Hook: Freud's Ideal Dream

If only Freud were still alive to watch his theories manifest themselves in Hook. Though Hook’s tagline remains “What if Peter Pan grew up?”, it should read, “What if Neverland represents a Freudian dreamland?” In Hook, Peter Pan (Roger Williams) married Wendy’s granddaughter and returned to the real world to become a corporate lawyer. Hook kidnaps Jack and Maggie, Peter Pan’s two young children. To get back to reality, Jack must overcome his Oedipus complex to reunite with his father and Peter Pan must go through intense psychoanalysis. It is a difficult journey for both, but a necessary one for complete psychosexual development.

Jack’s dilemma in Hook is the very epitome of the Oedipus complex. The first indication of Jack’s stunted sexual development is his foreshadowing plane crash drawing. Peter Pan and his family see this drawing on their flight to visit Wendy in London. In this adolescent drawing of the Pan family falling from a burning plane, Peter Pan, Jack’s father, is the only one drawn without a parachute (Hook).
In accordance with Freud’s Oedipus complex, Jack’s drawing represents his subconscious desire to kill off his father because he is in love with his mother. In this way, Jack has “unconscious genial desires to accomplish the deeds that Oedipus Rex did live out in classic Greek tradegy” (Keitlen 25). For the sexually developing Jack, his mother “becomes a separate object, removed from his ideal self. Thus she can be the subject of object love” (“Oedipus Complex”). A drawing representing Peter’s death shows the unconscious drives of the Oedipus complex driven Jack.

However, Jack isn’t the only character in Hook with unfulfilled psychosexual development. Peter, the grown-up overworked lawyer, shows many of the warning signs for unresolved sexual problems in his past. One of the defense mechanisms Peter Pan clearly shows as soon as the Pan family enters Wendy’s house is displacement. When Peter has to answer an urgent work call from home, he snaps at Jack, yelling at him to “shut up” (Hook).

This displaced anger, according to Freudian theory, is a result from Peter’s anger at his repressed past (“Displacement”). Indeed, this is intriguing as Peter’s repressed past manifest in displacement, Peter’s other Freudian defense mechanism. As reinforced by Harvey Mullane’s “Defense, Dreams, and Rationality”, defense mechanisms or “symptom-formations” have “a sense; more particularly, all the senses represent, the argument goes, a strategic accommodation between conflicting ideas or desires” (Mullane 187-188). Peter does nothing to resolve his repressed past. That is, until an alternate reality meshes with Peter’s reality.

When Peter and his wife are off at a charity ball for Wendy, Captain Hook comes and kidnaps Jack and Maggie. Though it is difficult to explain how an imaginary world gained contact with reality in a Freudian lens, Peter’s slip into Neverland has a simple explanation. After multiple drinks of gin shots, Peter falls into an alcoholic slumber (Hook).

The importance of Peter Pan’s reliance on drinking alcohol lies in his Freudian fixation. As will be discussed later, Peter Pan’s childhood at the crucial oral stage of his life becomes chaotic and he is not able to successfully segway out of the oral stage. Thus, Peter experiences an oral fixation (a need to have touch on his lips) in adulthood. This unconscious fixation contributes to Peter’s drinking as it alleviates this desire momentarily.

Upon becoming unconscious, Tinker Bell appears and takes him to Neverland. It is important to note here, Freud, in his The Interpretation of Dreams states, “Dreams are not comparable to the spontaneous sounds made by a musical instrument struck rather by some external force than by the hand of a performer; they are not meaningless, not absurd” (1). By this definition, Neverland is a shared dream between Peter, Jack, and Maggie. As a dream, Peter and Jack create Neverland as the opportune place to discover and overcome their sexual barriers.


Immediately in Neverland, the image of the hook is presented. In dreams, different images can represent hidden sexual desires (Freud). Captain Hook’s hook is a symbol of ideal sexuality to Peter Pan. The idea of Hook’s hook being an ideal penis helps to understand Hook’s control over the other pirates. Indeed, before Captian Hook comes out of his cabin to address the pirates, they chant, “Hook, hook, where is the hook?” The perfection of Hook’s phallic body part originally captivates Peter Pan too upon entering Neverland. Only through Tinkle Bell’s negotiations does Peter escape the hook’s intoxicating pull.

