The Wizard Of Oz And Star Wars Analyzed As Contemporary American Myths.

By Jerry Cargill.

April 13 1994.

For The Class: Myth Symbol And Image.

Charles Reynolds, Instructor.

Columbia College Chicago.

What are our myths in the 20th Century? Just as there are some people who claim that they never have dreams, we might find ourselves self-consciously examining our culture and jumping to a conclusion that Americans have no mythology.

In ancient times, myths were conveyed via drama, storytellers and then later on conveyed in text. In written American folklore, which at first was conveyed orally, one can find quasi- mythological figures such as Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed and Buffalo Bill. But in the 20th Century, in American culture which is so large and diverse, where do we encounter our society’s myths if we in fact have them at all? Television is the most prevalent source of cultural information in our country today many people would say. People read more now than ever before. There is still plenty of theater, which is a communal activity. But theater does not compare with the popularity of TV or reading, which are very isolative activities. And theater is not easily affordable or accessible for everyone. Probably the most popular, affordable, accessible and communal medium for Americans to enjoy a story is cinema.

There has been much said regarding movies as a source of mythology. Film maker Greg Goethels states that TV and movies depict our icons and rituals as well as depict what else is sacred to our culture. Goethels also states that a culture’s myths use visual images or icons to project a culture’s beliefs and assist in integrating the events which happen around us. Evidently, images have always been highly significant vehicles for a culture’s mythology.

If we are going to examine a movie for mythological content and value we should probably have an operative understanding of the mythological paradigm. Joseph Campbell, one of the century’s foremost experts on mythology and author of many books on the topic, outlined a basic mythological paradigm: A hero goes out from the everyday world into a world of the supernatural. Formidable forces are encountered, victory is won and the hero returns with something to benefit mankind (Hudlin 1989). Also, Campbell has pointed out that a hero departs from a rather banal place to a higher plane with the guidance of a mentor, who furnishes the hero with amulets. The hero confronts evil and returns back to where he came from transformed and or initiated and having accomplished something beneficial for mankind (Campbell 1988). Others have pointed out that the settings for myths are stellar, meteorological and astral planes (Nathanson 1991).

Likely because of the use of symbolism, metaphor and classical archetypes; Freud, Jung, as well as Joseph Campbell have all said in one way or another that myths are dreams shared by a society and that dreams are personal myths. Myth is something shared by a society so it is probably safe to say that a myth in the expedient form of a movie would be very popular in general and appreciated among people of all ages. There have been dozens of blockbuster movies this century, but taking into consideration Campbell’s mythological paradigm and other imperative content described above the list begins to narrow considerably. Frank Baum’s The Wizard Of Oz, produced in 1939 and George Lucas’s Star Wars, produced in 1977, appear to conform to the aforementioned mythological paradigm and characteristics.

As I said before, myths are a society’s dreams. Examining two myths in succession is similar to examining two dreams in succession just as a psychoanalyst analyzes a series of dreams. Do these two movies have enough to be considered recurrent dreams of our society’s collective unconscious? Yes, I believe that they have many pertinent similarities. Freud and Jung as well as many other dream theorists speak of the significance of recurrent dreams and recurrent images in dreams. These repetitions point to areas of psychic activity , deficit and compensation. So, if these movies are myth and a myth is equal to a dream we can examine these two examples of our mythology to valuable information about our culture. The repetition of this story may have a explaination in an Object- Relations perspective: this is an internal drama that is unconsciously repeating itself with differing external props. A similar phenomenon was cleverly played out in the movie Groundhog Day.

Initially considering Star Wars and The Wizard Of Oz as mythology I saw these few similarities between the stories: Tin Man and C3PO; Chewbacca and The Cowardly Lion. Before I started researching this paper I watched both movies once more, taking notes on characters, plots, and other details, watching for similarities. As I watched, I also kept two other questions in mind: How mythological are these movies and what do they say about the culture they were produced in?

