Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

Author: Gregory Maguire

To be honest I noticed this book in the book store because of two reasons, one: It has a cool book cover and unusual design. Second: the title itself interested me. As the title says it’s in an account of the life of the wicked witch of the west whose name is Elphaba. It started when she was born into a mother that came from a wealthy known politician at the eastern side of OZ and a father who is a pastor that preaches the doctrine of the unknown god. And also since birth she has been afraid of the water. The second part of the book tells about her life in college (in school) and there she met Galinda later known as Glinda the good witch. How she had fought in research for equal rights for the Animals (which are talking animals like the animals in Narnia) alongside her professor in biology and her friends in school. (This was abolished when the wizard of Oz came to Oz) Here in this part you can see the normal struggles between the citizens and the ruling government. Racial issues are also being tackled in the book. How people detach themselves by race and social classes. This is common in our time, even though how much we believe that there are human rights and equality in race, gender, social classes, etc... There will always be discrimination. Here we could see that the wicked witch of the west isn't so wicked after all but just a girl who fought for equality with Humans and Animals and hoping that one day there will be equal rights with women and men as well. Here she faced the wizard of Oz for the first time and decided that she dropped herself in school and pursue her idealism. Also we learn here that the witch who got hit by Dorphy's house is in fact the wicked witch of the west's sister who was born armless and was favored more by their father than Elphaba herself. On the 3rd part of the book, a couple of years has already gone by and that Elphaba has hidden herself in the Emerald City the capital of Oz. There she met a college friend which eventually became her lover and died on the night she want to do a job that will trigger a rebellion against the tyranny of the Wizard and failed the mission. On the 4th part of the book another jump of time where Elphaba traveled to the west in the home town of her dead lover to ask for forgiveness by his widow and children. Along she came to their footsteps with her son to her lover and was welcome heartily by the widow of her dead lover and wasn't given a chance to say to her the real reason for the widow won't allow her. Along her time in the west she has been branded by the wizard as the wicked witch of the west and her sister the wicked witch of the east because her sister has ruled their homeland behind the doctrine of the unnamed god. In the last part of the book is pretty much like the end story of the Wizard of Oz. The wizard told Dorthy to kill the wicked witch of the west and then he will help her go home. But I think by now we all know what happened to Elphaba the wicked witch of the west. Although in this part of the book it was revealed how Elphaba got her green skin. (A shocking and an irony of fate) The book is a nice reflection of human society. How people manipulate people to do their bidding. How politics play an important role in gaining power. How people in the high sets illuminate the competition and the threat to their power. How people who got the brains and the guts to fight back are forced to be fugitives of law. No matter how we say that we treat people equally we still unconsciously discriminate people who are different from us. And indeed a proof that no person is born wicked but only the cruelty of the human society breeds them.

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