Ruby Slippers In The Wizard Of Oz

In the depths of American Culture, several items define who we are. Many come to mind such as the declaration of Independence and the constitution. But, buried deep in the cockles rests a pop culture icon that represents early Hollywood, and the last 100 years in American culture. That item would be the Ruby Slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz (Fleming,1939). The film is almost a rite of passage in our society, and those shoes to many of us represent that times in our lives, mostly when we were young, when we first feared for the twister, wanted to get smarter with Scarecrow, got lessons from the Tin-Man, learned how to stand up for those around us from Cowardly Lion, and first learned what evil is with the Wicked Witch of the West. It is a time of our lives that many hold cherished to their hearts and share with generations anew and is represented by those slippers. However, those memories and feeling might be the only purpose that the slippers hold. Upon further look of the film, it can be determined that

Victor Fleming’s direction and attention to detail in the film has a distinct and almost cerebral way of mimicking real life, with Dorothy’s world in Kansas influencing what is in Oz. An Example of this is the use of dialogue to set up the traits of the Scarecrow, the Tin-Man, and the Cowardly Lion. Before Dorothy (Judy Garland) is transported to Oz, the audience encounters her in the real world in conversation with her farm hands, Bert (Jack Haley), Hunk (Ray Bolger), and Zeke (Bert Lahr).This is when Fleming inserts his magic, and Bert criticizes Dorothy that she does not have a heart ( in reference to the situation with Toto and Mrs. Gulch) and Hunk tells her to use her brain. This is succeeded with Dorothy falling into a pig pen, and Zeke saving her. queueing Bert and Hunk to make a insult around Zeke’s