Wicked | Study Guide

Gregory Maguire

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Wicked | Infographic

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Check out this Infographic to learn more about Gregory Maguire's Wicked. Study visually with character maps, plot summaries, helpful context, and more.

wicked-gregory-maguireWickedby the NumbersInitials of L. Frank Baum (L.F.B.), author of The Wizard of Oz, used phonetically to create Elphaba’s name in Wicked 3Novels in TheWicked Years series published between 1995 and 20114Years between Wicked’s publication and the openingof the Broadway musical adaptation8Elphaba’s age when she spoke her first word: horrors ~2A former professor of children’s literature, Maguire often takes familiar stories and presents them with an original perspective. His first and most popular adult novel, Wicked, and the other volumes in his Wicked Years series were inspired by his childhood love for The Wizard of Oz.GREGORY MAGUIREBORN 1954AuthorMAIN CHARACTERSElphabaOutsider guided by a senseof justice; becomes Wicked Witch of the WestEvil Is a Matterof PerspectiveNessaroseSweet young woman; becomes Eminence of the East—the oppressive rulerof MunchkinlandYears before Dorothy lands in Oz, another young girl, Elphaba, grows to adulthood under the Wizard’s oppressive regime. She spends her life fighting evil and tyranny, but years of resistance make her wicked in her own way—cast out and alienated from her sister, Nessarose, and her one-time friend, Glinda.GlindaSuperficial, self-absorbed girl; becomes a good witch but retains a dark sideThemesSymbolsWaterRepresents the forces that can create life and take it away, especially for ElphabaSilver ShoesSymbolize Frex’s love for Nessarose, her emergence into independence and power, and Elphaba’s jealousy MirrorRepresents Elphaba’s ability—and sometimes inability—to see and understand the past, present, and futurePowerThe formerly powerless are corrupted when they assume power, and they do whatever it takes to hold on to it.Good & EvilGood and evil are open to interpretation; nothing is black or white as Elphaba’s good intentions veer off course.InterconnectionElphaba, Glinda, and Nessarose follow their own paths, but their fates are intertwined.Oatsie Manglehand, Book 4ne never learns how the witch became wicked,or whether that was the right choice for her.Sources: Encyclopaedia Britannica, GregoryMaguire.com, Seattle Times,The Universe of Oz: Essays on Baum’s Series and Its Progeny edited byKevin K. Durand and Mary K. Leigh, Writer’s Digest Copyright © 2017 Course Hero, Inc.EnglishOriginal Language1995Year PublishedGregory MaguireAuthorWickedFantasyNovel
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