Dorothy Must Die

These chapters show the threats within Dorothy’s palace closing in. The Tin Woodman is suspicious of Amy, which indicates either that he has heightened senses or that Amy has given herself away just enough to notice but not enough for even Dorothy’s rigged system to find proof. Jellia’s fall marks the moment Amy realizes that her actions affect others. By stealing the keys to help Ollie, Amy doomed Jellia and ruined the witches’ plans, thus requiring the witches to shift their attack quickly again. Initially, it seems like Amy’s room being torn apart means she’s been discovered, but when she follows Star, Amy finds that other rooms have also been trashed, which supports the idea that Dorothy doesn’t have as much control as she would like. The cracks in Dorothy’s rule are beginning to show, which is another element of dystopias. The protagonist discovering the government isn’t all-powerful is a crucial step toward allowing the rebellion to realize it can win.

These chapters show the different types of magic within the palace and how not all of it is at Dorothy’s beck and call. The Dorothy statue portal in Chapter 37 leads to a staircase and underground pathway that eliminates any evidence of people who’ve passed through. It may be that Dorothy designed these pathways this way, but since these paths seem to be secret and out of the public eye, Dorothy may not know about them because she would rather be where people can see and fawn over her, not hidden away. The hedge maze is an example of magic Dorothy doesn’t control. Star can navigate through the maze’s twisting pathways, possibly because rats are predisposed to being good at mazes. At a certain point, the maze clears a path for Amy, which suggests it sees her as an ally and, by extension, views Dorothy as a foe. Pete’s seemingly good rapport with the maze and his use of the fountain as a portal shows that the fountain responds to him and is likely his ally. It is even more helpful when Amy leaves the maze, which suggests it trusts her because she is also allied with Pete/Ozma.

Amy’s final thought of Chapter 37 shows that she still feels like the girl she was in Kansas despite all her character growth. Starting with her mother, Amy has felt abandoned, and losing Indigo, Ollie twice, Pete three times, and Gert have made her feel like most of the people she knows or cares for ultimately leave. This thought also shows Amy’s deepest desire—to feel loved and be appreciated. It’s never made clear if such a spell exists. So this line may be foreshadowing, or it may just be Amy coming to terms with things she wishes were different.

Dorothy’s actions in Chapter 38 are more examples of her oppression. She likely knows that Jellia isn’t guilty, but she doesn’t care as long as she has someone to make an example of. Her statement that there’s no room for wickedness is another tactic of tyrants in dystopian fiction—telling people something doesn’t exist when it clearly does. Under normal circumstances, the audience would be hard pressed to argue that what they just witnessed isn’t wicked, but Dorothy has defined wickedness as anything that goes against her. Using that definition, she can do whatever she wants in the name of goodness while telling her followers that someone who had good intentions is wicked before disposing of the threat to her rule.

These chapters likely set up the sequel. The needle that Ollie gives Amy allows Ollie to find Amy in the final chapters when she needs help. It foreshadows Amy going with Ollie at the end of the book and the role the monkeys will play in the rest of the series. The hedge maze plays no part in Dorothy Must Die other than as a place for Amy to meet up with Pete, but Pete’s motivation for showing Amy the maze suggests that Amy will use the maze in later installments. The maze seems loyal to Ozma, which could also be useful in the fight against Dorothy.