Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
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| Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West |
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 Wicked book cover |
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| Author | Gregory Maguire |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Douglas Smith |
| Cover artist | Douglas Smith |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Wicked Years |
| Genre(s) | Parallel novel, Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Harper Collins |
| Publication date | 1995 |
| Media type | print (hardback) |
| Pages | 406 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-06-039144-8 (Hardback) ISBN 0-06-098710-3 (Paperback) ISBN 0-06-135096-6 (Mass Market) |
| Followed by | Son of a Witch |
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, is a parallel novel published in 1995. It was written by Gregory Maguire and illustrated by Douglas Smith. Based upon the writings of L. Frank Baum and seven authors after him who continued writing the book series, it is a revisionist look at the land and characters of Oz, best known from Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.
It is the first in the Wicked Years series and the basis for the Broadway musical Wicked. A sequel, titled Son of a Witch, was published in fall of 2005. A third novel, A Lion Among Men was released in October 2008.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
The novel presents events, characters and situations from Baum's books and the film in new ways, with many differences between the series and the Wicked Years. These differences arise from the original Oz functioning as a mirror-image of Kansas in a cultural and economic framework: Oz was wealthy, prosperous and had excellent agricultural yields while Kansas was characterized by economic hardship, environmental difficulties and poor harvests. The social strife described in the Wicked Years indicates that the two series are set in similar and internally consistent but distinctly separate visions of Oz.
Unlike the popular 1939 movie and Baum's writings, this novel is not directed at children, and contains mild adult language and content.
An unabridged audiobook, read by John McDonough, was released in 2000.
[edit] Plot summary
The novel is a political, social, and ethical commentary on what good and evil really are. It takes place in The Land of Oz, in the years leading to Dorothy's arrival. The story centers on Elphaba, the misunderstood green-skinned girl who grows up to become the notorious Wicked Witch of the West. Gregory Maguire fashioned the name of Elphaba (pronounced EL-fa-ba) from the initials of Lyman Frank Baum, L-F-B. The story is divided into five different sections.
[edit] Munchkinlanders
Elphaba is born to Melena Thropp, the granddaughter of the Eminent Thropp of Munchkinland, and Frexspar, an itinerant unionist minister. Frex is the seventh son of a seventh son, and the sixth pastor in his family. Melena married beneath her family's social standing and is generally unhappy in her marriage. She is known to have many extramarital affairs. Though it does not become clear until much later, Melena is at some point approached by a mysterious stranger, who doses her with a potion from a green bottle. He seduces her and nine months later she gives birth to a child, Elphaba, inside a device called The Clock of the Time Dragon, as her husband is attacked by a lynch mob. (The Clock of the Time Dragon is regarded as a religious relic by followers of the "pleasure faith," and recurs as a significant image throughout the novel.)
Melena's husband, Frex, believes the baby is a punishment from the Unnamed God for failing to protect his parishioners, and has Melena's Nanny brought from the Colwen Grounds to take care of the child. In addition to her skin being green, the baby is born with unnaturally sharp milk teeth. Her head is strapped to keep her from biting things (including herself), and she is terrified of water.
About a year and a half later, a traveling Quadling glassblower named Turtle Heart visits the home of Melena and Frex. Melena offers him food and drink, and Turtle Heart blows a beautiful glass reflecting ball for Elphaba. With Frex absent for extended periods, preaching to the Munchkinlanders, Turtle Heart and Melena begin a secret affair. When Frex returns, he befriends Turtle Heart (seemingly ignorant of the relationship between the Quadling and his wife), out of both unionist charity (Quadlings, after all, "ranked about as low on the social ladder as it was possible to get and still be human"), religious zeal (Quadlings have no concept of religion, so Frex sees Turtle Heart as a potential convert) and an attraction to Turtle Heart of his own.
At the end of the first part, Melena is pregnant with a child, Elphaba's younger sister Nessarose. It is unknown whether the father is Frex or Turtle Heart. Nessarose, or "Nessa" for short, is born as pink as Elphaba is green and, more importantly, she is disabled. Born without arms, she requires constant supervision and care. Nessarose embraces Frex's zealotry and, thus, she is her father's favorite, to Elphaba's lasting angst.