In this dreamland, Hook symbolizes the perfect male, father figure Peter must aspire too. This is clear as Jack begins to associate with Hook as a father figure. Slowly, Hook convinces Jack that he, Hook, will be a better father than Peter. In addition to Hook’s enviable hook, Jack finds comfort in not having to compete with Hook for a mother figure, as there are no female pirates in Neverland. Jack can easily become close to Hook because of this lack of competition.

As Freudian theory states, competition with the father for the sexual desire of the mother is a crucial part of the Oedipus complex (“Oedipus Complex”). As previously stated, Jack’s relationship with Hook develops so quickly because of the missing mother role in Neverland. Furthermore, Hook engages both Jack and Maggie in a type of propaganda to further highlight the lack of femininity in Neverland. On a whiteboard, Hook writes, “Why parents hate their children” (Hook). Through this lecture, Hook further complicates Jack’s Oedipus complex as he, Hook, attempts to desexualize Jack’s mother. Hook knows that if he can successfully destroy all of Jack’s sexual desire for his mother, than any competition, grudge, or anger toward Hook as the new father will be eliminated.


As part of Peter Pan’s training to be ready to fight Hook, he goes through a quasi-psychoanalysis to reveal and sort out Peter’s troubling past. As psychoanalysis is simply “A method of mind investigation. And especially of the unconscious mind,” Peter can examine himself without a secondary psychologist or full-length couch (“A Definition”). This psychoanalytic section of Hook strengthens a Freudian interpretation because it shows the self-reflection and analysis need to overcome suppressed sexual desires which lead to defense mechanisms in the present.

Peter’s psychoanalysis begins when he spots his childhood teddy bear lying on the floor (Hook). While holding this teddy bear, the symbol for Peter’s childhood in Neverland, memories come flooding back to him; it is as if he is lying on the psychologist’s couch remembering his past. Through Peter’s remembrances, he reveals the trauma of his childhood: Peter was an orphan, an orphan taken in by a single lady, Wendy (Hook). This is significant for a psychosexual ready for two reasons.

First, because Peter decided to “run away” from his family, his oral stage of development was severely destroyed. Because the baby Peter had no mother to nurse from, he developed the “oral character” which shows in adult Peter’s “pessimism, envy, and sarcasm” (“The Oral Stage”). Freudian theory argues if Peter had received the right care from his mother, in the form of a nipple to suckle from during the oral stage, he would have completed the oral stage with no setbacks and would have eliminated any suppressed discomfort from this important stage.

Next, the lack of a father figure in Peter’s early upbringing contributed to his desire to “always be a kid” (Hook). Adolescent Peter attempts to stay in Neverland as a child because he has no male figure to look up to or resemble. Though contemporary critics point this out to be a major flaw in Freudian theory, Freud would argue any child brought up without a father will suffer from unresolved sexual conflicts. Peter himself manifests these Freudian psychosexual conflicts in the repression and displacement he clearly displays at the beginning of Hook.

The beauty of psychoanalysis lies in its results. Indeed, once Peter is able to remember and diagnose the problems of his youth, he becomes a new man, freed of all fixations and defense mechanisms. Indeed, upon remembering his “happy thought”, the birth of Jack, Peter begins to fly. In this dream world Neverland, flying is the symbol for ultimate personal freedom, freedom that only comes, in the Freudian world, from resolution of all psychosexual developmental stages.

As Peter flies over the Lost Boys in Neverland, juxtaposition is set up. Peter can fly because he has resolved his psychosexual developmental stages and can therefore fly; on the other hand, the Lost Boys, including Rufeo, their leader, cannot fly. Therefore, logically, none of the Lost Boys have successfully transitioned through any or all of the Freudian stages of development. Again, this explains why the pirates in Neverland, including Hook cannot fly either.