I wondered from the start if Baum and Lucas had actually intended to create mythology for us. Even though Lucas and Joseph Campbell were friends, Lucas has soberly stated that he simply created Star Wars as an “escapist fantasy” for his own amusement. Having followed the Star Wars trilogy from the start I can recall once hearing an interesting story about Lucas. Before Lucas started Star Wars he was once critically ill, confined to his bed and in considerable pain. There in bed he read some Zen Buddhist writings and reported to have subsequently taught himself how to mentally dissolve his pain. Zen philosophy appears to be skillfully woven into the story and the story clearly points to “The Force” which is a decidedly Eastern concept. Also, when Lucas says his story is “escapist” we may ask him to where and what from is he escaping? Freud discusses at length in his essay On The Poet And Daydreaming the relevance of the conscious daydreams of adults (Freud 1965). Perhaps Lucas and Baum did not intend to make our mythology but were unwitting servants of our collective unconscious. Freud, in the above essay, states that a writer’s material must not be thought of as “spontaneous” but simply a “refashioning of ready-made material” (ibid). Freud also states here that the writer has some independence to express himself by certain variations in the details but that the material is essentially derived from the “racial treasurehouse of myths, legends and fairytales” (ibid). Freud’s opinion is certainly congruent with Jung’s ideas of the collective unconscious and also consistent with what Jung has said regarding the autonomy of the psyche, alluding to the possibility that the collective unconscious on its own accord will express itself through certain individuals.

According to the mythological paradigm the hero departs on his or her journey from a banal place. When we meet our protagonists we can see that they are both farmers living with adoptive aunt and uncle. The place they live is agricultural yet dry and barren, obvious symbols of hopelessness. Naturally they both yearn to leave this place: Dorothy sings Over The Rainbow and Luke has expressed his wish to join the pilot’s academy. Freudian dream theory states that most of the visual material for dreams is obtained from recent occurrences in one’s waking life, typically from the day before the dream, the “dream day” (Freud 1965). Applying this idea relatively to the autonomous functioning of the collective psyche we see consequently that the dusty environs of Dorothy’s farm is a symbol of the dustbowl so familiar to farmers in the 30’s and more broadly representative of the total American economic situation in the 30’s. Freud and Jung both agreed that a dream may foretell and often warns the dreamer of what will or may come about (i.e.: in the Bible the Pharaoh’s dream of the lean cattle devouring the fat cattle, this example is used in texts on dreams by both Freud and Jung) (Freud 1965, Jung 1956). Could anyone say that the image of a hostile desert, such as the one depicted in Star Wars, is unfamiliar imagery to any American having lived in the past twenty years?

In the next step in the mythological paradigm the hero travels to a higher plane and or to the wilderness with the guidance of a mentor. This mentor is usually a wise old man, according to Jung, who gives the hero amulets and watches over the hero through his or her journey (Jung 1953). Dorothy is sucked up by a tornado and rendered unconscious. Once in Oz Dorothy meets Glenda, “The Good Witch Of The South”, a wise old woman or fairy godmother figure, who gives Dorothy the Ruby Slippers with all their powers, and watches closely over Dorothy throughout the trip to the Emerald City. Luke follows R2D2 to Ben Kenobi who introduces Luke to The Force and gives Luke the light saber, hence starting his initiation. Ben then takes Luke into space where Ben will watch over him throughout his journey. In the first half of this century the Western mind was in thrall with the frontier of the subconscious mind as evidenced in Surrealism and Psychoanalysis. The subconscious was the wild untamed terrain at the time of the writing and filming of the Wizard Of Oz and hence the setting for most of the story. Space is decidedly the untamed frontier of the last half of this century and consequently is the backdrop for Star Wars.

In the mythological Paradigm the powers which the hero receives via the help of his mentor was once in the hands of evil. Glenda magically transfers the slippers from the dead Wicked Witch Of The East to the innocent feet of Dorothy. In the beginning of Star Wars The Force is dominated by the “Dark Side”. Luke, via Ben’s help, learns to use the force as a formidable tool for the rebels to inevitably defeat the Empire. In WW2 we used several German scientists who had been previously helping Germany develop an A- Bomb, to successfully develop our own atomic weapons which helped us to win the war.