[edit] Gillikin
The second part opens on a train to Shiz, a city in southwestern Gillikin. Two of the train's passengers, Doctor Dillamond and Galinda, are bound for Shiz University. Upon arrival, Dillamond retreats to his professors' quarters and Galinda heads off to Crage Hall, the women's university.
Having lost her chaperone, Ama Clutch, during the train ride to Shiz (Ama Clutch stepped on a rusty nail and stayed behind for medical treatment), Galinda has no one to represent her in the Ama's roommate negotiations. Refusing to bunk with the common girls in the group dormitory (the Pink Dormitory), Galinda is forced to room with Elphaba, who is now seventeen years old. Galinda and Elphaba do not get along very well. Elphaba, being green, is not interested in socializing, and Galinda, descended from the noble Arduenna Clan of Gillikin (though only on her mother's side), is more interested in climbing the social ladder than becoming friends with her outcast roommate. Later though, Galinda (after having a fight with her new friends) decides to mock Elphaba by making her wear a hat that she was sure Elphaba would look hideous in. When Elphaba looks pretty in the hat, Galinda says so, partly horrified that she talked to the "green girl." They start talking about evil and Elphaba teaches Galinda how to think. Galinda and Elphaba attend Dillamond's biology lectures. Doctor Dillamond is a sentient Goat, and part of a minority of talking Animals (distinguished in the book through capitalization) that hold civil rights equal to humans. Dillamond informs the class that, under the despotic reign of the Wizard of Oz, Animals are being discriminated against, treated like regular (non sentient) animals and, in some cases, forced to return to the fields. Dillamond's fears that Animal discrimination is becoming widespread are seemingly confirmed by Madame Morrible (nicknamed "Horrible Morrible" by Elphaba), the Headmistress of Crage Hall at Shiz University, who holds a poetry soiree that turns out to be nothing more than a forum for her propagandizing: Animals should be seen and not heard. Elphaba is drawn to the Animal rights movement early on [1] and she later becomes Dillamond's secretary and lab assistant.
Elphaba becomes friends with a Munchkin boy named Boq, who develops a crush on Galinda. As she is a tall Gillikinese, and he is a short Munchkinlander, she rebuffs him. He hopes his friendship with Elphaba will bring him closer to Galinda; however, he ends up becoming wrapped up in Elphaba and Dillamond's cause. However, their friendship is shaken when Doctor Dillamond is murdered while on the verge of a great discovery about the genetic similarities between humans and Animals; Galinda's chaperone Ama Clutch witnesses Madame Morrible's wind-up servant Grommetik kill Dillamond, but she is magicked into a false stupor to keep her quiet. Galinda is wracked with guilt over what has happened to Ama Clutch, but it is the murder of Doctor Dillamond that has the most profound impact on her. In his memory, Galinda adopts Dr. Dillamond's mispronunciation of her name, Glinda, and throws herself into her studies, having settled on a course of study in Sorcery, at Madame Morrible's insistence. Glinda and Elphaba become close friends. Boq's crush on Glinda eventually subsides, and they all become friends with a Vinkus Prince named Fiyero, a quiet boy who speaks little English but draws attention by his strange customs and pattern of blue diamond tattoos all across his body, who is new to Shiz, and Elphaba's sister, Nessarose, who is called up to Shiz, ostensibly to bring a new chaperone for Glinda and Elphaba, Nanny. Frex sends his favorite child a "back-to-school" gift, a pair of shoes covered with hand-blown glass beads. Meanwhile, Elphaba carries on Doctor Dillamond's research in secret.
Over time, Ama Clutch's condition deteriorates and, when it is clear that she is about to die, Glinda tries to use magic to bring her out of her stupor. Her lucidity briefly restored, Ama Clutch tells Glinda that she witnessed Grommetik kill Doctor Dillamond, which he could only have done on the order of Madame Morrible. After Ama Clutch's funeral, Elphaba, Glinda, and Nessarose are almost convinced by Madame Morrible to become silent pawns of the Wizard, so-called "ambassadors of peace": Elphaba will go east, to Munchkinland; Glinda will go further north in Gillikin; Nessarose will go south, to Quadling Country, with no one going west because few people lived there. All three girls refuse, and when they try to discuss with one another, they are unable because they are bound by a spell that prevents them from discussing Morrible's proposition. Unwilling to remain silent, Elphaba decides that something must be done.
