Winged Monkeys
The Winged Monkeys are a remarkable and complex group of creatures in the Land of Oz, distinguished by their immense, powerful wings and their capacity for both mischief and loyalty. They are not a single character but a band, ruled by a King, and their history is deeply intertwined with the magical politics of Oz. Their most defining characteristic is their binding servitude to the owner of the Golden Cap, a magical artifact that compels them to obey three commands. This enchantment, born from a past transgression, shapes their every action in the story, transforming them from a free and playful people into instruments of both evil and good.
Origins and Enchantment
The Winged Monkeys were not always servants. Long before Oz came to rule, they were a free people living happily in the great forest, flying from tree to tree and doing as they pleased. Their nature was full of mischief; they would pull the tails of animals without wings, chase birds, and throw nuts at people walking in the forest. This carefree existence ended when they encountered the powerful sorceress Gayelette and her beloved, Quelala. Just before their wedding, the King of the Winged Monkeys at the time, the grandfather of the current King, played a cruel joke. He and his band seized Quelala, who was dressed in a rich costume of pink silk and purple velvet, and dropped him into the middle of a river. Though Quelala swam to shore unharmed, his clothes were ruined. Enraged, Gayelette captured all the Winged Monkeys and initially threatened to tie their wings and drown them. However, at the pleading of the Monkey King and a kind word from Quelala, she spared them on a single, binding condition: the Winged Monkeys would forever after obey the owner of the Golden Cap three times. This Cap, made as a wedding present for Quelala, became the instrument of their servitude. The first owner, Quelala himself, used his command to order the Monkeys to stay away from Gayelette, a command they were glad to obey.
Role as Agents of the Wicked Witch
The Golden Cap eventually fell into the hands of the Wicked Witch of the West, who used two of her three commands to consolidate her power. First, she commanded the Winged Monkeys to enslave the Winkies, making her the ruler of their country. Second, she used them to drive Oz himself out of the Land of the West. When Dorothy and her companions entered her territory, the Witch, having exhausted her other magical defenses, used her third and final command. The Winged Monkeys, appearing with a great chattering and flapping of wings, were ordered to destroy all the strangers except the Lion, whom the Witch wanted to harness like a horse. They executed this command with brutal efficiency. Some Monkeys seized the Tin Woodman and dropped him from a great height onto a field of sharp rocks, leaving him battered and dented. Others caught the Scarecrow, pulled all the straw from his clothes and head, and threw his empty garments into the top branches of a tall tree. The remaining Monkeys bound the Cowardly Lion with stout ropes and carried him to the Witch's castle. However, when the leader of the Winged Monkeys approached Dorothy, he saw the mark of the Good Witch's kiss upon her forehead. Recognizing that she was protected by the Power of Good, which is greater than the Power of Evil, he dared not harm her. Instead, they carried her gently to the Witch's castle and set her down on the front doorstep, their duty to the Witch now fulfilled.
Service to Dorothy and Glinda
After the Wicked Witch was melted, Dorothy discovered the Golden Cap in the Witch's cupboard and wore it without knowing its power. Lost in the fields on their way back to the Emerald City, she was advised by the Queen of the Field Mice to use the Cap's charm. Reading the words inside the lining, Dorothy spoke the charm and summoned the Winged Monkeys for the first time. The King bowed low and asked for her command. When she wished to go to the Emerald City, the Monkeys carried the entire party swiftly through the air, this time treating them with care. The King himself made a chair of his hands for Dorothy, and the Scarecrow and Tin Woodman, though initially frightened by their previous treatment, found themselves riding cheerfully. This journey was also the occasion for the King to tell Dorothy the long story of their enchantment. Later, when Dorothy needed to cross the hill of the Hammer-Heads to reach Glinda's castle, she used her second command to summon the Monkeys once more. They carried the travelers safely over the hill, beyond the reach of the angry Hammer-Heads, and set them down in the beautiful country of the Quadlings. This was the last time Dorothy could summon them.
Liberation and Significance
Dorothy ultimately gave the Golden Cap to Glinda the Good Witch. Glinda used her three commands not for her own gain but to ensure the happy futures of Dorothy's companions and to grant the Winged Monkeys their ultimate freedom. She commanded the Monkeys to carry the Scarecrow back to the Emerald City, the Tin Woodman to the Land of the Winkies, and the Cowardly Lion to his forest. Having used up the powers of the Golden Cap, Glinda then gave it to the King of the Monkeys, declaring that he and his band would thereafter be free forevermore. The Winged Monkeys thus serve as a powerful narrative device, illustrating the themes of bondage and freedom that run through the story. They are a force of nature, bound by a magical contract, whose actions are determined not by their own will but by the moral character of the Cap's owner. Their journey from free spirits to enslaved servants and finally to liberated beings mirrors the journeys of the main characters, who also seek to be freed from their own perceived limitations. They are a testament to the idea that even the most mischievous and powerful creatures can be agents of both great harm and great good, depending on who holds the power over them.
