The Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion each have a “missing” characteristic that motivates them to travel with Dorothy to the Wizard of Oz- the Scarecrow wants a brain, the Tin Woodman wishes for a heart, and the Cowardly Lion yearns for courage. Dorothy’s initial interactions with these characters confirm that they are missing these things but later on in Chapters six and seven, I am not convinced that the characters are completely lacking these qualities.
As I pointed out in class, the Tin Woodman is the first character to make the reader question if he is truly missing something. He does this by weeping over the fact that he stepped on a beetle and killed it. While the Tin Woodman is literally heartless he does not act that way because typically someone who would be described as heartless would not cry over killing a bug. In the next chapter, where the group of four work together to defeat the Kalidahs, the Cowardly Lion and the Scarecrow also take action that makes me doubt that they are thoughtless or cowardly. The Scarecrow shows that he has a brain by having the idea for the Tin Woodsman to chop down a tree to make a bridge, the Lion calling it “a first rate idea” making one suspect “[he] had brains in [his] head, instead of straw.” (Page 81). The Scarecrow is also the one to think to cut down the bridge when the Kalidahs are on it, Frank Baum even writing that the Scarecrow had “been thinking what was best to be done,” (Page 82). I think that the Scarecrow is not as brainless as he thinks himself to be. The Cowardly Lion also declares that he will fight off the Kalidahs as long as he is alive. While he doesn’t have the opportunity to take action because of the Scarecrow’s quick thinking, he was offering to fight the Kalidahs, not just roar at them. I think this chapter sticks out because it shows the group bonding together for their harrowing journey, but I think these displays of action from Dorothy’s three companions are very revealing. As the book continues I wonder if we will continue to see more hints from L. Frank Baum that this characters aren’t as weak as they think they are.
As you pointed out, the characters perfectly exemplify the very traits they wish to obtain. There is no evidence to suggest that the characters lack these traits, aside from their own certainty. However, I think it’s more interesting to ask why Baum portrays characters who search for a trait they already exhibit. Is his message that people who think they lack a quality actively strive to gain it, and they ironically display the quality more than people who think they have it? Arrogant people who think they excel at something may not hone their abilities, and therefore may not truly display the traits they think they have. On the other hand, maybe Baum is simply encouraging us to be more introspective and value ourselves by appreciating our own abilities. Also, you did not address Dorothy’s desire in your post. Although I do not know the ending of The Wizard of Oz, I know that Dorothy wishes to go home, and following the logic of the other characters, this must mean she possessed the autonomy to leave Oz all along. Alternatively, her experiences in Oz and the relationships she formed could end up becoming another home for her, whether literally or figuratively.