She and Glinda travel to the Emerald City, where they meet the Wizard of Oz and plead the case of the Animals. He dismisses their concerns out of hand, and Glinda and Elphaba are commanded to return to Shiz. However, Elphaba stays behind and sends Glinda back to college, after saying that she cannot see her again; she has decided to take matters into her own hands.
[edit] City of Emeralds
Almost five years have passed since Elphaba has seen Glinda, Boq, or any of her friends from college. She lives in the Emerald City now, and is secretly involved in the movement to help free the Animals and get rid of the Wizard of Oz. Fiyero, now a Prince and with children, comes to the Emerald City to settle business with the politicians there. He sees Elphaba praying to a likeness of St. Glinda.
Fiyero follows her to her home, and they reconnect. He discovers she has started to take up magic, and tells her that Nessa has taken a class in sorcery, and Glinda is now a sorceress, and that they miss Elphaba. She and Fiyero begin to have an illicit love affair, and he neglects his wife Sarima, and his children, Irji, Manek, and Nor. The two lovers are at peace, and despite their occasionally conflicting personalities, Elphaba is actually happy with her life for once.
Her life changes one night, when she can finally fulfill her task: kill Madame Morrible. Fiyero follows her, but she cannot complete her task due to a group of children interfering with Elphaba's line of fire. He returns to her apartment to wait for her, where the Gale Force, the Wizard's secret police force who are looking for Elphaba, attack him. He is kidnapped, hauled away and murdered. Elphaba escapes from the City, and runs to a mauntery, where she meets an elderly woman named Yackle, formerly the dame of the Philosophy Club. Yackle takes the now homeless Elphaba, turned mute from grief after Fiyero's murder, under her wing.
[edit] In the Vinkus
Having been unconscious for almost a year, and then a nun for six more years, Elphaba goes to the Vinkus, the land where Fiyero was prince, and meets his wife and children. Elphaba brings along a boy named Liir, to whom she claims no relation, and stays at the castle Kiamo Ko for a year and a half or so. She attempts to tell Sarima, Fiyero's wife, of their affair, but Sarima refuses, saying she does not want to talk about her late husband. Fiyero's family, Elphaba, and Liir unexpectedly become a family unit, and are joined by Nanny after some time. While staying at the castle, Elphaba also discovers a mysterious book of spells which she calls a 'Grimmerie', and begins to study its contents. However, when Manek, one of Sarima's sons, convinces Liir during a game of hide and seek to hide in a well and leaves him there, Liir nearly dies, and Elphaba's anger at Manek makes an icicle fall on him and kill him. The experience makes Elphaba realize that she has motherly feelings for Liir, but she finds that her newfound warmth is not reciprocated. Liir claims that while in the well a Fish told him he was Fiyero's son. It is later discovered, though not in this book, that Liir is indeed the son of Elphaba and Fiyero. (See "Son of a Witch" by the same author).
Sarima becomes upset and grieves, and the family starts to fall apart. Elphaba gets a letter from her father Frex, asking her to come help him with Nessarose, who has taken Elphaba's position of Eminent Thropp of Munchkinland. When she arrives, he asks her to help him talk to Nessa, whom Elphaba discovers has become a witch, called the Wicked Witch of the East. Elphaba leaves after Nessa promises to give Elphaba the infamous ruby slippers after she dies (Glinda enchanted them to allow her to walk without help). When she returns, she finds everyone gone except Nanny. Nanny explains that the soldiers who were staying in the house made everyone in the town leave except for her.
[edit] The Murder and its Afterlife
A storm visits Munchkinland, dropping a house on Nessa, killing her. The house contains a young girl named Dorothy and a dog named Toto. Glinda, who was nearby, sent Dorothy off with Nessa's shoes for fear of potential civil war in Munchkinland and also for Dorothy's safety. She sent her to the Wizard in hopes that he could send her back to Kansas. Elphaba comes to the funeral for Nessa and is furious with Glinda for giving Dorothy the shoes, which were rightfully hers. She later has a meeting with the Wizard to bargain for the release of Nor, who was taken from Kiamo Ko by the Wizard's army.