As Hook reaches its climatic ending, Peter and Jack are reunited. Because Hook so completely engulfed Peter’s ideas on the perfect father, what with Hook’s phallic hook and propaganda lessons against mothers, Jack now views Hook as his rightful father. When Peter stretches out his hand to Jack and states, “Let’s go home,” Jack’s allegiance to Hook is apparent as he walks over to Hooks and states coldly, “I am home” (Hook). In this twisted alternate reality, the very boundaries of Freudian theory are tested. Though Freud did not have an exact theory or belief on this topic, it can be safely assumed through his other writings that Freud would see Hook as a second, better father-figure for Jack. Not only does Hook have a bigger, better penis (hook), he also does create the tension in Jack sexually that Peter and his wife create in him.



Before Peter and his family leave Neverland, Peter must face Hook for one last final duel. This is necessary from a Freudian perspective because Hook represents all of Peter’s fears and childhood repressions. As Peter Pan and Hook fight, Peter gains strength and vitality, while Hook begins to lose strength and falter (Hook). This is symbolic of the success of Peter’s psychoanalysis in Neverland. It is clear to all in Neverland, pirates and children alike, that the new, brave Peter fighting Hook is not the cowardly man who first came to Neverland. Though Freudian dream interpretation is no longer used in mainstream psychology, it has its place and role in modern literature and cinematography. Hook, including this final battle scene, all fit under the scope of Freudian psychoanalytical and psychosexual reasoning.

After Peter kills Hook, he must elect a leader, a father-like figure in a world of only children (Hook). Through the eyes of Freud, this is a necessary action to help establish healthy psychosexual development in the children. While the boys in Neverland say they “never want to grow up”, they still will have to go through the psychosexual stages Freud laid out for them; if the boys of Neverland do not go through these stages in the right time, they will suffer from the same defense mechanisms and fixations Hook himself was plagued with. Fortunately for the boys in Neverland however, there seems to be a dream-like time bubble. Because of this, the boys would not experience any of the repercussions of stunted psychosexual development unless they left Neverland for reality. Never the less, Peter sets up a father figure for the boys to ready them psychosexually for reality if they so chose to leave Neverland one day.



The finishing touch for a Freudian reading of Hook comes in Peter’s return to reality. Before Tinker Bell leaves Peter for the return trip back to Neverland, she says, “I’ll always be in that place between awake and asleep” (Hook). This simple phrase is a clear definition of dreams in general. Even Tinkle Bell, the minutest character in Hook can see the role dreams like Neverland play in the healthy psychosexual development of individuals, both adult (Peter) and child (Jack). Peter also gives a significant command to Jack which further reinforces a Freudian perspective. Peter instructs Jack to “always keep open” the large bay window in the London house they are staying at (Hook). The open widow symbolizes the willingness to use dreams as an interpretative device into psychological development of the individual because it is through this very window the dream of Neverland came to Jack, Maggie, and Peter.

In conclusion, Hook is the ideal cinematographic representation of the essence of Freudian psychosexual theory. Through psychoanalysis and dream interpretation, Peter is able to successfully resolve his defense mechanisms and oral fixations. Jack, through the dream of Neverland and the lure of Captain Hook overcomes his Oedipus complex and reunites in a healthy relationship with his father. If proof is needed to continue to use Freudian readings in literature and film, Hook is that proof.

Works Cited

"Oedipus Complex." College of Liberal Arts : Purdue University. Web. 11 May 2010.

"A Definition." Sigmund Freud - Life and Work. Web. 11 May 2010.
Freud, Sigmund, and Joyce Crick. The Interpretation of Dreams. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.

"Freud's Psychosexual Theory." Psychology Resources in India and World. Web. 11 May 2010.

Hook. Dir. Steven Spielberg. Perf. Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, and Julia Roberts. TriStar Pictures, 1991. DVD.

Keitlen, Seymour. Oedipus Complex : a Philosophical Study. College Station, TX: Virtualbookworm.com, 2003. Print.

Mullane, Harvey. "Defense, Dreams and Rationality." Synthese 57.2 (1983): 187-204. JSTOR. Web. 5 May 2010.

