Chapter 9 - The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Masterwork Analysis

Hello and welcome to the StoryGrid Masterwork Podcast. We're part of a growing StoryGrid community that includes thousands of writers and editors from all over the world. We're dedicated to helping writers improve their craft through books, podcasts, courses, and online forums. In this StoryGrid Masterwork podcast, we'll be reading and analyzing great books to learn what makes them work so well. I'm your host, Bib Bailey. This season, we're reading the Wonderful wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum's classic novel about a young girl's heroic journey. In each episode, I'll read you one of the book's 24 scenes and then we'll analyze the scene using storygrid tools and methods in order to understand how and why this story endures and still captivates readers more than a century after it was written. Editor and publisher Sean Coyne developed StoryGrid during 30 years in the storytelling business. He's applied his knowledge to dozens of best selling fiction and nonfiction stories and now shares what he's learned in the StoryGrid community. You'll find a full introduction to StoryGrid's method of analyzing scenes in the first episode of this series. Now let's review how we'll analyze today's scene. If you're already familiar with StoryGrid, you can skip ahead 1 minute 40 seconds to start listening to the scene. We use five first principles to analyze any story. First, we look at a story both as a whole and in smaller parts. In this podcast, we'll dissect the Wonderful wizard of Oz in parts, scene by scene. Second, we look for a change inside the world of the story, because all stories are about change. Third, we figure out how the change is linked to a universal human value such as safety, love, or justice. Fourth, we sum up the change in that human value in a single sentence called a story event. To find the story event, we ask four Socratic questions. These questions help us see what's actually happening in the scene, what the character's essential tactics are, and how they connect to the universal human value at stake. Fifth, when we know our story event, we look at how the scene is constructed by using what we call the the five commandments of storytelling. The five commandments we'll find in each scene of the Wonderful wizard of Oz are the inciting incident, which kicks off the action the turning point, progressive complication, an unexpected event that turns the human value at stake in the scene and gives rise to the crisis, which is a dilemma about how to confront the unexpected event. The climax which is the decision and action a character takes in response to the crisis, the resolution, which is the outcome of the action of the climax. Now let's step onto the yellow brick road with Dorothy and listen to this week's scene and analysis.

The Wonderful wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Scene 9 the Queen of the Field.

Mice we cannot be far from the road of yellow brink now, remarked the.

Scarecrow as he stood beside the girl.

For we have come nearly as far as the river carried us away.

The tin woodman was about to reply when he heard a low growl. And turning his head, which worked beautifully on hinges, he saw a strange beast come bounding over the grass toward them. It was indeed a great yellow wildcat, and the woodman thought it must be chasing something, for its ears were lying close to its head and its mouth was wide open, showing two rows of ugly teeth, while its red eyes glowed like balls of fire. As it came nearer, the tin woodman saw that running before the beast was a little gray field mouse. And although he had no heart, he knew it was wrong for the wildcat to try to kill such a pretty, harmless creature. So the woodman raised his axe, and as the wildcat ran by, he gave it a quick blow that cut the beast's head clean off from its body, and it rolled over at his feet in two pieces. The field mouse, now that it was freed from its enemy, stopped short, and coming slowly up to the woodman, it said in a squeaky little voice, oh.

Thank you, thank you ever so much for saving my life.

Don't speak of it, I beg you. Replied the woodman. I have no heart, you know, so I am careful to help all those who may need a friend, even if it happens to be only a mouse.

Only a mouse.

Cried the little animal indignantly.

Why, I am a queen, the queen.

Of all the field mice.

Oh, indeed. Said the woodman, making a bow.

Therefore you have done a great deed.

As well as a brave one in saving my life, added the queen. At that moment, several mice were seen running up as fast as their little legs could carry them, and. And when they saw their queen, they.

Exclaimed, oh, your majesty, we thought you would be killed. How did you manage to escape the great wildcat?

They all bowed so low to the little queen that they almost stood upon their heads.

This funny tin man, she answered, killed the wildcat and saved my life. So hereafter you must all serve him and obey his slightest wish. We will.

Cried all the mice in a shrill chorus. And then they scampered in all directions. For Toto had awakened from his sleep, and seeing all these mice around him, he gave one bark of delight and jumped right into the middle of the group. Toto had always loved to chase mice when he lived in Kansas, and he saw no harm in it.

But the tin woodman caught the dog in his arms and held him tight while he called to the mice, come back, come back. Toto shall not hurt you.

At this, the queen of the mice stuck her head out from underneath a clump of grass and asked in a timid voice, are you sure he will not bite us? I will not let him, said the woodman, so do not be afraid. One by one the mice came creeping back, and Toto did not bark again, although he tried to get out of the woodman's arms and would have bitten him had he not known very well he was made of tin. Finally, one of the biggest mice spoke.

Is there anything we can do?

It asked, to repay you for saving.

The life of our queen.

Nothing that I know of, answered the woodman. But the scarecrow, who had been trying to think but could not because his head was stuffed with straw, said quickly.

Oh, yes, you can save our friend, the cowardly lion, who is asleep in the poppy bed.

A lion? Cried the little queen.

Why, he would eat us all up.

Oh, no.

Declared the scarecrow.

This lion is a coward.

Really? Asked the mouse. He says so himself, answered the scarecrow.

And he would never hurt anyone who is our friend. If you will help us to save him, I promise that he shall treat.

You all with kindness. Very well, said the queen.

We trust you, but what shall we do?