On her way back to Kiamo Ko, Elphaba stops at Shiz to kill Madame Morrible, by bashing a trophy on her skull. However, because of Madame Morrible's appearance and lack of reaction, it is impossible to tell if Elphaba did kill her or if she had already died just a few minutes before Elphaba attacked her. At any rate, Elphaba decides to claim to have committed the murder and confess to Avaric. She comes upon the Clock of the Time Dragon, which puts on a special show for her. It shows the Wizard, and not Frex, to be her father.
Some time after returning to Kiamo Ko, Elphaba finds out that Dorothy and a few friends are headed to Kiamo Ko, presumably to kill her. When the friends are almost to the castle, Elphaba (who believed that the Scarecrow was her beloved Fiyero) sends her dog Killyjoy out to lead the friends to the castle. They misunderstand the group of dogs howling toward them and the Tin Woodman kills the dogs. The Scarecrow scares away the crows Elphaba sends next. Elphaba sends her bees, which are killed as well, and Elphaba is forced to believe the Scarecrow is what he seems-just a scarecrow. The shock of this revelation only serves to further unhinge her.
When Dorothy arrives, she tells Elphaba that the Wizard did indeed send her to kill the witch, but Dorothy herself came to apologize for killing her sister. Furious, Elphaba waves her now burning broom in the air and inadvertently sets herself on fire. Innocently, Dorothy throws a bucket of water on her to save her, but instead the water kills her. Dorothy returns to the Wizard with the green potion bottle the wizard used to subdue Elphaba's mother during her conception. Dorothy does not bring back the Grimmerie because it was too heavy. Rumors abound through Oz about the whereabouts of Dorothy (and her irritating dog), few actually believing that she returned to Kansas. The Wizard plans his departure from Oz and his ensuing suicide (which, as revealed in Elphaba's dream after drinking the Green "Miracle" Elixir, is doomed to fail).
[edit] Characters
- Elphaba: The protagonist of the book, Elphaba is a green-skinned girl who eventually becomes known as the Wicked Witch of the West. She acquires this nickname more because of her sister's nickname (the Wicked Witch of the East, who was so named by her political opponents) than for any wicked deeds. An Animal rights activist, Elphaba is involved in an assassination attempt on Madame Morrible. She shares an illicit relationship with Fiyero, whose death causes her to abandon her revolutionary ideals. Elphaba's name is derived from sounding out the initials of Oz author L. Frank Baum's name.
- Galinda (later Glinda): Elphaba's roommate at Shiz University. She hates Elphaba at first, but they later become close friends. However, the two are separated for twenty years when Elphaba goes into hiding. Glinda is part of the high society in Gillikin, Oz's northern province. The Glinda in the book is parallel to her character in the musical Wicked, sometimes behaving in a snobby and mean fashion, whereas in The Wizard of Oz, as well as in the original Oz Books, she is portrayed as kind and gentle.
- Nessarose: Elphaba's younger sister, Nessarose eventually becomes known as the Wicked Witch of the East. Nessarose was born without arms, possibly as a side effect of the pills Melena took in order to save her next child from having green skin. Nessa is extremely beautiful, causing Elphaba to resent her both out of jealousy and because of her father's favoring Nessarose over Elphaba. As a gift, Frex sends Nessarose the jewelled shoes, which Glinda later enchants, giving Nessarose the ability to walk unaided. Nessarose inherits the title and role of Eminent Thropp of Munchkinland, as Elphaba was presumed dead. She is a devout unionist, and many Munchkins are unhappy under her rule. At the request of one of her subjects, Nessarose casts a spell which has the ultimate result of transforming a woodsman into tin. She is killed when Dorothy's house falls on top of her. It is heavily hinted that Nessarose is the illegitimate daughter of Melena and Turtle Heart, and not of Frex.
- Fiyero: The prince of the Arjiki tribe in the Vinkus. He meets Elphaba at Shiz, and later has an affair with her while she is involved in a resistance movement against the Wizard of Oz. This leads to his murder by the Gale Force, the Wizard's secret police.
