31jan
2022
0

The Wizard of Oz in Candy

Dorothy, a girl full of life, lived in the gray prairies of Kansas with two poor farmers: Uncle Henry and Aunt Em, in a very small house with only one bedroom.
The region was considerably gray, with very little presence of life, almost no vegetation and the minimum needed for survival. Everything was hard. The only thing that would not let Dorothy turn gray as well was Toto, a little black dog. They were inseparable!
They raised other animals too, only to help them move and eat, because everything there was awfully hard. They lived very far away.
And everything was colorless!

The house in which the three of them and the dog lived had only one room, very simple, as it was very expensive to bring wood for the construction of other rooms. The basic furniture was distributed in that space: two beds in opposite corners, an old oven, a closet for dishes and mugs, a table, and some stools. Everything was extremely simple, but well arranged.
There was a hole in the floor in that room, which they called cyclone basement. Kansas had many storms, and they had that inferior chamber as a shelter.
During an excessively gray day, one in which floor, house, uncles, cloud and sky were mistaken by one another, Uncle Henry heard from the far distance:
W-h-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-w… He looked better, then realized it was not simply the wind and yelled:
“Run to the shelter, there’s a cyclone coming! There isn’t time for anything!”
Vu-vu-vu-vu-vu-vu…

VU-VU-VU-VU… each second louder and closer.
Dorothy was late because Toto got scared and hid itself. They did not have enough time to take shelter in the hole, only her uncles. The house flew off the ground!… Girl and dog were scared – the small house floated, whirled, whirled… it ended up on top of the cyclone. They were probably inside the eye of the hurricane, because of the silence and tranquility felt. The two of them did not know what was going on. It took so long, both girl and dog fell asleep, due to the massive fear they felt.
They only woke up to the jolt produced by the house landing on the ground.
POOOOOOOOOOOOW!
After the shock, they looked at the window and could not believe what they saw, lovely colors: flowering trees with many fruits, birds, streams and wide green. Color was all around.
They realized the small house was safe in an incredible place. They set out to explore.

They left the house and were ecstatic with the colors around them.
Suddenly, little old men dressed in blue, with beaked hats, appeared along with an old lady in a white dress, also with a hat. All greeted the girl and thanked her for killing the Wicked Witch of the East and, consequently, freeing the munchkins, the little blue ones, from slavery.
Dorothy, outraged, replied: “I didn’t kill anyone!”
Immediately, the witch pointed to a corner of the house and told Dorothy that those little silver shoes belonged to the Wicked Witch of the East, of those lands in which the house had fallen. “In retribution to your help, we will give you the witch of the east’s shoes, since she is gone.”
Dorothy told her story, about the house which accidentally fell on top of the witch and, therefore, did not do any harm to anybody. In the lands where Dorothy is from, there are no witches, sorcerers, wizards… not a thing like that. The only thing she wanted was to go back to her land, though colorless, and see her uncles, who should be very worried with her absence.
The good witch told her only the good witches wore white, and the girl had white in her clothes, therefore, she was a good witch too. Unfortunately, she did not have the powers to send her back to Kansas, but the Wizard of Oz had many and could help her. To find the powerful wizard, she should follow the yellow brick road.

Dorothy did not want to waste time, so she immediately began her journey, because she wanted to go back to her house in Kansas. What brought her joy was the many colors that decorated the path.
“Do I have to find this Wizard man?” the girl though desperately.
The girl mentally recapitulated what the good witch had informed her: to follow the yellow brick road in order to find the Wizard who lived in Emerald City, in the center of Oz.
“Here where we are, Toto, is the east, the land of the Munchkins, the blue ones. There is the north, which is the land of the fairy in white, the South is the land of the Quadlings, the red ones. The West is the land of the Winkies, the yellow ones, who are ruled by the Wicked Witch of the West. We have to be very cautious in those lands, for everything is dangerous.” said Dorothy to her little dog.
Wherever the girl passed through, everyone thanked her for saving them from the Wicked Witch of the East. She walked for very long and everything was blue. Fatigue made the girl stop to rest. She was always welcomed by the locals with warm kindness.
The journey was far too long, she walked for a considerably amount of time and stopped now and then to rest and eat. In one of those stops, she looked at a breathtaking view in the distance: yellow and green that merge and become blue.