"Psychosexual Development." The Victorian Web: An Overview. Web. 11 May 2010.

Dorm Room Confessions: Postmodernism at its Best

Though “Dorm Room Confessions” is set up in a parody-style, the subject matter itself aligns with Postmodernism’s most closely held virtues. Because Postmodernism is a reaction against Modernism, it changes all of Modernisms rules and views on science, religion, thought, speech, and language. Postmodernity refers to the incipient or actual dissolution of those social forms associated with modernity" (Sarup). In short, Postmodernism defies Modernism by defining all truth as relative. Through this perspective, there are many paths which lead to relative truth, not just one path to one truth.

The “Dorm Room Confessions” are students’ examples of how, through Postmodernism, they can have ideas be truth that Modernists would call ridiculous. For example, the two girls who state happily, “For me, Starbucks is so cheap”, are pointing out a statement that is true for some individuals. Yes, Starbucks is one of the most expensive coffee houses when compared to others, but to a wealthy person, a five dollar frappacino is mere trump change: thus, cheap. This is just one of the examples brought up in “Dorm Room Confessions”. While some of the ladies’ claims seem outlandish, “Kelly Clarkson and I are the same person,” some of their Postmodernism statements are held as truth by many individuals (“Speed limits are just a suggestion,” being one). In a nutshell, Postmodernism attempts to explain reality through “the relative truths of each person” (Postmodernism).

Works Cited

Sarup, Madan. An Introductory Guide to Post-Structuralism and Postmodernism.

Atlanta: University of Georgia Press. 1993. Print.

“Postmodernism”. PBS: Counterbalance Foundation. 3 May 2010. Web.

“Dorm Room Confessions: Fun With Postmodernism.” YouTube. 3 May 2010. Web.

Finding Nemo is the very antithesis of Luce Irigaray's Feminist theories. In her mind, the mother-daugther is the most important in the successful (or in some cases unsuccessful) development of an individual. Pixar's Finding Nemo puts so much important on a healthy father-son relationship, it completly ignores any mother-daugther relationships, a very sexiest and unequal potrayal of reality in Irigaray's eyes.

Schoolhouse Rock Foucaultian Style

Ahh Schoolhouse Rock, my childhood friend how you deceive me. According to Foucault Schoolhouse Rock is right. Knowledge is power. "Power-knowledge" is Foucault's term which shows the close correlation between power and knowledge. This definition implies serious consequences. Knowledge can never be neutral, it is determined by those in power. So this simple Schoolhouse Rock clip isn't as simple as meets the eye.

My Part

Last Wednesday, I had the honor and the privilege to be able to present Marx's main ideas to our Critical Theories class. It was nice to see the activities, slides, and clip work out very nicely. It seemed as though the students were engaged in our presentation throughout.

For our presentation to be success we had hoped for, we broke down Marxism into sections that each one of our group members took as their own. Each member than became an expert on their section and created powerpoint slides off of it. My section mainly dealt with the sell of labor and the Capitalist class. In order to connect my information with my audience, I made a hypothetical scenario which showed exactly how we sell ourselves to the Capitalist class on a daily basis. I feel this went over well with the class. Next I showed examples of who compose the Capitalist class (i.e. Dell, Apple, Von's, Staples, etc.) Again, I felt this connected well with the students.

Though I was nervous going into the presentation, once it started, I was happy to introduce the class to Marxism. Looking forward to the next group's presentation.

