ESTABLISHING OZIAN GEOGRAPHY

by Jim Vander Noot

Originally published in The Baum Bugle, vol. 35, no. 1 (Spring 1991), pgs. 13–16

Citations

Chicago 17th ed.:

Vander Noot, Jim. “Establishing Ozian Geography.” Baum Bugle 35, no. 1 (1991): 13–17.

MLA 9th ed.:

Vander Noot, Jim. “Establishing Ozian Geography.” The Baum Bugle, vol. 35, no. 1, 1991, pp. 13–17.

(Note: In print, this article was supplemented with illustrations that have not been reproduced here.)

 

By the very nature of its plot, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) poses several geographical questions. Where is the Land of Oz? How can you get there? How do you get out of Oz? Dorothy Gale found herself marooned in a fairyland that was geographically isolated from the familiar world of Kansas, and the physical barrier of the great desert prevented her from returning home.

L. Frank Baum’s chronicles of Oz and its surrounding countries encompass a diversity of territories apparently developed for their story value alone, with little regard for geographical cohesion. Inconsistencies of plot details as well as the physical location of his various realms indicate that Baum was more concerned with spinning a good yarn than developing a fairyland cosmology as have done some other fantasy authors. Even the integration of his other fairy countries into the Oz series seems primarily motivated by plot concerns. What better source of foreign visitors for Ozma’s birthday party than lands already familiar to Baum’s readers? (Baum may also have introduced the characters to boost sales for his other fantasies at a time when he was growing tired of writing the Oz series.) And where would be more natural for Button Bright to pop up than in a popcorn snow bank in the Land of Mo?

Although it was probably not part of his original plan in writing non-Oz fantasies, Baum did successfully incorporate his other fairy countries into the Oz stories, and he introduced new territories bordering on the Deadly Desert and the surrounding kingdoms. Ruth Plumly Thompson continued in the same fashion, describing countless new lands both inside and outside of Oz. She even went so far as to name the Ozian continent “The Continent of the Imagination” and devoted an entire book, Captain Salt in Oz (1936), to the exploration of the Nonestic Ocean. Other Oz authors made similar contributions, though on a smaller scale.

What are the problems facing us when we attempt to fit the pieces together and map these countries? Almost at once we find discrepancies. As the series develops, original countries change position, and new ones are sometimes wedged in between them. Each book stands very much on its own and, although references are made to previous events and places, most of the Royal Historians made little effort to remain consistent in the details.

Still, we may be able to discern some overall patterns by mapping the geography of each book. From these individual maps, we can attempt to build a composite picture of the continent for each Oz author. Perhaps in this way we may find a greater uniformity.

In this study, we shall confine ourselves to the lands beyond the Deadly Desert and will consider the sub-countries of Oz only insofar as they have a direct bearing on the orientation of external lands. Travel times and distances will only be considered where they materially affect our map; these represent cartographic issues that require a separate study.

Textual descriptions will be regarded as the primary authority. Information gained from illustrations and maps by John R. Neill and the other Oz illustrators will be given less weight. Where textual conflicts occur, preference will be given to the text that is most compatible with other references. In cases where there is not enough information to determine consistency, earlier references will be given priority.

We can conceptually divide Baum’s Oz tales into groups according to the state of geographical development. The first two books present Oz as an isolated fairyland in direct contrast with our everyday mortal world. Ozma of Oz (1907) introduces the notion of an Ozian continent and provides our first glimpse at fairylands along the borders of Oz. The next two books can be considered the “Ozdysseys” because of their rambling journeys through hitherto unexplored lands. Included in this group as well will be The Emerald City of Oz (1910), which includes journeys that take place within and outside the borders of Oz. The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1913) takes place entirely within the borders of Oz; any mention of external countries would be indirect and therefore of secondary authority. From Tik-Tok in Oz (1914) through Rinkitink in Oz (1916), we enter the period where Oz is rediscovered by mortals (and others) after being cut off from the world by Glinda’s invisible barrier. The remainder of the Baum books tell us little more about the outside countries with the exception of The Magic of Oz which, in the course of a couple pages, dramatically alters our previous vision of the borderlands.

 

Fairyland and the Mortal World

Geography is all-important in Baum’s first writings of Oz. We are told that on all sides of Oz, “There is a great desert, and none could live to cross it” (The Wizard, p. 26). The Land of Oz is contrasted with the outside world, and we are given the impression that the desert separates the two without any intermediate countries.

Accounts of travel between the two bear this out. Dorothy and O.Z. Diggs (the Wizard of Oz) both fall asleep during their first journeys to Oz and awaken in the fairyland without perceiving anything in between. Dorothy’s magical return to Kansas is too abrupt to furnish any further detail.

The implication that the outside world directly borders on the desert is clearest in the following passage:

 

“Well, I’m not sure about Kansas,” said Oz, “for I haven’t the faintest notion which way it lies. But the first thing to do is to cross the desert, and then it should be easy to find your way home.” (The Wizard, p. 204)

 

Of course, this is merely a supposition on the Wizard’s part, but it does indicate the limit of Baum’s concept of Oz when the book was written.

