You remember Toto, right? He was the little dog that was the very best friend of Dorothy in the Oz books. Did you know that he could talk? If you had read as many Oz books as I have, you'd find that out early on.
Oz is a fairyland, and all fairylands have their own rules. When an animal moves from our realm into Oz, they are then given the gift of speech. This happened many times within the Oz series, but the one thing that many would take note of was that Toto did not do anything but bark and whimper.
It was not until the eighth book entitled "Tik-Tok of Oz" that Toto said his very first words, and it came about because Dorothy started to wonder why all the other animals could talk... but Toto never did. And even though he finally did say something, he went back into his usual dog noises afterwards. The reason he did this was because Dorothy could always understand him anyways. When he barked, she knew what it meant. She did not need to hear it in English to understand anything.
It was a very clever moment when he finally spoke. He pretty much just confirmed that he could talk and then ran away. Just knowing the truth really helped me understand how Oz worked and what being there meant. Things just work differently there. The rules and laws of the universe don't always apply there.
As I continue reading far into the series, there is a bit of escapism to Oz. I do often find myself thinking about what it would be like to visit. I think some of it might be a bit scary, but the adventure and exploration aspect seems a bit too tempting for me not to stop by.
Just imagine what it would be like to talk to any animal you find. In fact, you could bring your own pet and then have a conversation with them. It's a pleasant thought. I hope you found this little sidestep amusing.
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VERY interesting. Though quadrupeds can walk on two legs, they prefer their natural state. Likewise, when Toto could speak as if a human, he preferred to bark like a dog.
ReplyDeleteAt least in the case of Toto, he preferred to be a regular dog. I think he spoke to other animals though.
DeleteFascinating that Toto could talk but only chose to reveal it at certain moments. Makes sense that the magic of Oz would allow animals to talk. Imagine Vincent in Oz, now there is a scary thought haha.
ReplyDelete*shiver...*
DeletePeople often fantasize about visiting another world. Such places would have their own rules, which one must abide by. Though these lands are fun to read about, you might not want to live there.
ReplyDeleteAdmittedly, it isn't for everyone. Not even I know if I would like it in the long run or not.
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