Drum Corp International (DCI): A Musical Captialist System

The Drum Corp International is the serious, worldwide musical extension to high school marching bands. DCI is "Marching Music's Major League" (DCI). Every dedicated musician who commits their time, energy and dedication to one of the many DCI drum corps (composed of brass instrumentalist, percussionists, and color guard members)is enlisting themselves into a capitalist machine. This system is neither good nor bad, it simply is what it is. According to a Marxist perspective, each musician is capital to the non-profit DCI corporation. But here comes the irony of this capitalist system. The individual musicians are not paid any wages, in fact, they must pay thousands to even take part. In Marx's "Wage Labor and Capital" section of Political Critism a capitalist system looks at any employee as simply a part of the production process, another raw material if you will (Marx 660). In the case of DCI, each musician is the ultimate raw material, as they not only contribute to creating the unique and entertaining field shows DCI runs on, they buy into DCI while aiding in the creation of more capitalist products (DVDs, shirts, bumperstickers, etc.)
If DCI ran according to Marxist ideals, each member of every drum corp in the DCI would receive an equal share of the overall profits created by all of their combined labor (559). Instead of paying thousands of dollars each to march, the musicians would receive a small amount of money, equalizing them with the staff who run DCI in Indianapolis, Indiana. However, this is not how DCI runs, nor will it ever run in this fashion. Through and through, DCI is a prime example of how effective exploiting a labor force can be to a large capitalist corporation.

Works Cited

"DCI Info". Drum Corp International. 2010. 10 April 2010. Web.

"Wage Labor and Capital". Literary Theory: An Anthology. Ed. Rivkin, Julie and Ryan, Micheal. Blackwell Publishing 2004: (559-664). Print.

Lacan's Belief

The influential French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan would have much to say about the above clip. Fortunately for those concerned with Lacan's interpretation, I have applied his theories to this clip. On the most fundamental Lacanian level, the pilots who survived this terrible crash will never be able to overcome their trauma. Because, according to Lacan's theory on the unconscious, these pilot's unconsciouses will never be able to return to their previous selves. Severe trauma will always permanently negatively affect an individual, that is, according to Lacanian theory.

If Only Hamlet Had A Song...

Lyrics to Mc Lars' "Hey There Ophelia"
The name's Hamlet and I've got a tale
about madness, lust and a female.
Dad's a ghost and he roams the floors,
lurks at night in Elsinore.
Got a pale face just like Kiss paint,
normal you know this ain't.
Something is rotten up in Denmark, a sick mistake.
My uncle Claudius, his alibi is fishy,
suspicions of murder because he's acting hella shifty
Frailty - Thy name is woman, because my mom's on his D
A-N-I-S-H throne, my dad's ghost tells me:
"Swear (swear, swear), to revenge my regicide,
Claudius iced me one night, under my crown he tries to hide.
So Hamlet here's your mission:
Use your antic disposition
make them think you're crazy,
bring justice, fuse the fission."
Meanwhile my girl Ophelia is goth as hell
keeps a razor by her wrist, rocks out to Soft Cell.
This girl's got more issues than Amy Winehouse,
I'm like 'Get thee to a nunnery, I'm not trying to find a spouse...'
and she says:
"Screw that, forget about that,
I don't want to think about anything like that.
Screw that, forget about that,
I don't want to know about anything like that!"

[Chorus]
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Forget it though)
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Just let it go)

I'm an emo prince, non-committal as could be,
you'd be non-committal too if you were flawed like me.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are on my back and I've had it,
I've got these players down from Norway let them practice in the attic.
I'll have them reenact the murder, watch my uncle's expression,
the play's the thing to catch the king and teach him a lesson.
My uncle freaks out at the play
I know he did it just like OJ.
Can't 187 while he prays because Hamlet won't play that way (nope).
Confront my mom throw her down on the bed,
because this Oedipus complex has got me stressed in the head.
Then I killed my girlfriend's Dad, he was spying now he's dead,
I screamed at my Mom while the blood made the carpet turn red.
See kings lose crowns but princes stay intelligent,
R. Kelly has girl problems? This is drama, that's irrelevant.
Ophelia bursts in throwing columbines and daisies.
Singing songs about virginity gone, - she's honest but she's crazy.
And she says:
"Screw that, forget about that,
I don't want to think about anything like that.
Screw that, forget about that,
I don't want to know about anything like that!"

