The Sin and Glory of Willy Wonka

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, that old children's classic tale of a boy's rags-to-riches saga. The beloved Gene Wilder version barely scratches the surface of the rather dark moral teaching the original story provides. Although the book written by Roald Dahl was created for children's reading, there is a deeper sociological moral to the story at play. It's brought out a great deal by Tim Burton's version of the movie, which was released in 2005.

The story seems to be a straightforward, fairytale modeled, and self explanatory. But is it? The cinematic versions of the story take a decidedly dark undertone of a cautionary tale against the seven deadly sins. Each character represents one of the seven deadly sins, with the exception of lust, which is only briefly touched on in the Burton version where Mrs Beauregard makes a pass at Willy Wonka, and Envy, which is represented in all of the characters at some point. There is another "sin" represented in the story that is based on society's, not religion's, notion of sin.

Starting with the most obvious characters and their respective sins, Augustus Gloop represents, of course, gluttony. The notion of gluttony as a societal norm is actually as old as it is common. The heroin chic look we so crave now is relatively new in modern day society, and a plump, gluttonous body was a sign of wealth and good health for centuries. Today, we are still taught that gluttony is desirable, so long as it isn't showing around our midsections. He met his fate, of course, by eating himself into the precarious position of being stuck in a tube of chocolate, and almost made into fudge.

The second, and equally obvious vice is that of greed. Veruca Salt, the infamous spoiled brat who gets everything her little heart desires is the epitome of greed. In today's society, of course we are taught indirectly that greed is good. Greed is what we strive to do. We hoard our things, and crave increasingly more. Consumerism "Name your price" and being able to buy whatever we want, whenever we want it. It's the Capitalist way, and of course, it signifies our very well-to-do social standing. It gives us power, and makes us feel better about ourselves. She of course, met her demise in a garbage shoot.

Which brings us to our next little darling, Violet Beauregard. In the story, her gum popping is the main annoyance, but it isn't her nasty habits, it's her pride that gets her into trouble. In the Tim Burton version, the little girl, and her mother represent modern day nuclear helicopter parent families. She is the epitome of competition a poor mannered winner with her pride at being the best ever so in your face. This competitive streak is highly ingrained in capitalist society today. We are taught to compete at any and all levels, and regardless of who we step on, we keep telling ourselves to keep an "Eye on the prize". The prize, of course, is being the best-est, the first-est, and the most competitive which should earn us some sort of award. In poor Violet's case, her reward was being turned into a giant blueberry...


Anger is a massive problem today, particularly when it's misdirected. The ever present and incessant know-it-all who righteously lashes out at anyone deemed inferior is commonplace, and seems to be what puts some people ahead of others in life. Meet Mike Teavee, he's plugged in, tuned up, techno-savvy and completely clueless about childhood. or anything, for that matter. The mind numbing effects of TV and video games, piped to us directly from consumerist land creates people with one track minds and rather aggressive personalities. He of course faces the doom of being shrunken down into a pint sized terror because of his inability to listen, and his seething anger which prevents him from thinking before acting.

So which sin is that of poor Charlie Bucket? Quite simply, poverty. In society today, and for centuries, poverty is a perceived sin. It's an unspeakable, unthinkable punishment to those at society's upper crust. Poverty is the bane yet stability of their very existence, so it is demonized by those who need, yet despise it. Poverty is often associated with sloth, but most people know that sloth has nothing to do with poverty. Even though Charlie is portrayed as being a simple, naive daydreamer the story goes on to actually dispel the myth that the poor are lazy. His desire to find a ticket is tempered by hard work, and the selfless notion of giving up that childish pursuit in the name of putting food on his family's table. He possesses the quality that few adults today express. That is to say, the virtue of selflessness in the face of attaining a want.

When combined, the four main characters, and their parents embody the type of marketing schemes and general normalcy of society today. We breed competition, greed, and gluttony into our own children, and sell them on the ideas of attaining as much as possible, and to be prideful of all that we own. Status symbols that reaches beyond mere childhood, and move straight on into adulthood, where the real damage is done. In the story, Willy Wonka, the anti-authoritarian eccentric runs his company on his own terms. He seeks not the "experienced" ways of adult entrepreneurs, and he shows a disdain for adult ideologies and practicalities. His process of weeding out the competitors is not based on which children could be most like corporate sharks, but rather uses their own vices against them, creating their own downfall.

In theory, this is what we all wish for, is it not?

We want those who characterize all of the vices that make this world a harsh place to get their comeuppance. We want them to be hoisted on their own petard. And yet, we continue to idolize, respect and emulate the very people we'd like to see fall flat on their faces. And therein lies the problem. We reward this behavior in real life, but in this tale those behaviors are severely punished. And not just in any old way, and not by trial and jury. But honest to goodness Karma in action punishment.

The other caution here is that forcing young children to become little adults with all of the wrong priorities is that they lose all whimsy. They lack imagination, which is needed for societal progress and invention. They also lack innocence, in this regard. And innocence is what keeps us honest.

For better or for worse, whether intentional or not, this classic tale turned big box hit certainly makes a big social point.