Wicked, for Good? The Power of Narrative to Shape Public Perception

“Are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” Glinda the Good Witch asks this in the opening scene of the latest movie-musical Wicked, perfectly capturing the show’s central question. The show on its surface is about friendship, yes; but even more so, it’s about the power of narratives — how they’re constructed, whose stories are told, the role those stories play in shaping our perceptions of right and wrong and good and evil, and how they can define how people see others. 

Anyone familiar with The Wizard of Oz knows that all the residents of Oz deem the Wicked Witch of the West — with her green skin, cantankerous demeanor and scratchy voice — as the enemy.  That’s the story we’re told in one of the most well-known movies in cinematic history, and who has questioned it? We’re used to stories that neatly define good vs. evil, where good prevails in the end, wickedness must be punished, evil is effectively eliminated — and no one mourns. 

But Wicked tells a radically human, nuanced story about Elphaba before she’s labeled the Wicked Witch of the West and before Dorothy arrives in Oz. It challenges us to question dominant narratives and also demonstrates how those in power can shape narratives of “wickedness” for their own gain because “the best way to bring folks together is to give them a real good enemy.”

We may not live in Oz, but like those in Oz, our understanding of wrong and right and good vs. evil is shaped by the narratives that drive our perceptions of who is worthy of compassion and understanding and who isn’t. At Spitfire, we work with our partners to challenge dominant narratives intended to dehumanize, distract and divide us to prevent us from seeing that together we’re unlimited. Pop culture is one of the most powerful mediums for connecting with people and helping them to grasp narratives that advance social justice. 

We’re *holding space* for these important lessons on narratives gleaned from Wicked:

Approach Your Audience With Openness and Curiosity

People tend to tune out or double down on their beliefs when others directly challenge their points of view. As we all navigate an increasingly polarized society fomented by a sea of social media disinformation, we have to adopt new approaches to creating narratives that open people’s minds to different ways of thinking. If Glinda disrupted the “good news” celebrations in Oz by immediately stating the facts and telling the people of Munchkinland that everything they knew about the Wicked Witch of the West was a lie, they may have tuned her out. Instead, she challenged the dominant narrative of Elphaba’s wickedness by posing the question, “Are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?”

Break Through Dominant Narratives by Challenging Power

We know that we’re stronger when we work together, but those in power work overtime to keep us divided. They use wedge issues and disinformation to keep those of us working to create change at odds with one another. That way, instead of holding them accountable, we stay busy fighting with each other. The Wizard of Oz sat in his tower in the Emerald City spinning a narrative of Elphaba’s wickedness to drive Ozians’ fear of her — for the sole purpose of distracting everyone from the fact that he was a fraud who had no real power. His sole power was using narratives to turn Ozians against someone who was deemed “different.” This didn’t solve the issues that Ozians faced after the Great Drought almost destroyed their land. It simply enabled the Wizard to evade accountability for doing nothing to better the lives of all who live in Oz.

Connect With Unlikely Allies by Building Trust

While Elphaba and Glinda ended up becoming two best friends at Shiz University, they began as enemies filled with unadulterated loathing for each other. In the beginning, it was clear that they couldn’t be more different in how they saw the world and how the world saw them. Over time, they slowly opened up to one another with curiosity that enabled them to build trust in one another. As the story became more complicated with the introduction of the Wizard, the bond that Elphaba and Glinda built came under pressure, but their connection remained. By meeting with and talking to people who may hold different beliefs from us, we can find common ground among unlikely allies that makes space for working together in partnership. 

There’s more to Elphaba and Glinda’s story that will come in 2025 with the release of Wicked: For Good, just as there is more to the stories we tell with and for our partners. But these three lessons give us a solid base from which to defy gravity. We will share more lessons in the new year on how we can use narratives to shift public perception in favor of racial and social justice.