1) Good vs. Evil
In both of the novels I read, the main characters battle with the good and evil in themselves as they grow up and discover who they are. Although both protagonists do evil deeds or have evil thoughts and feelings, they are essentially good.
Reasons why Elphaba is evil/believes herself to be evil:
-born green, with fangs, bites finger off fishwife, female even though her mother desperately wanted her to be male, threw rocks at/bit other children, product of mother's infidelity, father is the Wizard (who is the main antagonist of the story)
-is not harmed by evil forest creature
-is followed by Yackle, who according to the Grimmerie may be a demon
-murders Madame Morrible, Manek, proud of killing them, tries to harm Dorothy and her friends, kills monkeys during experiments, kills the cook with her Bees
-seduces Fiyero even though he is married and has children, is the cause of his death-neglects Liir, who almost dies and is almost kidnapped because of this, scares the other children at Kiamo Ko
-conspires against Wizard, who is her own father
-leaves Nessarose and her friends without saying goodbye
-becomes a sorceress, works with black magic, uses magic for manipulation and murder-refuses to forgive Dorothy, even when she knows how horrible the feeling of guilt is and she herself wants forgiveness from Sarima for accidentally killing someone, tries to give burden of Fiyero's death to Sarima
-water burns her skin, there is a storm when she looks out the window but nowhere else-known as the Wicked Witch of the West
-believes that she has no soul, and does not believe she will have an afterlife when she dies
-illegally assists with Doctor Dillamond's research
Reasons why Elphaba is good/believes herself to be good:
-looks after Nessarose and has motherly feelings towards Liir, tries to save Nor
-cares about Animal rights, helps with Doctor Dillamond's research, sorrow at his death, tries to avenge him
-gets upset when Doctor Nikidik tries to harm the baby lion, feels pity for others
-wants to be good, wishes she had a soul
-helps Boq try to woo Galinda, helps Galinda realize that she has an intellectual side
-keeps Galinda and Nessarose from attending the philosophy club
-plots against Wizard and kills Madame Morrible for good of society
-fulfills needs of Fiyero, loves him, tries to protect him, wants to be loved
-saves Chistery, takes care of her familiars (snow monkeys, Killjoy, Bees, Crows), animals like her
-maunt for seven years, takes care of sick, tells the truth
-loves her father, sister, and Fiyero
-leaves her friends at Shiz for their own protection
-tries to give Sarima closure about Fiyero's death
-feels remorse about most of her evil deeds, except for the ones she believes she did for the good of society
-has no plans to kill Dorothy, just wants shoes
Reasons why David is evil/believes himself to be evil:
-hatred for Georgie and Rose, who are his family and care for him
-jealous of attention father gives to others
-brings beast to other world, his greatest fear
-almost gives up Georgie's life to Crooked Man because of jealousy/hatred, has thoughts about betraying family
-feels relieved at mother's death
-kills Huntress, Enchantress, two men on road
-leaves the Woodman to be kills by the Loups, just saves himself
-goes into sunken garden in first place, which he knows he should not do
-intentionally begins arguments with Rose
-tries to make father feel guilty for remarrying and having another child
-harms tree in other world
-sneaks around castle and invades King's privacy and Crooked Man's privacy
-steals from Crooked Man
Why David is good/believes himself to be good:
-loyal to Georgie in the end, tries to help him when the Crooked Man goes into his bedroom
-good to Rose at the end when he returns to his world
-loves and takes care of his father until he dies of old age
-goes to heaven (good other world) when he dies at the end of the book
-helps Roland find his lover
-releases Anna from the Crooked Man
-helps Fletcher and the community kill the beast
-kills the Huntress and the Enchantress, which avenges the deaths of innocent people and makes the other world better
-helps make the other world a better place by helping in the battle that kills the Loups and the Crooked Man
-tries to save mother when he thinks she is in the other world
-fell sick after he kills people, remorse, sadness at deaths of people he cares about
2) Illusion vs. Reality
Both of the novels are based on other fictional literature, but show the truth behind the stories.
