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.