When Glenda introduces herself as a “good witch” Dorothy is shocked and states that she’s never heard of a “good witch” before. A good witch is likely to be a surprise to anyone who is raised in traditional Western consciousness. After all, the general consensus regarding control over our destiny is pessimistic at best. The idea of mind over matter is decidedly a more Eastern concept. We live in a predominantly Christian culture, yet ironically we stand more in awe over the power of evil than the power in goodness. When Jesus’ apostles were marveling at his miracles he stated; “greater things can you all do”. So where did we drop the ball? Dorothy believed that she had to get home via the power of some other greater entity, but despite the powers of the Witches and the Wizard, she was to learn that her own power was great as any she had seen manifested in Oz. Luke learns a similar lesson after the death of Obi Wan. Perhaps Glenda and Obi Wan point to formidable unrealized powers we all have but have allowed to lapse into the unconscious.

Next in the mythological paradigm the hero is on his journey but invariably must confront evil. Along the way to the Wizard Dorothy must deal with the Wicked Witch constantly. Dorothy must deal with the flying monkeys in the land of the Wicked Witch. Luke, in turn must deal with Darth Vader and his flying fighters as well. Considering that Hitler was a growing threat to us in the 30’s it is no wonder that many people have interpreted the wicked witch to be Hitler and the flying monkeys as divebombers (Nathanson 1991). There are references to Germany and Nazism in both films. As we see in Star Wars one of Luke’s companions is named Han. Also, Vader’s troops are plainly referred to as stormtroopers. These “stormtroopers” cover their heads and bodies with white, which is not unlike the attire of the KKK. Vader’s generals’ uniforms resemble brownshirt and they also sport Alpinesque hats. Robert Bly has pointed out that even the name “Darth Vader” is sort of a Germanized “dark father” (Bly 1990). What could these German references mean? Early in our nation’s history Congress voted on weather we wanted to have German or English as our national language. We could, I’m sure, dig up many other Germanic aspects of our cultural history. These referents to our culture’s Germanness could be, or point to rarely acknowledged shadow aspects of our culture. Wartime Germany stands as a colossal example of how a society’s shadow can overpower it. This phenomenon is well elaborated in C.G. Jung’s book Civilization In Transition. Who nowadays is often compared with Hitler (and isn’t it funny how ready we are to start comparing other people to Hitler)?-- Saddam Hussien (remember the comment again about Luke’s desert). Darth Vader used the Death Star to destroy an entire planet. Saddam didn’t destroy a planet at once, but very quickly destroyed the landscape of a considerably weaker Kuwait. The fallout of his acts is promised to permanently effect weather on this planet. The Wicked Witch did not commit any sort of equivalent holocaust in Oz, but when The Wizard Of Oz was created we had not yet encountered murder on such a scale.

Some have interpreted the Wicked Witches to be symbolic of Dorothy’s missing mother and the hostility between Dorothy and the Wicked Witch of the West to be Oedipal tension associated with a wish to kill the same-sex parent (Hudlin 1991). Also it is suggested that the tornado is a symbol of the vagina, Dorothy’s being passed through it as a symbol of rebirth and the killing of the Wicked Witch Of The East as a reference to Dorothy’s mother, who is missing in the story, having died in childbirth (Hudlin 1991). The house is a classic symbol of the womb in psychoanalysis (Freud 1965). In the second chapter of the Star Wars trilogy Luke battles Darth Vader whom Luke has just discovered is his father. In this dual between father and son Vader cuts off Luke’s hand which causes Luke to lose his light saber into an abyss. Naturally this episode in the trilogy has been interpreted as an blatant reference to castration anxiety associated with the Oedipal conflict (Berger 1984).