[Chorus]
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(You've got to see)
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Not you it's me)

We've got clowns in the graveyard and I'm talking to skulls,
we've got murder and incest, who said Shakespeare was dull!?
My girlfriend took her life, and I'm like, "goodness gracious!"
Her brother wants to duel - Laertes is too pugnacious.
My uncle dipped the tip of the saber in poison (duel time)
then he poisoned the cup that mom started enjoyin' (tool time).
I got stabbed with the poison sword, then I stabbed my girlfriend's brother,
and then I stabbed my uncle and we've all killed each other.
To be or not to be? Well I guess that solves that one.
And I would have stayed in Whittgenberg if I'd known that this would happen.
If you're ever up in Denmark on a moonlit night,
you'll hear Ophelia's sad song when the full moon's bright.
Baby I'm sorry I messed up, goodnight my sweet princess,
may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest...
and they sing:

[Chorus]
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Forget it though)
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Just let it go)
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(You've got to see)
I've got nothing to do but hang around and get screwed up on you
(Not you it's me)

Analysis: This song by MC Lars is an accurate summation of the troubles of Hamlet's subconscious/conscious life. As the song states, Hamlet is as "non-committal" as he could have been throughout Hamlet. Because of his Oedipus Complex, a reinforced theme throughout the play, Hamlet has "got nothing to do" but "get screwed up" on his romantic emotions for his mother. Last, as the song states, Hamlet's oppression is based out of his own longings ("Not you it's me").

The Man in the Mirror

A glimpse into one man's fractured life:

Look at me. Pathetic. O, how my eyes droop, my skin sags. It is hard to believe, but I was once full of life. I had everything...Everything! A beautiful wife, two wonderful children, and yes, even a cute little dog. What happened to me? Where did I go and who is this sickly skeleton of a man I must now call my reflection?

It is because of my sins that I must now suffer. Alcohol, how I hate you! How I wish you were human so I could strangle your sinister neck. How you have ensnared me, O, how you have tricked me. "Come," you said, "I will make your world right. I will take away your pain". I believed you! I believed you, you snare, you trap, you devil! How was I to know you would consume my life? Why didn't you tell me I would loose my wife?

Look at me. Disgusting. O, how tangled my beard is, how revolting I look. Is there chance for redepetion? Only time will tell. For now, I sit and stare at my dead reflection in the mirror.

Formalist Analysis:

"The Man in the Mirror" analysis stemmed from a formalist reading of the picture above. Based off the frazzled hair and beard, one could surmise this man is so lost in his internal world, so consumed by this thoughts that aesthetic value has no bearing on his mind. A clean, sharp haircut would have conveyed the opposite message of the current image. On top of this, the man has very large bags under his eyes. These dreary accents on his face could have been caused by lack of sleep or stress. Either way, the bags indicate trouble in this picture. The far-off gaze is the final element to this formalist reading. The gaze indicates forlorn or remorse. All in all, this man paints a classic picture of pain and agony.

Disney's Alice in Wonderland: Bakhtin's Dream

Disney’s Alice in Wonderland reflects the epitome of the carnivalesque genre. The topsy-turvy, bizarre world of the Mad Hatter and the March Hare throw social rules, traditions, and regulations out the door. Mikhail Bakhtin’s carnivalesque literary mode subverts the hierarchy in society by making all equal through humor and chaos. The leveling comedy in carnivalesque literature harkens back to carnivals themselves. Bakhtin thoroughly believed that through all the “jolly relativity” of carnivals and festivities, that true equality is reached. The tea party scene in Alice in Wonderland serve as a visual representation of the carnivalesque. For example, Alice is constantly jostled around and confused by the Mad Hatter and March Hare’s flat rejection of all social rules.

Through this chaos, logic and reason fall victim to spontaneity and bewilderment. Through Disney’s carnivalesque Alice in Wonderland, the very fabric of society is tested to its very core.

Plato's Cave in Wizard of Oz

What does little Toto have in common with the Platonic prisoner from “The Allegory of the Cave?” Everything. Toto’s reveal of the wizard’s true identity and the resulting aftermath is clearly comparable to the prisoner’s startling revelation of reality. In three specific ways, The Wizard of Oz serves as a metaphor for “The Allegory of the Cave”: The wizard acts as the puppeteer creating an alternate reality, Toto gets privy to the true reality, and Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and the Tin Man choose to accept this true reality. It may not have been Victor Fleming’s envisioning when he directed The Wizard of Oz, but this 1939 film serves as a modern allegorical cave.