The girl saw a cornfield as great as the eye can see, and in the middle of it, to scare away trespassing birds, an all-blue scarecrow.
Suddenly, the scarecrow winked at her. Dorothy could not believe what she saw. She came closer and the Scarecrow was able to speak! Surprised, she heard all of his complaints: that he couldn’t stand being dusty anymore, scaring crows after crows. He wanted to leave that place and become intelligent. He wanted to have brains over straw.
The girl immediately invited him to go with her to the wizard, so he could obtain what he wanted. He accepted her proposal. Very cautiously, she removed him from the stake and then headed towards the green Emerald City.

They walked non-stop and talked for a long time. They told their stories to each other.
Dorothy talked to the Scarecrow about Oz: “The Good Witch told me that now there is only one evil witch, who’s in the West, but we won’t go through there. The fairy who spoke to me was from the North and confirmed that the South one, Glinda, is good too. She thanked me for killing the evil witch. However, I did not do anything, my house accidentally fell on top of the witch. I am not a sorceress, like she said I was, simply because I wear white. According to her, white is the color only used by the Good witches.”
“Scarecrow,” Dorothy asked. “Do you know how to get to Oz?”
“No, I have never left the cornfield,” replied the Scarecrow. “My life was scaring away birds.”
“I was informed that, in order to get to Oz, one must be very cautious, because between lands there are other very dangerous lands. I am calm, because I have received a kiss from the Good witch on my forehead, and that will grant me protection.”
“Now we only must follow the yellow brick road in order for us to get to Emerald City.”
When it was late, they passed through trees that covered the road with their branches, making a green tunnel of leaves. They were exhausted. Suddenly, they saw a cottage. They headed towards it. As there was not anybody living in the cottage, they spent that night in there.

As soon as dawn came, they left the cottage to return to their long journey, when they saw a paralyzed Tin Man. They though it was weird, so they headed towards him and realized he needed help, for the rain had caught him by surprise and he could not go back home, because his gears became rusty. He asked them to get some oil inside the cottage, to lubricate him. As the oil fixed his body, he told them he was once human, but a witch had cast a spell on him and, each time he hurt a part of his body, he could not medicate the problem and had to ask the fitter to replace the affected organ by tin. There were so many accidents involving axes, since he was a lumberjack, that he became solely tin. That look did not bother him. He only wished to have a heart. So that he could fall in love again.
“Done!” the oil made the Tin Man move again. Everything was perfect!
Dorothy thanked him immensely for spending her night in his cottage:
“We have to keep on with our journey!”
The Tin Man asked them:
“Where are you going to?”
“We are going to Emerald City to talk to the magician and get a few things from him: I want to go back to my land, Kansas, and he wants a brain so that he can become intelligent.”

Immediately, the Tin Man asked:
“Can I go with you and ask for a heart? Can I get one?!”
“We’ll try!!!” said Dorothy.
And the four of them headed back to the yellow brick road.
They walked happily, for they were not alone anymore, they had each other. They walked for very long and stopped now then for Dorothy to eat. Tired and worried, they arrived at an extremely dense forest. They heard different sounds and became apprehensive and cautious. There should be many different animals, for they heard different sounds all the time. They walked slowly, looking for any sign of danger.

“GRRAAAAAWWWL!”
Suddenly, they heard a loud roar that freezed them, and a Lion jumped in front of them.
“Are you going to attack a defenseless puppy, you coward?!” Dorothy yelled.
“No!!! I truly am a coward!!!” the Lion roared.
The girl instinctively touched the lion’s weak spot. All of them told each other their stories and yearnings, and the Lion decided to join the group to get his courage, for he thought he was a coward. He would probably be helpful to the group, since his roar would scare away intruders.
Dorothy’s basket was empty, for she had eaten all the food she had brought for her journey. The Scarecrow intelligently took some nuts in the forest and put them inside the basket. The road was very long, but they were all happy and told each other their secrets and aspirations along the way.
They were full of joy, constantly playing with each other. They were together and happy!