A hero’s confrontation with evil is never a simple matter of evasion or escape as the hero is required to face off with the forces of evil and often must return with something that will benefit mankind (i.e. stealing fire from the gods) (Jung 1953, Hudlin 1984, Time 1980). Dorothy, once in Oz believes that she’s safe from the Wicked Witch. But before she is allowed to return home the Wizard requires that she go to the Witch’s castle and return with the Witch’s broomstick. Freudian dream theory holds that unfulfilled wishes, desires and anxieties are played out in dreams. Some have interpreted Dorothy’s slaying of the witch by water as a wish fulfillment to drench to dusty environs of Kansas (Nathanson 1991). If the viewer of the 30’s was identifying with Dorothy then the viewer may unconsciously water the dustbowl or heal the depressed economy vicariously through Dorothy. Luke and his companions are beamed into the Death Star. Once in there they evade the stormtroopers so that R2D2 can access secret computer files of the Death Star. Luke could stay safely barricaded in the computer room but decides instead to save the princess. Luke then is able to escape from the Death Star and travels to the rebel planet with plans to help the rebels destroy the Death Star.

Regarding the destruction of evil forces: this is a prelude to transformation of the hero (Miller and Spricht 1981). These acts of destruction by the hero, especially Dorothy’s slaying of the witches, are symbolic of seasonal rebirth: the vanquishing of winter to usher in spring (Hudlin 1989). Both Dorothy and Luke begin on barren, dusty fields of monogamous agriculture and are transported to a garden- like world (Oz and the rebel planet).

At the end of both journeys both Dorothy and Luke and their entourages receive small but highly significant medals. Dorothy is informed by Glenda how to use the ruby slippers to get home but first informs her that she always had the power to go home. Dorothy demands to know why Glenda did not bother to tell her that at their first meeting. Glenda assures Dorothy she would’ve never believed her if she told Dorothy this at first. Luke’s mentor, Obi Wan Kenobi, who is well aware of what lies ahead for Luke, simply plants the seeds about the force and guides him along with his physical or metaphysical presence. Luke is to become a man and eventually a Jedi Knight, no meager transformations. Obviously transformations have occurred in Dorothy and Luke which could not have happened without painful trials.

We can see now that Wizard Of Oz and Star Wars have many similarities beyond an obvious superficial few. I think that one of the most pertinent shared themes is the relationship between man and technology. Another cinematic example is well played out in Charlie Chaplin’s film Modern Problems. In the Wizard Of Oz Dorothy encounters the Wizard as a mere man who employed electronic gadgetry to project a persona of power and might. The basic message is that at the help of any formidable technology is always a man using the technology for good or bad ends. I think that even deeper is an existential message of caution regarding over- reliance on technology. All the pilots in Star Wars who tried to hit the target by depending on radar failed. But Luke turns off his radar, per Ben Kenobi’s instruction to “let go”, then fires the necessary shot to destroy the death Star. This is similar to a particular prince in Persian mythology who has three chances to hit a parrot with a bow and arrow in order to save his life and the lives of several others: after two failed shots the prince closes his eyes and fires, uttering “God is great” and hits the parrot. This is also akin to the stories of Goliath and Achilles.

That such a highly technological society such as that depicted in Star Wars would employ the use of sabers assures us that some things like honor, courage, transformation and war are constant. Just as well we are assured of constancy by studying the ancient myths.

Excerpt from T.S. Elliot’s poem The Hollow Men (1929):

We are the hollow men

We are the stuffed men

Leaning together

Headpiece filled with straw, Alas!

There is an allusion to the Scarecrow here, least of all in imagery. C3PO and the Tin Man fit in her as further examples of “Hollow men” in the sense that they are essentially metal containers. In a metaphorical sense is there something being said in the films and this poem about individuality and genuineness in the 20th century? The idea of ghost in the machine, dependence on technology and integration of man and machine are embodied in the Tin Man, Dart Vader and C3PO. The Tin Man and C3PO are machines with decidedly human characteristics not excluding neurotic tendencies. These two embody the fallacy of rigid dualism: ghost in a machine, nothing between the mind and the body-- no heart. The Wizard has to point out to the Tin Man that he does indeed have a heart somewhere between his mind and body, in effect he has to waken the Tin Man’s intuition. Unfortunately C3PO cannot get a heart and so is doomed to fester in his hyper- intellectualized neurosis. But C3PO shows some hope for humanness as he lies to the stormtroopers to save his companions, again reinforcing the superiority of human qualities over mechanical perfection. Darth Vader is truly man and machine integrated as his mask and armor serve as his necessary life- support system. Over- reliance on technology is hence depicted as a character flaw.

