Surrender Lyra!
Tonight, as part of the celebration of our second wedding anniversary, my sweet husband and I went to see the Golden Compass.
If you enjoyed The Wizard of Oz, you may wish to give The Golden Compass a spin. It’s a classic “hero’s journey” story that incorporates powerful symbolism that will leave you spellbound for days.
The keen-eyed viewer might even spot a surprising number of similarities between the two movies. Here are some that my hubby, the consummate Wizard of Oz fan, noticed:
| Movie | Wizard of Oz | Golden Compass |
| Protagonist | Dorothy …an orphan who lives with her aunt …leaves home to find herself |
Lyra …an orphan in the custody of her uncle …leaves home to find her lost friends |
| Protagonist’s Alter-Ego | Toto …dog |
Pan …a transforming animal |
| Evil Antagonist | Wicked Witch of the West …tries to steal Toto …has flying monkeys |
Mrs Coulter …tries to separate the children from their daemons …has a golden monkey |
| Ally #1 | Glinda the Good Witch …descends from sky …brings ruby slippers |
Serafina Pekkala …descends from sky …empowers Lyra to use Golden Compass |
| Ally #2 | Balloon Pilot (the Wizard) | The Aeronaut (Lee Scoresby) |
| Ally #3 | Cowardly Lion | Ice Bear |
| Ally #4 | The Munchkins | The Gyptians |
| Magic Charm | Ruby Slippers | Golden Compass |
| Destination | Emerald City …protected by moat |
Bolvangar …protected by ice bridge |
Has anyone else noticed any similarities? If so please feel free to add your comments.
Technorati Tags: Lyra, Golden Compass, Mrs. Coulter, monkeys, Wizard of Oz, witches
Posted: December 10th, 2007 under Symbols.
Comments: 3
Comments
Comment from Ottobock
Time: December 25, 2007, 3:09 pm
Wizard of Oz, as you may or may not know is an Illuminati symbolic movie, with much symbolism refferring to the struggles and truimphs of the 20th century. Yellow brick road being gold and wealth, the Wizard, being the ruling elite, Dorothy finds out the man behind the curtain is a fraud, just as our own government and ruling elite have been fraudelent, from the illegal Federal Reserve, rigged elections and assasinations to the Hegelian Dialectic, problem reaction solution techniques that are used to keep everyone in fear, like communism and terrorism., as a means of control. Next up, the attack of Extra Terrestrials. It’s ok, the masks are coming down and they know it, that is why this terrorism is being used. It’s a war on Terra, which is an ancient word for compassion. Even the Shock and awe was to be known to Islam as what they kno as Shekinah, the spirit, or in this case, the attack on their spirit. People in the US need to start doing their homework and learn what these movies are trying to say.
Comment from mary
Time: December 29, 2007, 1:16 am
The Wizard of Oz is the example of character interplay of \’journey\’ using the four primary elements of earth (Dorothy), Air (Scarecrow), Fire (Lion) and Water (Tin Man). Through their separate and united quest, they join together – with the encounters forged as they battle the Evil (witch) – these for basic elements of nature evolve.
And delightfully, return from magic on only a thought, to become humans. Hmmm…. I guess I\’ll enjoy the Golden Compass, thanks for the encouragement.
Gone With the Wind is a much more involved demonstration through story of the turning wheel of astrological aspects. The mystery of living and evolving in universal simplicity, through being human. LOL!
Happy Holidays!
Comment from The Magpie Herself
Time: January 3, 2008, 9:31 pm
Terra is Latin for Earth.
Terror is from Latin “terrorem”, meaning great fear or dread.
The two words are not related.
There is a critical literary theory that Baum’s story is an allegory of the US political economy of the 1890s: the Yellow Brick Road is the Gold Standard, Dorothy’s slippers represent silver (in the book they are silver, in the movie they are ruby) as an alternative standard supported by William Jennings Bryan. The Scarecrow is the farmers and the Tin Man is the industrial workers. The Wicked Witches of East and West represent the bankers and the railroads, Eastern establishment who threaten the livelihood of the common people (Munchkins).
The book The Golden Compass (Northern Lights in UK) is much better and richer than the movie. The movie felt choppy to me, probably due to a cinematically necessary compression of timeline and characters.
Read all three books of the His Dark Materials series (The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass). They go beyond blasphemy into heresy.
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