- The Wizard of Oz: A human who came to Oz from Earth in a hot air balloon. He was originally seeking the Grimmerie, but became sidetracked when he discovered he could orchestrate a coup in Oz. It is heavily implied that he fathered Elphaba while her mother was under the influence of the Miracle Elixir, which may explain Elphaba's green skin, aversion to water, and occasional ability to read parts of the Grimmerie, which originated in the Wizard's world. He is also referred to by the name Oscar Zoroaster Diggs.
- Madame Morrible: The headmistress of Shiz University's Crage Hall, which Elphaba and Galinda attend. Elphaba and her friends suspect Morrible to be responsible for the murder of Dr. Dillamond. At one point, she proposes that Elphaba, Galinda, and Nessarose become future behind-the-scenes rulers in Oz, a proposal that they never willingly accept. Elphaba suspects that Madame Morrible has at least some magical powers, and may have indeed controlled the fates of the three women. It is possible that she spies on Elphaba and sends messages to Liir through the Carp in the well at Elphaba's home in the Vinkus; the Carp dies at about the same time as Morrible. Morrible dies of natural causes minutes before Elphaba attempts to murder her.
- Doctor Dillamond: A talking Goat and professor at Crage Hall in Shiz. Assisted by Elphaba, Dr. Dillamond performs research on the differences between animals and Animals (sentient animals). He suspiciously dies from a slit throat; Madame Morrible claims that this is an accident, but her account is contradicted by Galinda’s chaperone, Ama Clutch, who claims to have witnessed the event.
- Boq: A Munchkin who grew up with Elphaba and reunites with her at Shiz University. At first, he is only interested in talking to Elphaba in the hope that it will help him to gain the attention of his crush, Galinda. However, over time Boq and Elphaba become close friends and help Dr. Dillamond with his research, along with his college mates Crope and Tibbett. Later in life, Elphaba meets Boq while she is on the hunt for Dorothy along the Yellow Brick Road. He is now married to Milla, one of Glinda's friends from the University and the two have many children.
- Dorothy Gale: A 12 year-old girl who lands in Oz in her tornado propelled house, which crushes Nessarose. She takes Nessarose's shoes under the advice of Glinda. Many see these shoes as a symbol of power over Munchkinland. During her travels, many citizens of Oz are superstitious about her because of these shoes and her name: Her first name sounds like a reversal of the name of the "king" of her land (Theodore Roosevelt). Because her name means "Goddess of Gifts" (the opposite of Theodore, "Gift of God"), it is implied that Dorothy may be the second coming of Lurline, who was also known by that title. The Gale Force fear her for her last name. The Wizard sends Dorothy to kill Elphaba, but Dorothy's intention is to ask her for forgiveness for killing Nessarose. Elphaba does not know whether to treat Dorothy with kindness or to fear her. When Elphaba demands the slippers, Dorothy pleads that, despite her best efforts, they will not come off. Dorothy accidentally kills Elphaba by pouring water on her in an attempt to put out a fire on Elphaba's dress.
- Liir: A boy who leaves the mauntery with Elphaba for the Vinkus. It is strongly implied that Liir is the son of Elphaba and Fiyero. She does indeed admit that there is a year of her life she does not remember, during which she could have given birth to Liir. Extremely chubby, Liir plays with his supposed half-siblings while he and Elphaba stay with Fiyero's widow. At the end of Wicked it is stated that he intends to find a way of rescuing his half-sister Nor from her slavery. He is also the protagonist of Maguire's sequel to Wicked, Son of a Witch. In this book, Liir unknowingly impregnates a Quadling girl named Candle, which results in the birth of a green baby. This finally proves that Liir is the son of Elphaba and Fiyero. Gregory Maguire has described Liir as "Elphaba's son" in interviews. It's also revealed that Liir may be bisexual. [2]
- Yackle: A mysterious crone who appears frequently in Elphaba's life. Elphaba suspects that Yackle may be exerting control over her fate, and may be Kumbrica, the ambivalent goddess of Ozian myth. Her appearance is also reminiscent of a fiend called the "Yakal" which is pictured in the Grimmerie, implying that she may be a demon. Nanny first mentions her as an old gypsy woman from whom she bought the medicine, which would stop Melena’s second child being born green. Later, she appears as an old woman guarding the door to the Philosophy Club and later still, she appears as Mother Yackle, a maunt (a sort of Ozian nun) at the mauntery (a unionist convent) who takes care of the homeless Elphaba. Yackle's story is more deeply explored in "A Lion Among Men," in which she is the secondary protagonist.
