How It All Goes Down
The Root of Evil
- Well, this is a rather fitting chapter title for a Witch's origin story.
- Meet the parents of the Wicked Witch of the West: Frexspar (a.k.a. Frex) and Melena, who live in Rush Margins, Munchkinland. (Frex and Melena aren't short Munchkinlanders, by the way.)
- Melena is pregnant and complaining about how huge she is.
- Her husband is less than interested in the imminent birth of his first child. He is a minister (yes, the Witch's father is a religious leader) and he has a big sermon to give today.
- Melena goes outside to do some chores and sings to herself, thinking about her baby boy.
- Frex dresses up in black and practices his sermon.
- The two get into a small spat over breakfast. Melena is mad that Frex plans to leave her today when she is expecting to go into labor.
- Frex thinks going out to scold people for immoral behavior is more fun and less messy.
- Frex even thinks that a potential failed sermon is better than childbirth: "to fail in the cause of a high moral concern was satisfying to him. How could it compare with the flesh, blood, mess, and noise of having a baby?" (1.1.44)
- Frex leaves, and Melena is resigned to being alone for the day.
- Fun fact: We learn about religion in Oz here. Frex is a "Unionist" minister who believes in the "Unnamed God." Unionism sounds like a rough equivalent to Protestantism.