Réponse :
I am going to talk about the notion « Myths and Heroes » in the Wizard of Oz. A myth is a traditional representation idealized and sometimes false concerning a fact, a man or an idea. And the hero is a person who is admired for having done something very brave and he or she can even change the world.
Moreover, Joseph Campbell, has discovered through several searches of the basic steps that each hero passes. He calls this structure the monomyth. Lucas, the creator of Star Wars claims that Campbell’s monomyth was an Inspiration for his films and it made Star Wars popular. Many of Campbell’s followers define the stages of his monomyth in different ways. I will first explain some steps of the hero’s journey in the Wizard of O,. Then, in a second and last part I will demonstrate how the Wizard Of Oz is part of mythology.
It can be interesting to summarise (résumer) the story of The Wizard of Oz, is a film directed by Victor Fleming, released in 1939.This film tells the story of Dorothy.She had a dream or she found herself transported to the magical kingdom of the Munchkins. Dwarves protecting by the good witch of the North but threatened by the wicked witch of the West.Dorothy goes through many trials to find her Dog.
Let’s now have a look at some steps of the hero’s journey in the Wizard of Oz.
First of all, the ordinary world is the very first hero’s step according to Campbell which means that a hero can be an ordinary man who lives in an ordinary world.For example, in The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy is an orphan living with her uncle and aunt in Kansas. The second stage, the call to adventure is the moment when the Hero is confronted with a problem. In the Wizard of Oz, the adventure begins when the region is truck by a tornado.
Then, the hero meets his mentor, an assistant who manages to guide him throughout the journey. Dorothy is helped by the Northern Witch who shows her the way to follow.
After arriving at the Palace of Oz she must cope with the western wicked witch.This represents the encounter with the enemy. (il n’y a pas d’autre étape)
Finally, the last trial also called death trial happens when Dorothy has to frustate the witch in her plan because the latter intends to Kill Dorothy.
After Dorothy manages to get rid of the witch, she realizes that the Wizard of Oz is a simple human without any power. Then, comes the next step,the way back,. (là il te faut dire ce que Dorothy fait sur le chemin du retour.) and the reward stage when Dorothy finds the Southern witch who grants her a wish.
It is now time to demonstrate that the Wizard of Oz has a mythical dimension for severa reason.
To begin with, one can state that the Wizard of Oz has something to do with myth because the book (by Lyman Frank Baum) was written in the symbolic language of fairy tale. Both the book and the film have a mythical impact on our modern society. This is probably the reason why the film is still regarded today as (considéré aujourd’hui comme) one of the ten greatest film of all time. It seems that it deals with reflections on our society (il traite de réflexions) such as the metaphysical question of the place and role of human beings in the world we live in. thus, it can easily be said (on peut facilement dire) that the book and the film have a mythical dimension.
Then, the characters are also part of the myth. They are archetypes that symbolize adults’ lost childhood. They participate in conveying (transmettre) sereval interpretations. We are going to have a look at some characters. For instance, Dorothy Gale is the girl every girl wants to be, she is a dreamer and she displays (montrer synonyme de show) optimism. As for the “Tin man”, he certainly represents the deshumanized steel industry of the 19th century (the book was published in 1900.) On the contrary, the wicked witch of the west embodies the politicians and the people who rule. It is also interesting to take into account that all the witches are not malevolent (malveillantes) which could mean that there is still hope in human relationships.
To finish with, The yellow brick road is a metaphor with a mythical aspect. Some critics (certains critiques) compared it (it reprend ici the yellow brick road)with The Golden Path in in Buddhism where it represents the path of the Soul from Egoism to Enlightenment (illumination au sens religieux.) Dorothy follows this path in her adventures. To some extend (d’une certain manière), this path enables the heroin to become better and to be rewarded. It could be thought (on pourrait pensé) that the yellow brick road is the representation of the path one should take (emprunter par rapport à path) to improve in different aspect of one’s everyday life.
As a conclusion, the Wizard of Oz respects the stages of the hero journey as they defined by Campbell, it also has a mythical dimension. The story could seem totally absurd when one watches the movie with its fantastic characters.