- The dwarf: This entity claims to be an immortal sent to Oz to prevent the Grimmerie from returning to Earth. With his Clock of the Time Dragon, he seems to Elphaba to either be able to control fate or predict it.
- Grommetik: A tik-tok creature, servant to Madame Morrible. It is strongly implied that he is involved in a sinister plot orchestrated at least in part by his mistress. From what is described in the novel, he bears a similarity to Tik-Tok, a character from Baum's original Oz series.
- Nanny: A member of the Thropp family, though whether by blood or employment is never explicitly revealed. By the conclusion of the book, she has raised three generations of the Thropps, most notably having acted as chaperone to Nessarose, Elphaba and Glinda during their years at Shiz. She is still vital well into her eighties. Her attitude reflects this, as she is stoic, speaks her mind, and holds to somewhat inflammatory 'Lurlinistic' pagan beliefs.
- Frexspar: Elphaba, Nessarose, and Shell's father (at least in the emotional and physical sense; whether he shares a genetic link with some of the children is questionable). Frex is a devout Unionist priest. Nessarose was his favorite child, and to her he gave the famous jeweled slippers. It is implied that he is at least the father of Shell, as the Wizard of Oz is Elphaba's father, and it is heavily implied that Turtle Heart is Nessarose's father. He, along with Melena, was in a threesome relationship with Turtle Heart.
- Chistery, Killyjoy, the Bees, and the Crows: Animals which accompany Elphaba on the way to Kiamo Ko by coach, and which also become her familiars. The bees are taken along as a source of honey for the travelers, and it is suggested that through dormant magical talent, Elphaba unconsciously sets them upon the coach cook, whom she dislikes and who is later found stung to death at the edge of a cliff. Killyjoy, the cook's dog, takes an instant liking to Liir, who decides to keep him. Princess Nastoya gives the crows to Elphaba, who then specifically states that Elphaba is to send them to her if she needs help with anything. Princess Nastoya also tells Elphaba directly that they are to be her familiars. On the way to Kiamo Ko, they run across Chistery, an abandoned infant snow monkey, whom Elphaba rescues through another unconscious act of magic (creating ice under her feet as she runs across a pond to save him from Killyjoy). Later in the book, Elphaba teaches him to speak, in hopes of completing Dr. Dillamond's study into the supposed connections between all lifeforms. In Wicked, he only manages to mimic what others say, although he gains the ability to speak in full, comprehensible sentences in Son of a Witch. Elphaba sews wings onto the backs of him and the other monkeys, in a combination of Doctor Dillamond's studies and her own practice of magic, thus creating the winged monkeys.
- Melena Thropp: Elphaba, Nessarose, and Shell's mother. Melena comes from a high-class family, and has mostly pagan traditions, which contradicts Frex's statements. She has very loose morals and dreams of her days as a pampered girl, despite her rebelling against it at the time. She has a taste for alcohol and pinlobble leaves.
- Avaric: A friend of Boq's and Galinda's. He is described as being the "perfect asshole." Late in the novel, Elphaba visits him, and they discuss the nature of evil with some of his friends.
- Crope and Tibbett: Two boys who attend Shiz University along with Boq. They later become members of the main group of friends that features in the second part of the book.
- Turtle Heart: A wandering glassblower from Quadling Country. He comes upon Melena's home while Frex is out preaching. Melena and Turtle Heart have an extended affair, and it is implied that Frex had intimate relations with him, as well, sharing him equally. It is also strongly suggested that he is the father of Nessarose; a family timeline at the beginning of "a Lion Among Men" lists Frex as father to both Nessarose and Shell. It is mentioned he was killed at Colwen Grounds, on the day of Nessarose's birth, as a human sacrifice to bring rain to Munchkinland. His death is what convinces Frex and Melena to travel to Quadling Country to convert people to Unionism.