Wicked-Wizard of Oz
(illusion...reality)
-Elphaba is evil (Wicked Witch of the West)...Elphaba is essentially good, but commits evil deeds for the good of society
-Elphaba and Galinda do not know each other...they were best friends at school and grew up together
-Dorothy went to find Elphaba so she could bring the Wizard her broom...she goes to ask forgiveness for accidentally killing Nessarose
-Dorothy leaves oz with the Wizard...disappears from Oz
-the Wizard is good and helpful...he is an evil dictator who only cares about his wealth and power and not the well-being of others
-Elphaba lives in the castle...just staying there as a guest to Sarima
-Tinman was already tin...he was turned into tin by Nessarose because a woman asks her to do it since her maid is in love with the woodsman
-Emerald City is fabulous and full of all of the elegant people of Oz...it is a mess of poverty, abandoned children and filth, due to the rule of the Wizard
-Elphaba and Wizard are not related...Wizard is her father
-Elphaba's only family is Nessarose...learn about parents, childhood, Shell, son Liir
-Elphaba has no connection to the Lion...she met him in Doctor Nikidik's classroom at Shiz
-we assume Nessarose has arms...she was born armless and needed to be supported by Nanny until Galinda makes her ruby slippers magic
-Elphaba is a hermit...she had friends, Galinda, Fiyero was her lover, lived with a big family
-Chistery was born a flying monkey...Elphaba created him by attaching the wings from birds onto him and the other snow monkeys
The Book of Lost Things-Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales (just a few)
Rumpelstiltskin:
Grimm
-poor miller with beautiful daughter tells king that she can spin straw into gold
-king puts her in room with straw and tells her that if it is not gold by morning he will kill her
-little man comes in and spins it into gold in exchange for her necklace
-next night there is more straw and she must give the little man her ring
-even more straw, if she succeeds, she will become queen, must promise first born to little man
-one year later has first child, little man comes to collect, says she can keep her child only if she can guess his name within three days
-tries all names in the land, none are his
-on third day, messenger tells her that he heard the little man singing and tells her his name is Rumpelstiltskin
-the little man is so furious that he accidentally tears himself in two
The Book 0f Lost Things
-name is Crooked Man, ancient
-needs to eat hearts of children to stay alive
-gets the children by making their older siblings say the child's name to him
-then they are both his, he eats the younger child's heart and the older child becomes king of the land
-keeps spirit of younger child in a jar in his layer
-comes to our world to find children
-uses jealously and hatred of older children to his advantage
-dies at the end of the story when David refuses to tell him Georgie's name
-trikster: changes shape, underground tunnels, plays tricks on David
-uses power to rule over kingdom even though there is a king (has power over king)
Little Red Riding Hood:
Grimm
-sweet girl loved by all, especially grandmother who makes her a red cape which she wears everywhere
-mother sends her into the forest to her grandmother's to take her a picnic basket, tells her not to stray from the path
-she meets the wolf and tells him where her grandmother lives, he makes plans to eat them and distracts her with flowers and she wanders in the woods while he goes to grandmother's house, pretending to be her
-she tells him to come in, he eats her and puts on her clothes
-Little Red arrives and is wary of her "grandmother", the wolf eats her also
-huntsman comes by and cuts the girl and her grandmother out of the wolf
-Little Red fills the wolf's body with stones, and when he awakens he dies
-the huntsman goes home with the wolf's skin and the other two eat the cake and drink the wine, Little Red thinks to herself that she will never again stray from the path when her mother has forbidden it
The Book of Lost Things
-lively, bright girl who lived in outskirts of forest, wore red cape so she could easily be found if lost
-became beautiful, turned down the many male suitors, not challenging enough for her
-would often bring food to grandmother in forest, while grandmother slept, Little Red would wander in the woods
-spots a wolf who tries to avoid her, fallows it and falls in love
-tries to scare her off, but she calms it and they have sex and produce Leroi (the first Loup)
-lures other women, some willingly, eventually Loups start eating women, this is the creation of the Loups
Hansel and Gretel:
Brothers Grimm
-parents were poor woodcutter and his wife (mother died)
-no food, wife suggests leaving children in forest, children overhear and boy goes outside to collect pebbles
-next day they all go into forest and Hansel leaves stone trail back to house