Nothing had ever been this easy! Exactly as the Good witch had told them: they found danger on their way to Emerald City.
After a long period of walking, they had to make a stop, for there was an abyss on the road. An enormous crater appeared, and there was no way to cross it through the yellow brick road. They thought for a while and found two possibilities: the Lion, who called himself a coward, would jump to the other side, taking one at a time with him, or the Tin Man would cut a tree and use it as a bridge. In that moment, they heard weird noises coming from distinct beasts, the Kalidahs (body of a bear and head of a tiger). They had to move quickly, so they used both alternatives. They crossed the abyss however they could. The Scarecrow, who, according to himself, was not smart, asked the Tin Man to cut the tip of the fallen tree, for the improvised bridge would fall into the abyss as soon as the beast attempted to cross it.
“Phew!!!”, all said out of relief after crossing the abyss, safe and sound.
“Will it take much longer?” Dorothy asked, but no one knew the answer.

The road continued… They had to overcome obstacle after obstacle during their long journey.
Suddenly, they smelled a delightful perfume! They began to observe the colors, closer, flowers.
The girl was delighted with all the colors, after all, in Kansas everything was gray. Now, there were red flowers after red flowers as far as the eye can see. It was a field of red poppies with an intoxicating scent. Dorothy, Toto, and the Lion fell asleep.
A Queen of Mice was passing by and alerted them of the danger they were in, for the poppy’s fragrance is deadly in excess and they could not sleep there. In order to remove the Lion from there, they needed help from all the mice of the colony. While the mice searched for rope, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow arranged some kind of cart, to facilitate moving the Lion from the venomous poppy field. They managed to take the king of the jungle and the girl far away from the lethal perfume.
They overcame another obstacle!

They were tired, very tired, from so many dangerous encounters. They reminded each other of the strength they had together and the obstacles they had overcome, until they saw a green city. There was still a long way to go, but Emerald City’s view filled all of them with life and energy.
Along the way there were flowers of many colors, and, in the distance, only the green of emeralds.
After a long period of walking, they arrived!
Upon arrival, they talked to a guard! He realized the girl had silver shoes, which was decisive for them being welcomed. Without wasting time, they headed straight to the Wizard of Oz. The city was splendid, filled with green candy… everything was perfect, but they needed green glasses to keep from dazzling their eyes.

They managed to speak to the Wizard of Oz. He accepted to see them due to Dorothy’s silver shoes. The Wizard presented himself in two different and separate ways: to the girl, he was a large head in a green throne; to the Scarecrow, a young lady in green; to the Tin Man, a Beast (a fusion of elephant and rhino) and to the Lion, it was a large fire ball. The only thing the wizard said to them was equal to all:
“Dorothy has defeated an evil witch, now you must defeat the other one. After that, you may return here, for then I will make your wishes come true. Only then, you may return here! Defeat the Wicked Witch of the West, who stands where the sun sets! You better be going fast!”

With no other alternative, the five of them headed west, apprehensive, for the witch was truly evil. The evil witch had a telescopic view and could watch anyone from very far. She watched intruders getting into her territory and sent wolves, black bees, her slaves… but nothing worked.
The five of them managed to free themselves from their foes. The wolves were destroyed by the Tin Man’s axe. The crows, crushed by the Scarecrow. When the bees came, there was only the Tin Man, for the Scarecrow’s straw covered the girl, the dog, and the Lion. They could only sting the Tin, which made them loose their stingers and, consequently, perish.
The evil witch only had her slaves to send after them, the yellow Winkies. They were sent and received orders to kill the five of them, but one “GRRAURRR!” was enough. That roar from the Lion was enough to scare them away, and they ran desperately, disobeying the evil witch orders.

Filled with rage, the witch had only one option: to use the power of a golden cap to summon the Winged Monkeys. They came flying in packs and immediately caught the Tin Man and threw him against some rocks. They took the straw out of the Scarecrow and scattered it across the trees along with his clothes.
The Winged Monkeys took the Lion and trapped him to a tree so that he would serve the sorceress. As for Dorothy, she would become another slave for the castle. The Monkeys attended the last rightful request of the witch.
When the witch saw Dorothy’s silver shoes, she trembled with fear, but immediately realized the girl was far too naive to know the power she had on her feet.
“With so much ingenuity, I can make her my own slave… who will do all housework: polish, clean, sweep… Besides that, I can have those powerful shoes.” the evil witch though to herself.
But it was a very hard task to do, for the girl only took her shoes out for shower and sleep. Two things the witch hated: water and darkness. The witch was terrified of water, so she was always holding an umbrella, which she used to beat people with. She could not even dream of using these moments to steel her shoes: her fears would not let her do anything.