- Ama Clutch: Galinda’s chaperone at Shiz, Ama Clutch is present throughout Galinda and Elphaba's time at the university. She "loses" her sanity in a suspicious fashion when she witnesses the murder of Doctor Dillamond. It is strongly suggested that Madame Morrible hexed Ama Clutch, afflicting her with the same crazed behaviour that Galinda (falsely) claimed was responsible for Ama Clutch's absence from the roommate negotiations; namely talking to inanimate objects as if they were people. Just prior to her death, Galinda magically restores Ama Clutch's sanity for a brief period, giving her the opportuntiy to reveal the truth about Doctor Dillamond's murder.
- Shell Thropp: Elphaba and Nessarose's younger brother. Their mother dies giving birth to him. Although he is never actually seen in the book, Elphaba says that he would have been their mother's favorite, because he was a boy. He plays a much larger part in the sequel Son of a Witch and is mentioned in A Lion Among Men.
[edit] Objects
- The Grimmerie (derived from 'grimoire' and 'gramarye'): A book of magic that originated on Earth but was taken to Oz by a wizard to prevent it from being used for evil. It is sought by the Wizard of Oz, and is the reason he traveled to Oz. It ends up in the possession of Elphaba. While in the musical adaptation it is suggested that the Grimmerie is a sole book with no others of the same title, in Gregory Maguire's original Elphaba describes it as being 'a' Grimmerie, meaning that Grimmerie is probably an Ozian word for a book of magic and that it most likely has a more distinguishing title. The book is bound in black leather with worn, purple pages written upon in glittering silver ink.
- The Miracle Elixir: A bottle of potion that Elphaba keeps with her throughout her life. It was presented to Elphaba's mother once who took it and had bizarre dreams. It may have been the Wizard who gave it to Elphaba's mother and fathered Elphaba at that time. Elphaba takes some of the Elixir late in life and has many prophetic dreams. Some are so disturbing to her that she rarely sleeps for the rest of her life. This may contribute to her loss of wits near the end of her life. Dorothy takes this object to the Wizard as proof of Elphaba's death.
- The Clock of the Time Dragon: A traveling show, which contains many magicked tik-tok puppets that act out prophetic scenes. At the top of the tower-like container that holds the show, there is a painted clock, hands perpetually at one minute to midnight and above that, a tik-tok dragon so lifelike as to strike awe in the hearts of all who see it. It is the center of the pleasure faith religion and is accompanied by the dwarf. Elphaba is born inside the Time Dragon, and receives the revelation that the Wizard is her father from the Dragon. Many of the characters in the Dragon's shows are later hunted down and killed or at least harassed, including Elphaba's parents and Turtle Heart.
- Looking-glass: A mirror made of green glass by Turtle Heart. This is one of the first toys Elphaba is given as a toddler, and she uses it in divination during her early childhood as well as just before her death.
- Broomstick: A flying broom given to Elphaba by Yackle with the understanding that it was a part of her destiny.
- Bejeweled Slippers: Made by Yackle (technically, out of glass) and decorated by Frex using techniques learned from Turtle Heart. These were given to Nessarose shortly after she went away to school, making Elphaba jealous of their father's affections. They were later repaired and enchanted by Glinda, and become a major source of emotional, personal, and political conflict in the last part of the book. Elphaba is determined to get them back, but Dorothy finds that she is unable to remove them, wondering if Glinda had put a spell on them so they would not come off.
[edit] References
- ^ Margaret Hamilton, who portrayed the Witch of the West in the 1939 film, was a lifelong animal rights activist.
- ^ Merritt, Byron; Interview with Gregory Maguire (2004-11-01). "An interview with wizard-like author Gregory Maguire". fwomp.com. http://www.fwomp.com/int-mcguire.htm. Retrieved on 2007-01-15.
- Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West Study Guide The *social concerns section was used as a source.
[edit] External links
- GregoryMaguire.com - the author's official website, which includes a discussion forum.
- Wicked the Novel and Wicked the Musical details on the official Stephen Schwartz fan site
- Wicked The Musical Tour Info
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