As part of my three part series, I’m discussing three iconic feminine archetypes in fairy tales and storytelling, how they relate to each other in relation to the trinity of the female psyche (maiden, mother, crone). Read part one on Evil Stepmothers.
In direct reflection of the innocent maiden, the darkside of this archetype is the Wicked Witch.
The Wicked Witch is an incredibly powerful symbol. In some cultures to this day, being accused of witchcraft will result in your death. You can even be running for President of the United States and hurl the label at your female opponent to destabilise her campaign. To clarify, in this article I'm focusing on a specific aspect of the archetypal Wicked Witch in some stories, not the multifaceted Witch as a whole as it is deeply complex and I simply don’t have the time. If you are interested in learning more, I recommend listening to BBC Radio’s podcast “Witch.”
In Western culture, we love witches on our screens, especially teenage witches. We love them because we are fascinated by the possibility of them possessing a power that a teenage girl does not have: the ability to control the world around her.
The Craft (1999)
However, teenage girls can also be cruel, even more so to one another. If you attended high school with girls, you would have seen firsthand their capacity for viciousness. There is no fear like a gang of older girls at school laughing at you. Their acceptance holds a power like pulling Excalibur from the stone.
We all have a Wicked Witch within us, regardless of what gender we are.
The difference between the Evil Stepmother and the Wicked Witch, while they are both negative feminine archetypes, is one distinct difference. While the Evil Stepmother’s specialty is self sabotage and is confined to the home (your mind), the Wicked Witch archetype is pervasive. She can be anywhere from the comments section to the court room. The Wicked Witch possesses a supernatural ability: the power of the collective.
The Witches (1990)
You won’t be under attack from a group of Evil Stepmothers, but you very well may find yourself battling against a coven of Wicked Witches when you, for example, fuck someones boyfriend or find yourself being cancelled by an angry mob online.
Wicked Witches tend to be born from outcasts and women scorned. She is the part of our psyche who has been wronged in some way and has become bitter and vengeful over time.
Sleeping Beauty (1959)
Let’s look at perhaps the most iconic Wicked Witch of all, first seen as the villain in Wizard of Oz (1940) who later became popularised as the sympathetic hero Elphaba in the musical Wicked.
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Like the Evil Stepmother, what the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz desires most is possibility. Once the house falls on the Wicked Witch of the East, or her sister in the musical Wicked, the Wicked Witch of the West wants the magic red shoes.
Feet represent freedom, movement, opportunity. Shoes can be understood as what protects us from the outer world, “to cover the feet is to have the conviction of our beliefs and the wherewithal to act on them.” (1) Red is the colour of lifeforce, libido, our passion. Therefore, we can see Dorothy’s ruby red slippers as her Self.
So, the Wicked Witch wants to know her Self. She wants the possibility and opportunity that has been (in her opinion) undeservedly given to Dorothy.
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
In response to Dorothy not giving her the shoes like she asked, the Wicked Witch steals Dororthy’s pet dog, Toto, away from her. She takes Dorothy’s intuition.
An animal in a fairytale, or dream, represents instinct. Animals are fully aware of their surroundings, on alert and guided by instinctive energies. They do not squabble amongst themselves about what to do next and they do not reflect on what they have done in the past. They are simply present in the place they currently are in, doing what they want or need to do in the moment.
The Wicked Witch within us will always steal our intuition away. She will prevent us from doing what opens us up to criticism even though we feel it is the right move for us. You want to sing/write/act/bake/run/paint/dance? Well, everyone will laugh at you. Don’t post that. What will they say when you do? Don’t wear that. What will they think? Remember when you said that? That was so embarrassing. They hate you now by the way.
If you were to throw some water (some emotion) on her, you will find she melts away: “this is something that makes me happy” or “I was just being vulnerable with people I trust” and she will squeal “who would’ve thought a girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness!!!”
Jung extensively studied myths, fairytales and religious traditions, finding recurring themes and motifs across cultures. He saw these common themes as manifestations of archetypes. One of them being the Magician.
The Magician tarot card brings you the resources and energy you need to manifest your desires. It is the symbol of alchemy and transformation. Magicians can be powerful healers or evil sorcerers. They decide what their magic is used for.
We all have a Shadow Magician: a part of us that takes something positive and turns it negative.
To swat away a compliment, to tear down someone's achievement, to deliberately be cold to someone who is just trying to be nice. A Wicked Witch is another form of a Shadow Magician.
Dorothy discovers that vanquishing the Wicked Witch or finding the Wizard did not get her home. By clicking her heels together and repeating “there’s no place like home,” Dorothy makes a conscious choice to return to her authentic self.
“You always had the power to go back to Kansas.”
“Why didn’t you tell her?”
“She wouldn’t have believed me. She had to find out for herself.”
“What did you learn, Dorothy?”
“If I want to go looking for my heart's desire again, I won’t go looking any further than my own backyard.”
The whole time, guiding Dorothy along the way, was another facet of the Magician archetype. One that uses her powers for good. Read part three on Fairy Godmothers.
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