Upon entering the vast wizard’s residence, the Flamboyant Four (Dorothy, Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, and Tin Man) feel prey to the wizard’s illusion of reality. Like the prisoners chained in the “underground den”, the flamboyant four are limited “and can only see before them” (Plato 1). The blinders that cover the group’s eyes make them oblivious to the fluttering curtain on the left; just as the chained prisoners cannot see the “low wall” which hides the “marionette players” (Plato 1, Fleming). Based on the pre-set location and trapped responses, the wizard’s hall mirrors Plato’s Allegorical Cave.

The Flamboyant Four would have continued to operate under their illusion of their reality if it were not for the insight of Toto. Unlike Plato’s unwilling prisoner, Toto chose to reveal the true reality. Toto’s reveal of the wizard did not, as Plato claimed, make Toto “suffer sharp pains” nor become “perplexed” (Plato 2, Fleming). This separation from Plato’s prediction could be explained if Toto never fully accepted the false reality the wizard tried desperately to make real. Indeed, this explanation would explain the Flamboyant Four’s response to the stunning truth. It is worth noting that the perplexity and pains were endured by the wizard, the creator of the false reality.

After the great reveal of reality, only the wizard seemed to have issue with the change. This flips Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave” on its metaphorical mind as it is the “puppeteer” who could not face the truth, not the “prisoners”. In fact, instead of confusion, Dorothy simply, strongly condemns the wizard, “Shame on you” (Fleming)! In an alternate reality, where Victor Fleming could collaborate with Plato, it is very possible “The Allegory of the Cave” would have an alternate ending. Instead of a prisoner who is mocked by his new knowledge of truth, the prisoners would rise up against the oppressive puppeteers (Plato 3).

All in all, the reveal of the wizard on The Wizard of Oz serves as a modern-day “Allegory of the Cave”; that is, with a new take on the classic metaphor. The Wizard of Oz allows viewers to feel acceptance with facing and discovering truth, not fear or perplexity.

Works Cited

"The Allegory of the Cave". The Republic. Plato. Accessed 30 January 2010. http://websapce.ship.edu/cgboer/platoscave.html

The Wizard of Oz. Dir. Victor Fleming. Perf. Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bogler, Bert Lahr, and Jack Haley. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. 1939.

How Plato's Ion is a Precursor to PB Shelley's Poetic Philosophy

A Reading of Homer's Iliad, Much Like A Performance from Ion of Ephesus

In Plato's Ion, Plato enters an intellectual discussion with Ion of Ephesus which clarifies the source of this rhapsode's incredible, specialized skill. Briefly, Plato (with occasional interjections from Ion) expounds upon his theory of inspiration. In Plato's philosophic mind, a rhapsode, such as Ion, cannot only be knowledgeable on one poet's writings; that is, unless, the rhapsode is divinely inspired. As Plato explains to the baffled Ion, it is only because of "...divine dipensation that makes you such a formidable praiser of Homer" (Plato 8). In addition, Plato compares this "divine dipensation" compares to a magnetic rock which attracts metal rings. The orginal poet (in this case Homer) as the magnetic source, and the rhapsode (Ion) is the second ring, the audience to this rhapsode the third (7). Over two millennia later, an influential poet by the name of Percy Byron Shelley would raise Plato's Ionic argument to a new level.

Image of Mont Blanc; The Representation of the PB Shelley's Supernatural Power/Imagination

Present in a numerous amount of his writings, the source for PB Shellian poetic inspiration comes from a higher source, much like Platonic supernatural muses. This firm belief/theory is clear through the entirety of "Hymn to an Intellectual Beauty". Unlike other Romantic poets, PB Shelley believed in the supernatural influence on humans, especially in the form of poetry. Though Plato's Ion of Ephesus did not compose his own poetry through some greater power, he received this same supernatural charge by reciting Homer's poetry. This power of inspiration is mirrored by PB Shelley's statement in "Mont Blanc" that poets occasionally will receive a "feeble brook" from the "everlasting universe of things" (much like Plato's supernatural gift).