She wanted those little shoes powers, for she lost the powers of the cap, she had to do something…
The cunning witch tricked the girl, who stumbled on something placed on purpose by the evil woman. The girl fell, and a shoe came off her foot. In that moment, the witch took her shoe and did not want to give it back. The girl begged to the witch, who did not change her mind. The girl had only that shoe. She was so angry that she threw what she had within her hands at the witch. But the girl did not know the power of doing that: she threw a bucket full of water. The witch, at that instant, began to shrink, shrink, and melt like sugar, because water to her was death.
The girl rescued her friend: the Lion. The Winkies were happy, for they were no longer slaves to the Wicked Witch of the West. In return, they helped rescue the Tin Man and retrieve all the Scarecrow’s straw. They remade them both: one was fixed and the other one was filled with new straw. Dorothy found the golden cap very interesting and took it, not knowing it would give her the right to three wishes granted by the Winged Monkeys.
They quickly left the yellow castle to notify the Wizard that the Wicked Witch of the West had been defeated. They did not know how to return. They were heading in the opposite direction, but they met the Queen of Mice once again, who warned them about the right direction. However, there was still a great distance to overcome, and it would be better to ask the Winged Monkeys for help, since she had the power of the cap, which gave her the right to three wishes.

Soon, with the Winged Monkeys help, they arrived in Emerald City. That time, the Wizard took a long time to see them. Tired of waiting, they said they would call the Winged Monkeys to help them. As if it was magic, the Wizard of Oz decided to see them immediately, scared as he was of the flying animals.
They expected the Magician to appear in a different form for each one of them, just like before, but this time, there was no one, just the sound of his powerful and solemn voice.
Dorothy asked:
“Where are you?”
“Everywhere,” the powerful voice answered. “I am invisible!”
“We came to collect your promise!”
He loudly replied: “What promise?!”
In that moment, each one reiterated their wishes: to go back to Kansas, to have a brain and become intelligent, to have a heart to love someone, and to have courage.
The Wizard asked them to come back the following day, for he had to think.

They were so disappointed that the lion decided to scare the Wizard with his roar “GRRAWWRRR!”
It was very frightening, and Toto was not expecting it, he got scared, jumped back and, consequently, knocked down part of the folding screen that was in the room. Behind the folding screen, there was an old man in a green tunic with a megaphone to considerably increase the power of his voice.
“Who are you?!” the girl asked.
He answered:
“I am the dreadful Wizard of Oz!”
Dissatisfied, Dorothy asked:
“It was all make-believe! I cannot believe it! You are a fake wizard! We believed in you! We did what you asked us to do! How are we going to fulfill our wishes: to go back home, to have a brain, a heart and courage back? How could you fool us like that?! What a disappointment!”
“I thought no one would ever discover the truth about me. I used to be a ventriloquist and worked at a circus, then I became a balloonist. I used to live in Omaha, near Kansas. One day I went up with my balloon and did not manage to go down. I only managed to do so after a while and landed on a strange land with people who thought I was a wizard who came down from the sky. And I did not deny that story. I asked them to build a city and I called it Emerald. I asked them all to wear green glasses. And so, it happened. I’ve been here for years, and no one suspected a thing, since I’ve been completely isolated.” the fake wizard confessed.

But the Wizard reflected for a while and decided to fulfill his promises. He filled the Scarecrow’s head with grain waves, for he was already intelligent since experience generates knowledge. And the Scarecrow felt he was quite intelligent. He made a silk heart and put it into the Tin Man, and he came back to be lovely and sensible, just as he had always been. He asked the lion to drink a liquid that would grant him courage, once he was already brave. All were satisfied with Oz fake magic, making the three of them believe they had received their wishes, which they ignored, but were already with them.
As for Dorothy?
They built a gas balloon and made a fire pit to fill it with hot air. They were going to Kansas inside that balloon. Finally, she could go back home. In that exact moment, in which the girl climbed on board the balloon, Toto decided to run away, and she went after him. The little doggy got in her way again, for the balloon came off and floated. She missed her opportunity with the wizard of Oz of going back to Kansas.
There was only one alternative left for Dorothy: The Good Witch of the South – Glinda. She might be able to help her return to Kansas, to her uncles.
They all decided to help Dorothy and left to the land of the Quadlings – red lands.

