Pfannee

Pfannee is a student at Crage Hall, a college for girls at Shiz University, and a member of the wealthy social circle that includes Milla and Shenshen. She is a Munchkinlander of diminutive stock, unlike the full-size Thropp family. Pfannee is one of the first girls Galinda befriends upon arriving at Shiz, and the group quickly becomes a tight-knit clique that defines the social hierarchy of the freshman class.

Identity and Social Position

Pfannee is defined by her wealth and her place within the elite social circle at Crage Hall. She is one of the "better girls" that Galinda, who initially sees herself as their rightful peer, seeks out as friends. Pfannee's social standing is such that she can afford to host a summer holiday at a house called Caprice-in-the-Pines on the shores of Lake Chorge, an invitation that becomes the centerpiece of a cruel practical joke. Her identity is constructed through her association with other wealthy students and her contempt for those she considers beneath her, particularly Elphaba.

Cruelty and Mockery of Elphaba

Pfannee is a primary agent of the social persecution that Elphaba endures at Crage Hall. She is the first to spread gossip about Elphaba's evident poverty and her "sickly and sickening color." When Elphaba enters the buttery for coffee, Pfannee and her friends escalate their laughter, deliberately excluding and humiliating her. Pfannee's cruelty is not merely passive; she actively initiates the mockery, using Elphaba's background and appearance as a source of entertainment for the clique. This behavior establishes Pfannee as a representative of the casual, unthinking cruelty of the privileged class.

The Lake Chorge Hoax

Pfannee's most significant action is the orchestration of a cruel hoax against both Elphaba and Glinda. During the summer holiday, Pfannee forges a letter of invitation to Elphaba, signing Glinda's name. The letter, written in a style that mimics Glinda's voice, invites Elphaba to visit Caprice-in-the-Pines. When Elphaba, Glinda, Boq, and Avaric arrive, the deception is revealed. Pfannee collapses on the floor of the gazebo, "writhing in laughter" at the success of her scheme. The prank is designed to mortify Glinda and to expose Elphaba to a setting where she is clearly unwelcome, demonstrating Pfannee's capacity for calculated social cruelty. The hoax causes a significant rift between Glinda and Elphaba, and it is only through Boq's insistence that the trip proceeds at all.

Relationships and Narrative Role

Pfannee's primary relationships are with her fellow socialites, Milla and Shenshen, and with Galinda, whom she initially accepts into their circle. She is also briefly linked to Avaric, who stays behind at Lake Chorge to "disport himself with Pfannee and Shenshen" after the hoax is revealed. Pfannee's role in the narrative is to embody the petty, class-based cruelty of the upper-class students at Shiz. She serves as a foil to Elphaba's seriousness and to Glinda's eventual growth beyond such superficial concerns. Pfannee represents the social world that Elphaba rejects and that Glinda must learn to see through. Her actions, particularly the forged letter, are a catalyst for conflict and for the eventual, if temporary, bonding between Elphaba and Glinda.

Change and Ending

Pfannee does not undergo any significant character development. She remains a static figure of shallow malice. After the Lake Chorge incident, she fades from the narrative, mentioned only in passing as part of the old crowd. Her final appearance is as a member of the group that gathers after the murder of Doctor Dillamond, where she is described as one of the girls who "huddled in chattering circles" in shock. She is not given a personal resolution, and her story ends as it began: as a minor, unrepentant antagonist within the social microcosm of Crage Hall.