Jungian dream theory holds that dreams, being internal activities, often compensate for external deficits. This is somewhat congruous to Freudian dream theory regarding wish fulfillment but more consistent with Jung’s view of psychic activity as balancing and counterbalancing of opposites. I mentioned before that the melting, cleansing or drenching of the Wicked Witch can be a symbol for the dustbowl or Depression economy in general. This is an example where an external need is satisfied internally in one’s psyche. Jung urges however, not to focus on individual compensations in dreams but to consider the series in compensations in a number of dreams from an individual (Jung 1959). Jung states that a series points to activity spurred by a drive to integrate, to be self actualized (individuation) (ibid). These movies are only two of our society’s dreams, but the love of humankind and hence humankind’s process of individuation is an excruciatingly slow process, compared with a single person.

I have suggested some possible connections to the movies’ contents and what has happened in our culture in the last several decades. Remembering that dreams foreshadow we might ask what do the movies tell us about what is happening right now and what is in store? I have mentioned the possibility of foreshadowing of the Middle eastern conflict in Star Wars. There are plenty of references to the East in Star Wars and possibly some in the Wizard Of Oz. It is possible that the Evil Forest in the Wizard Of Oz may foreshadow a very dangerous jungle in Viet Nam but that is a stretch. It is more palatable to examine what has been happening between the US and the Orient over the last several decades. This century we me the Japanese, Koreans, Chinese and various Southeast Asians in war. Many of the people of these lands emigrated here, bringing with them vastly different foods, religions and philosophies. Maybe we can look at the Caucasians in Star Wars embracing Eastern concepts to be pointing to a massive psychic integration of this way of life into our European- based society. We could possibly consider the images depicted in these films of societies composed of different beings living harmoniously as a wish fulfilled or a compensation for what is actually happening in our society. With the large amount of immigrants from the Middle East we will soon have to start integrating aspects of those cultures into ours.

At the time The Wizard Of Oz was being filmed, adolescents and young adults did not have definite cultures or niches for themselves (Nathanson 1991). Even today the passing into adulthood is a confusing and generally a passage that is neither unacknowledged or unassisted. Robert Bly, in his book Iron John, details much of the damage done from not having rites of initiation into adulthood anymore. Bly, and other social commentators, insist that passage into adulthood is clearly an issue and is a necessary experience. Perhaps the initiations of Dorothy and Luke are a compensation for generations of adolescents and young adults who have no formal guidance into adulthood. That is to say that the viewer might identify with Dorothy or Luke and vicariously experience initiation into adulthood as these characters do.

What can we say about Dorothy as heroine? Certainly she is a harbinger of the modern liberated female. Dorothy is not scared of Emma Gulch nor is she scared of the Cowardly Lion and she has no reservations about hitting either of them when they are obnoxious. Also, Dorothy has no problem with putting two other women to considerably violent deaths. In Star Wars when Princess Leia is rescued by Han and Luke she exclaims “ha! Some rescue!” Leia also watches as an entire planet is destroyed without crying a tear. Instead she is pissed at Darth Vader for lying to her. Whatever powers Vader has, he was not successful at extracting any information from her during her interrogations. Leia also deflects Han’s come-ons throughout the movie and is also an excellent shot. Leia and Dorothy are women who have well integrated their animuses. What has happened to the damsel in distress? It is obvious in this film that the old ways of behavior for females have been abandoned. This film reflects the fact that women of this century are more integrated in their gender roles.