Are there many of these mice which call you queen and are willing to obey you?

Oh, yes, there are thousands, she replied.

Then send for them all to come here as soon as possible and let each one bring a long piece of string.

The queen turned to the mice that attended her and told them to go at once and to get all her people. As soon as they heard her orders, they ran away in every direction as fast as possible. Now, said the scarecrow to the tin.

Woodman, you must go to those trees by the riverside and make a truck that will carry the lion.

So the woodman went at once to the trees and began to work, and he soon made a truck out of the limbs of trees from which he chopped away all the leaves and branches. He fastened it together with wooden pegs and made the four wheels out of short pieces of a big tree trunk. So fast and so well did he work that by the time the mice began to arrive. The truck was all ready for them. They came from all directions and there were thousands of them. Big mice and little mice and middle sized mice, and each one brought a piece of string in his mouth. It was about this time that Dorothy woke from her long sleep and opened her eyes, and she was greatly astonished to find herself lying upon the grass with thousands of mice standing around and looking at her timidly. But the scarecrow told her about everything, and turning to the dignified little mouse, he said, permit me to introduce you.

To her Majesty, the Queen.

Dorothy nodded gravely and the queen made a curtsy, after which she became quite friendly with a little girl. The scarecrow and the woodman now began to fasten the mice to the truck using the strings they had brought. One end of a string was tied around the neck of each mouse and the other end to the truck. Of course, the truck was a thousand times bigger than any of the mice who were to draw it, but when all the mice had been harnessed, they were able to pull it quite easily. Even the scarecrow and the tin woodman could sit on it and were drawn swiftly by their queer little horses to the place where the lion lay asleep. After a great deal of hard work, for the line was heavy, they managed to get him up on the truck. Then the queen hurriedly gave her people the order to start, for she feared if the mice stayed among the poppies too long, they would also fall asleep. At first, the little creatures, many though they were, could hardly stir the heavily loaded truck. But the woodman and the scarecrow both pushed from behind and they got along better. Soon they rolled the lion out of the poppy bed to the green fields where he could breathe the sweet, fresh air again instead of the poisonous scent of the flowers. Dorothy came to meet them and thanked the little mice warmly for saving her companion from death. She had grown so fond of the big lion, she was glad he had been rescued. Then the mice were unharnessed from the truck and scampered away through the grass to their homes. The queen of the mice was the last to leave.

If you ever need us again, she said, come out into the field and call and we shall hear you and come to your assistance. Goodbye.

Goodbye, they all answered, and away the queen ran, while Dorothy held Toto tightly, lest he should run after her and frighten her. After this, they sat down beside the lion until he should awaken, and the scarecrow brought Dorothy some fruit from a tree nearby, which she ate for her dinner.

Now let's use storygrid first principles to Analyze the scene. A story event is an active change of a universal human value for one or more characters. As a result of conflict, one character's desires clash with another's or an environmental shift changes the value positively or negatively. A working scene contains at least one story event. To determine a scene's story event, answer these four Socratic questions.

What are the characters literally doing? That is what are their micro on the ground actions?

The Tin Woodman saves the queen of the field mice from a wildcat and the Scarecrow figures out how to use the mice to get the lion out of the poppy field. Question number two. What's the essential tactic of the characters? That is what macro behaviors are they employing that are linked to a universal human value?

The Tin Woodman acts out his kind hearted worldview when he sees an injustice and the Scarecrow uses his innate insight generative capacity to leverage the Woodman's kindness. Question number three. What universal human values have changed for one or more characters in the scene? Which one of those value changes is most important and should be included in the story? Grid spreadsheet.

Life and death stakes continue to drive the story as the Tin Woodman saves the life of the queen of the field mice who returns the favor by saving the lion's life. When in doubt, the story grid rule of thumb is to highlight the value that best aligns with the progress of the global human value at stake in the story. The Wonderful wizard of Oz is an action story which has a global value at stake of life death. Throughout the story grid spreadsheet, we'll track the ways life is threatened or enhanced. Seen by scene, the value shift is clear unconscious to conscious. Question number four. What story event sums up the scene's on the ground actions, essential tactics and value change? We will enter that event in the story grid spreadsheet. The Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow figure out how to save the lion with the help of field mice. Now let's examine how this scene abides the five commandments of storytelling. What's the inciting incident? Answer. A wildcat chases a field mouse. What's the turning point? Progressive complication. Answer. The field mouse turns out to be the queen of all the mice. What's the crisis? Answer. It's an irreconcilable goods choice. If the mice save the lion, he could kill them. But to not save the lion is to not repay the life giving gift of the Tin Woodman. What's the climax?

The queen of the field mice orders her subjects to help the Tin Woodman and Scarecrow what's the resolution?

Together, the group is able to move the lion into safe fields.

Thanks for listening and please join Dorothy, Toto and me on the next leg of our fantastic journey. If you're writing or thinking about writing a story about a heroic journey, you'll be interested in Sean Coyne's upcoming online seminar devoted to helping writers understand and use the heroic journey in their own work. It's a macro and micro examination of why these stories speak to us so compellingly and how to use the heroic journey to level up Your writing using StoryGrid specific tools. It includes a trip to the Shire to do a macro analysis of J.R.R. tolkien's the Hobbit, with a few detours to Oz and Emerald City along the way. Go to www.storygrid.comhero to find out more. We'd love to see you there. This has been Bib bailey for the StoryGrid Masterwork podcast. I'll see you next time.

My prettiest.