-make fire and father says the children should rest while they go find wood
-children wake up at night alone, follows pebbles in moonlight
-when they return, wife scolds them for staying in the woods so late, father rejoices since he did not want to leave them in the first place
-repeat of before, bread crumbs for trail this time
-birds eat bread, children get lost, three days later find candy house and start eating it
-old woman invites them inside, feeds them, gives them beds
-actually wicked witch, locks up Hansel and tells Gretel to feed him so he gets fat, then the Witch will eat him
-tries to trick witch into thinking he is still thin, plans to eat him anyways
-heats oven and tells Gretel to climb in to test temperature (plans to cook her)
-Gretel tricks the Witch into climbing in and then locks her in the oven, lets Hansel out of cage, children take Witch's jewels and leave
-give home to happy father and give him jewels, wife has died, all are happy
The Book of Lost Things
-children's father dies, new evil stepfather
-he suggests to mother that they eat the children and have more later because there is no food
-mother is horrified/fearful, abandons children in woods
-girl is wiser/stronger, traps animals and steals eggs, boy wants mother and old life back
-one day she finds brother eating gingerbread house, she is wary but hungry so starts eating, children fall asleep
-wake up in house trapped in hanging cages, old woman is building fire, can see bones of other children
-Gretel tells Witch to take her first, tricks her into getting in oven, watches her burn alive
-burns house and leaves with Hansel
-girl is happy but boy still wants mother, he returns home (empty), and then goes back into the forest, not to sister because he is jealous and resentful of her
-finds cottage with nice woman who says she wants a son, she eats him
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs:Brothers Grimm
-queen has daughter but dies during birth, father remarries, stepmother is evil
-she has a mirror that tells her she is the fairest of them all
-Snow White becomes beautiful and the mirror tells the queen that she is now fairest
-queen is jealous, tells huntsman to take Snow White into forest and kill her, lets her go, brings back pig's heart instead of Snow White's and the queen eats it
-Snow White finds cottage, eats and falls asleep
-seven dwarfs come home from job mining ore in mountains, tells her that she can live with them if she cooks and cleans
-warn her about stepmother, not to let anyone inside
-mirror tells queen Snow White is alive, disguises herself and tries to kill Snow White but the dwarfs save her (this happens twice)
-third time gives her poisoned apple and tricks Snow White into eating it, dwarfs try to save her but she dies, build her glass coffin
-prince takes coffin, and while it is being moved the apple falls out of Snow White's mouth and she awakens
-marries prince, evil stepmother comes to wedding, and is forced to wear hot iron slippers and dance herself to death
The Book of Lost Things
-dwarfs are very touchy, feel strongly that they are oppressed, get angry at David, try to fight him
-dwarfs are called by their number, not by names, number seven is exiled because he went to work for his mother (therefore he is a capitalist, according to the dwarfs)
-David asks to stay with them for the night, dwarfs worry about Snow White's reaction, but think she may like the company
-David asks about Snow White: the dwarfs reveal that there are no sexual relationships, that she eats them out of house and home and that that failed to kill her
-tried to poison her with a apple, but did not put enough in, tried to blame it on stepmother but she had alibi
-says a prince comes along and kisses her, she punches him and yells at him so he leaves
-judge says that if anything happens to Snow White again, the dwarfs are in trouble
-arrives back at cottage, Snow White yells at them and makes them get her dinner
-ugly, fat, mean, greedy, violent, ignorant woman, poor english, covered in horrible makeup and too-fancy clothing
-she is upset that David is not a prince or rich
-David asks why she does not leave, she says her dad and step mother moved away, says she is going to stay with dwarfs until prince returns
-she eats and falls asleep, dwarfs clean up, reveal to David that they hide their wealth from Snow White because they do not trust her, tell david where mine is
-David leaves and the dwarfs say to come visit and send any princes he comes across to their cottage
Other Fairytales in book:
-The Water of Life
-Goldilocks
-The Three Billy-Goats Gruff
-The Three Army-Surgeons
-The Goose-Girl
-Beauty and the Beast
-Sleeping Beauty
-The Death of Manius (actually happened in real life, reversed illusion and reality compared to the rest of the stories
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