual map. By supplying no concrete image, Baum stresses that this space does not exist – it is fictional and imaginary. However, because Baum provides readers with details as to how they might map out Oz, he is really suggesting that this place does not exist yet. This is ultimately the definition of a utopia – the idea that some space does not exist in one’s current world, but that is could be present someday in another world. Therefore, even though people, Goldberg 3 such as Baum, could not find their utopian dream, or their Oz, in America, The Wizard of Oz provides them with a new space that refreshes the hope that one day such a world might prevail. Before one can understand the significance of maps in Baum’s Oz books, it is first vital to consider Baum’s career as an author and the immediate circumstances that motivated him to write his popular texts. Baum was born in 1856 in upstate New York. Ironically, he was brought into the world with a heart defect – something about his body was broken, missing, not quite right. In many ways his defected body is represented in the characters he creates in Oz, who are not whole, missing a heart, a brain, courage. His heart ailment is also symbolic of how he viewed America – he always felt like something was missing in it, that it was not functioning like it should. Taking this a step further, it is possible that Baum thought America had no heart at all, that the country was turning into a machine and that people were suffering as a result. However, despite Baum’s heart condition, his father was a wealthy executive and could afford to give him proper medical care so he could live a relatively normal life. Educated at home at his huge estate, Baum lived a comfortable life, but also always lived in fear that he might have a heart attack and die at any moment. Spending much of his time reading, Baum was constantly immersing himself in other worlds and dreaming about places far off, much more idyllic than the landscapes he currently knew. Baum’s parents sent him to a military academy because they “wanted to bring their son the dreamer down to earth” (Zipes 129). He didn’t last long there, and hated the corporal punishment and discipline at the academy. Soon after, Baum got involved writing for newspapers and began managing his own printing shop, where he started the newspaper the New Era. Baum wanted to succeed and make a career for himself. When Baum met Maud Gage, his future wife, he was a young man on the rise. After their marriage, though, a series of tragic events and accidents sent them on a downward spiral of Goldberg 4 social mobility. Then, like many other Americans at the time, Baum turned west toward new frontiers. Soon after, “he opened up a variety store…but because he continually gave credit to the poor customers, especially farmers, and spent a lot of time telling stories to youngsters…he was forced to close in 1890. This was the height of a severe economic depression, and Baum was witness to the way in which farmers were exploited by bankers and businessman alike” (Zipes 130). Baum had grown up in a comfortable household, and now he was not only witnessing, but also experiencing, the possibility that something about America was wrong, or “sick,” that America’s heart beat was no longer stable. The economy was falling apart, and many people felt like the government had failed them. Basically, Baum realized that the United States was in crisis. It was in Chicago, after he was forced to retire due to health reasons, where Baum actually wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Ironically, his defected heart provided him with the time and opportunity to create Oz – which ultimately became his heart and soul. Oz, in many ways, gave him a new heart; much like The Wizard gave one to the Tin Woodsman. And much like a heartbeat is necessary to one’s survival, Baum’s Oz books became necessary to his well- being. The tale, itself, takes place in another world, Oz, where everything seems brighter and more colorful. This seems to fit the worlds that Baum had imagined as a child. In this classic children’s tale, Dorothy gets swept out of Kansas, and transported to a magical world of excitement and adventure. However, not too soon after arriving, Dorothy learns an important lesson – that home is where she ultimately belongs. She is advised by Glinda, the Good Witch, to travel down The Yellow Brick Road towards The Emerald City, where The Great and Terrible Wizard might be able to grant her wish and send her home. Along the way, she meets The Cowardly Lion, The Tin Woodsman, and The Scarecrow. Together the four of them travel to Goldberg 5 meet The Wizard in the hopes of gaining something they believe to be missing in themselves. However, The Wicked Witch of the West places obstacles in their way, making their journey more difficult. But, at the end of the day, all the characters learn that The Wizard is nothing but a humbug, and that they had the power all along to obtain what they desired. Baum never intended to write any sequels after his original Oz tale, and actually wrote other children’s books after publishing The Wizard of Oz. However, he eventually did write a sequel and his reasons for doing so were mixed: first of all, it gave him a source of income, and, secondly, readers demanded more Oz. Baum realized that the world of Oz did not just hold some sort of spell over him, but over readers, as well. Oz was a lifeline for Baum – it provided him with the money to survive in the economically unstable America at the time, while also offering him a landscape that he could create and control – something he could not do in his own life. Oz became the heartbeat of Baum’s life, what gave him life and propelled him forward.