| The ruby slippers are the shoes worn by Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz which give her the power of returning home any time she wishes. She acquired the shoes, which were actually silver in the original Baum book, after her house fell on the Wicked Witch of the East, killing her and liberating the Munchkins.
Dorothy knew that the slippers were powerful, but was unaware of their powers. It was only at the end of the film that she learned the formula: click your heels together three times, and repeat "There's no place like home." According to Joey Green, author of "The Zen of Oz", The ruby slippers actually represent the inner spark within us all. In Dorothy's dream, Glinda the Good Witch of the North, is Dorothy's mother. She travels in a pink bubble, reminiscent of the womb. She gives Dorothy the ruby slippers -- made, incidentally, from the rarest and costliest of gemstones -- a physical reminder of the value of Dorothy's inner spark, the breath of life. Then she watches over Dorothy from afar, like a spirit. When Glinda tells Dorothy, "Never let those ruby slippers off your feet," she is actually telling Dorothy to never give up her passion, her individuality, her uniqueness, her spirit, her soul -- in short, her inner spark. Ruby Slippers Effect: Software engineers sometimes refer to the 'ruby slippers effect' whereby a program provides a valuable feature overlooked by its user. |
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