Why does water melt the Wicked Witch of the West?
The Wicked Witch melts because she is an empty shell. The water cleanses away her wicked exterior and, with nothing inside to hold her together, she melts. Sort of a reverse baptism. Let’s face it, the Wizard was an analogy for God…. And Dorothy represented goodness. Goodness triumphs over evil. Not getting religious. Just my view.
If you agree with this, then who does Glinda, Good Witch of the North, represent?
There is no explanation given in The Wizard of Oz as to why water dissolved and destroyed the Wicked Witch of the West. The only indication might be in an incident when Toto bites her: “The Witch did not bleed where she was bitten, for she was so wicked that the blood in her had dried up many years before.” Many believe that she had extended her life through magical means for so long that there was actually very little of her left, and so the water was enough to finally break her down. Some people have remembered that she was made of brown sugar, which is why she melted so easily — but I don’t think she could be considered to be anywhere near that sweet! The book actually described her demise this way: “…Dorothy…was truly frightened to see the Witch actually melting away like brown sugar before her very eyes [emphasis mine].” Similarly, the impact of Dorothy’s house landing on the Wicked Witch of the East caused her to turn to dust.