After a while, they arrived at Glinda’s red palace. Her guard received them in warm welcome and took them to the good witch, who is a beautiful red-haired, blue-eyed, sorcerer and who, just like all the good witches, wore white.
Dorothy told them her whole story: “fortunes, misfortunes, the wonderful adventures they had shared together.” Now, the Scarecrow would take the Wizard role to rule Emerald City, at the Wizard own request. The Tin Man would rule the Winkies with kindness and wisdom. The Lion would rule all the animals in the forest with cunning and courage. And I cannot go back to Kansas, for I missed my only opportunity: the wizard’s balloon.”
Glinda listened carefully to all the stories, observed the girl’s little silver shoes, and suggested:
“Let’s go to the garden and talk among nature.”

At the garden, close to Glinda’s favorite tree, she calmly said: “You, Dorothy, had the power to go back home on your feet. These shoes have amazing powers! They can take you anywhere. Just touch your elbows three times and say where you want to go. Good thing you didn’t find this out right at the beginning of your journey, for then you wouldn’t have made so many friends and wouldn’t have helped them become happier.”
“I wouldn’t have a brain and would be stuck to that cornfield for all my life.” the Scarecrow said.
“I would be a lifeless, rusty pile of tin.” the Tin Man said.
“I would be a coward forever.” the Lion said.
The girl said goodbye to the dear friends she made during her journey in colorful Oz. She received another kiss from the good witch. She took Toto, touched her elbows three times, and said:
“Goodbye, friends! Rule the Land of Oz with wisdom!”
And they all returned home filled with joy! The Scarecrow ruling Emerald City, the Tin Man, the yellow land and the Lion, the colorful forest. All with their own colorful kingdoms. And… even though Kansas did not have much color, for everything was grey there, Dorothy returned with colors in her heart, filled with joy for returning to her uncles.

Search for L. Frank Baum‘s biography.

Get acquainted with the rewritings of this novel:

Marilyn Monroe – pop art de Andy Warhol

Pinceladas marcantes em espirais – A Noite Estrelada de Van Gogh

Adaptação da aventura de Elisabete Ribeiro – Versão de Rafael Cury Scarpelli

Glossary:

Prairies Pradaria Uma pradaria ou relvado é uma planície vasta e aberta onde não há sinal de árvores nem arbustos, com capim baixo em abundância.
Wicked Witch of the East Bruxa do Leste
Munchkins Miudins Pequenas criaturas vestidas de azul do mundo de Oz.
Yellow brick road Estrada colorida de ladrilhos amarelos Caminho para achar o Mágico de Oz.
Yellow brick road Estrada dos ladrilhos amarelos Caminho até o Mágico de Oz.
Emerald City Cidade Esmeralda É maior e mais relevante cidade da Terra de Oz
Land of Oz Terra de Oz A Terra de Oz é uma terra de fadas, criado pelo escritor norte-americano L. Frank Baum.
Quadlings Fraquins Seres do Sul da Terra de Oz.
Winkies Mansins Seres do Oeste da terra de Oz.
Good Witch of the South Bruxa do Sul Bruxa Glinda do sul do mundo mágico de Oz. É a feiticeira mais poderosa do mundo de Oz.
Yellow brick road Estrada de ladrilhos amarelos Caminho para chegar até o Mágico de Oz.
Kalidahs kaliferas São predadores viscerais do mundo mágico de Oz.
Winged Monkeys. Macacos Alados São macacos roxos com asas do mundo de Oz.
Wicked Witch of the West Bruxa Malvada do Oeste
Scarecrow Espantalho
 Tin Man Homem de Lata Amigo de Dorothy da terra mágica de Oz.

Sem Comentários

Responder