The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904) reinforces the distinction of fairyland from outside world. We are told that the creature known as the Gump must have flown beyond the desert into “the terrible outside world that Dorothy told us about” (p. 211). Here again, no mention is made of any intervening countries, although this may be explained because the Gump made his initial flight through the night.

The descriptions of men, animals, and cities overflown by the Gump indicate that Baum was referring to the outside world. Even the contents of the jackdaw’s nest confirm this assumption. It is possible to argue that Ev and some of the other magical lands described in later Oz books could have been perceived as “countries of men” by the travelers. However, the tone of the story does not favor this interpretation.

When we examine the directions indicated in the text, we find that the Gump departed from the Emerald City, turning “toward the South” during what must have been the late afternoon[1] (p. 205). From later sections of the narrative, we must conclude that the Gump’s original flight path was to the southeast. Upon leaving the jackdaw’s nest, the Gump flew due north, reentering the Land of Oz in the Munchkin country. This is only possible if there is a strip of Munchkinland bordering on the south desert. That assumption agrees with the map of the Land of Oz published by the International Wizard of Oz Club, as well as the map endpapers of the first edition of Tik-Tok of Oz. Therefore, we must locate the jackdaw’s nest due south of this section.[2] And, in between, if we accept Baum’s description, the outside world does indeed touch upon the Deadly Desert.

 

The Ozian Continent

For several reasons, Ozma is of particular interest to the geographer. As noted, it is here that we first encounter the concept of an Ozian continent. We are introduced to the Nonestic Ocean, the Land of Ev, and the Dominions of the Nome King, all of which figure prominently in subsequent titles of the Oz series. Additionally, in Ozma, Baum was kind enough to provide us some very precise descriptions including directional details.

Dorothy’s adventure began with a shipwreck in the Pacific Ocean on her way to Australia. The fact that she washed up on the shores of Ev suggests that the ocean is a point of contiguity with the outside world and might help us to locate Oz on our own globe. Beyond the beach, we find a forest; at the edge of the forest grow the lunch box and dinner pail trees. In between are some rocky hills where the machine man, Tik-Tok, has been imprisoned. The forest must be very small, for Dorothy and her companions traverse it during the course of a brief conversation.

Indeed,  the entire Land of Ev seems little more than a narrow strip at this point. When Dorothy is confined to the north tower of the palace of Ev, she can see both the desert and the ocean. Her room is described as “not so very high up, when compared to our modern buildings, but far enough above the trees and farm houses to give her a good view of the surrounding country” (Ozma, p. 101). This in itself might allow us to conceive of Ev as about ten miles across. However, we are told that Dorothy believed she could locate the chicken coop on the shore from the tower; in this case it is unlikely that Ev could be more than three to five miles wide.

Directions are very clearly stated. Dorothy’s window in the tower faces north. The forest, sands, and ocean are in the east. “A little way from the palace,” the Deadly Desert stretches westward (p. 102).

To the north lies the entrance to the Nome Kingdom. The rocky passage between the two mountains probably begins about eight to ten miles north of the royal palace. From the description of the march down the valley, we can estimate another two or three miles to the end of the path.[3]

The text locates the palace of the Nome King under the third mountain. The mountain is doubtless more extensive than this reference indicates. The full expanse of the Underground World is nebulous and probably unimportant, for references in other books suggest that it has outlets all over the known world as well as in fairyland. This may account for some apparent discrepancies.

What about the orientation of Ev with respect to Oz? Ozma’s procession began the desert crossing at early morning and, before sunset, reached “the green slopes and wooded hills” of the Munchkin Country (p. 255). If we assume a nine to ten hour trip at a pace of four miles per hour, the desert would measure about 35 to 40 miles here. Since the King of the Munchkins met the procession, the site of their landfall could be ascertained if we knew the Munchkin capital at this stage of Ozian history. There has been no mention of a currently reigning Munchkin king prior to this time (nor of the kings of the other three countries, save Nick Chopper; the mention of the King of the Quadlings is a particularly isolated reference). If we consider later history (i.e., titles written by Ruth Plumly Thompson, who continued the Oz series after Baum’s death), the best choice for the arrival point would be a northern one, near the Sapphire City.

By the conclusion of Ozma, the map of Oz has undergone drastic changes. There are now other fairylands in the “cosmos,” both above and below ground. There is an ocean, too, although it is not a part of Oz itself. Most important of all, Baum has set the stage for much of the geography of the rest of the series.

 

 

1. Several references are used to reinforce the idea that the fugitives were uncertain of their direction. It is stated that the sun was low in the sky. Tip says that it will soon be dark and, once the sun sets, Baum describes the night as so dark that the travelers could not even see each other.
2. I have chosen this placement in order to honor the “due north” direction in the text. In order for the Gump to cross the Munchkin Country and enter the Quadling Country while traveling north, there must have been a crosswind. Naturally, this wind would circulate entirely within the borders of Oz, otherwise the deadly fumes of the desert might reach the Ozites on their own ground.
3. This is an estimate based on the descriptions of the journey on pp. 140–145. From the flow of the narrative, we can conclude that the trip to the valley probably occupied two hours. In this terrain, a pace of four or five miles per hour is possible. The length of the passage down the valley is undoubtedly shorter. Considering the roughness of the trip and the obstacles, two or three miles seems appropriate.

 

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