The Wizard of Oz: Chapter 4: The Road Through the Forest Summary & Analysis

As the landscape around them gradually becomes wilder and more untamed, Dorothy and the Scarecrow share stories about their lives. Upon hearing about Kansas, the Scarecrow wonders why Dorothy would want to return to such a gray and dull place after landing in the colorful Land of Oz. Dorothy replies that humans always love their home most of all, no matter how gray it is. The Scarecrow assumes that he doesn’t understand this point of view because he doesn’t have any brains.

As they rest, the Scarecrow tells Dorothy the story of how he was created by a Munchkin farmer to scare the crows away from his crops. Despite how lonely he felt in the cornfield by himself, the Scarecrow felt useful and important as he scared the crows off. This changed when the birds caught onto the trick and began eating the crops, anyway, making the Scarecrow feel more useless and alone than ever. One of the crows took pity on him and told him that he’d be just as good as any man if he had brains instead of straw in his head. Back in the present, the yellow brick road takes Dorothy and the Scarecrow into a dark wood, but they find a lone cottage to rest in for the night.