Both The Wizard Of Oz and Star Wars were groundbreaking in cinematography and special effects. Both required considerable more expense, labor and ironically more technology. The Wizard Of Oz is one of the first color motion pictures, and definitely the first to employ black and white as well as color in the same film. The film starts in black and white and lapses into color as Dorothy steps into Oz which is an inversion of waking life and unconscious experience, as many people purport of only dreaming in black and white. Star Wars’ special effects were a surprise to the public as were The Wizard Of Oz’s. Star Wars’ elaborate special effects are almost exclusively in battle scenes and weapons. This is somewhat of a reflection of the massive funds spent and to be spent on high tech electronic warfare in the US. The ground breaking special effects definitely give weight to these films. Their impact on the American public is like a slap from a Zen master which punctuates the message and is intended to catalyze insight.

And could there two films be pointing to more serious problems in our society? Neurosis? Dementia? Schizophrenia? Sociopathy? I mentioned above that the references to our German heritage could be pointing to our shadow. Could we be Darth Vader and The Wicked Witch? Indeed we have a dark shadow! We are Darth Vader when we wipe away scores of Native Americans and their cultures. We are Darth Vader when we use atomic weapons against men, women and children. We are the Wicked witch when we send CIA- death squads to Central and South America to massacre more Indians.

Now that we may look at these movies as mythological manifestations from our society’s collective subconscious and have subjected the contents to analysis, we see how much of our culture is actually reflected there. We should be more alert to the other manifestations of the collective unconscious occurring in our culture. Our own myths can tell us much about ourselves that may not be very apparent and academics in the past have deduced volumes about other cultures by studying those culture’s mythologies. Therefore we should reconsider our mythology , as well as our own individual dreams, and start to appreciate them as informative concordances to our lives.

Postscript , fall 1995.

Hitler was very much interested in the occult. Once he stated that he wanted that his stormtroopers to astrally project Hitler’s message onto the people as they marched and made thier presence. In Star Wars, Luke and Obi Wan meet the stormtroopers who are searching for them and thier droids. Obi Wan mentally seizes control of the stormtroopers’ thoughts and behavior, and as a result they are able to escape. Obi wan tells Luke that weak minds are easy to control. Then in the Death Star, Luke has to put on a stormtrooper’s uniform. When Luke puts on the stormtrooper helmet he says: “I can’t see a thing”, as sight is not needed for the stormtrooper under the mental control of Darth Vader . The idea of one powerful evil consciousness overpowering and controling so many more is artistically echoed in Star Wars. In the Nurenburg trials, why did so many claim that they were under orders, as if helpless to stop the inhumanity they were participating in. I think that this soys something more about being a handservant of the unconscious, that it may not always be constructive. Jung discussed the collective unconscious and the Nazi phenomenon in Civilization In Transition. Perhaps this is a timely warning about the destructive possibilities of collective behavior.

References and Sources

Berger, Arthur Asa (1984) Return of the Jedi: The Rewards of Myth. Society, May/June.

Bly, Robert (1990) Iron John. New York: Random House.

Campbell, Joseph (1988) An Open Life. Larson Publication: Burdot.

Freud, Sigmund (1958) On Creativity And the Unconscious. New York: Harper and Brothers.

Freud, Sigmund (1965) The Interpretation Of Dreams. New York: Avon.

Jung, C.G. (1953) Psychology and Alchemy. (RCF Hull Trans.) Princeton: Bolingen.

Jung, C.G. (1956) Two Essays on Analytical Psychology. Meridian: New York.

Jung, C.G. (1959) The Basic Writings Of C.G. Jung. (Violet Straub De Laszlo Ed.) Toronto: Random House.

Jung, C.G. (1964) Man And His Symbols. New York: Dell.

Miller, Martin and Spricht, Robert (1981) The Appeal Of Star Wars: An Archetypical-Psychoanalytic view. American Imago, 203- 21, Summer.

Time (1980) In The Footsteps Of Ulysses. P70, May 19.


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