Phantom Tollbooth

In a society dominated by science, technology, and a race for progress, many students have trouble deciding whether they will have a future if they choose to study the humanities in college. Becoming an English major educates students on the famous novels of the past, but the fear of entering the real world and needing a job still haunts students' minds. In Norton Juster's children's novel The Phantom Tollbooth, a young boy named Milo adventures through a land call The Kingdom of Wisdom. Milo, bored with everything, learns the importance of knowledge throughout his journey alongside his watchdog Tock. Juster uses the two capital cities of The Kingdom of Wisdom, Dictionopolis and Digitopolis, and Milo's journey to save the princesses, Rhyme and Reason, to discuss the conflict between the humanities and science and the importance of the intertwine of the two. This combination of the two, he argues, is what ultimately creates the most educated society and therefore, the most fun.

Dictionopolis, representing the humanities and language, is Juster's city that provides an environment for critiques. The majority of Milo's journey takes place in Dictionopolis seemingly implying Juster favoring the humanities. However, when analyzed, it is apparent that Juster has many critiques of the way the humanities and language are used in today's society. Before entering Dictionopolis, Milo and Tock are met by a guard who greets them by saying, "This is Dictionopolis, a happy kingdom, advantageously located in the Foothills of Confusion and caressed by gentle breezes from the Sea of Knowledge" (Juster, 36). The guard informs them that they are not allowed to enter without a reason, explanation, or excuse. Milo is given the response "why not" and is finally allowed to enter the town. Immediately, Juster shows his criticism of the overuse of language. He is mocking the idea that people use words to justify actions, when in actuality; most things do not need a reason, explanation, or excuse. People can do them just because.

When Milo and Tock enter Dictionopolis, they come across the word market that shows the necessity of the command of language. Within the market, Milo meets five royal advisors: The Duke of Definition, The Minister of Meaning, The Earl of Essence, The Count of Connotation, and The Undersecretary of Understanding (40). These five advisors, the King's cabinet, repeat the same idea with different words. They inform Milo and Tock that all words are grown in the Dictionopolis orchards (42). Once again criticizing the use of language, Juster mocks the fact that people use words in the wrong context. The idea that words grow on trees suggests that they are plentiful and of little importance, but Juster disagrees and stresses his preference of using too few words rather than too many. Ironically, the Count says that it is the cabinet's job to "see that all words [in the word market] sold are proper ones, for it wouldn't do to sell a word that had no meaning or didn't exist at all" (42). Yet the Earl continues on to say, "as long as they mean what they mean to mean we don't care if they make sense or nonsense" (43). The idea of selling words that create nonsense further magnifies the power in language when used correctly. While exploring the word market, Milo and Tock see shelves full of common words, extraordinary words, and even letters to be sampled. Milo becomes aware of how many words there are and how few he knows. Milo's newfound realization of the quantity of words in the English language enforces the idea that English and the humanities are a vast portion of a general education that cannot be ignored. After a fight between The Spelling Bee and Humbug, the market collapses and is sent into utter chaos. People are unable to speak and communicate as their words and letters are scattered about the market. The confusion shows how unorganized the world would be without a mastery of English language and the humanities in general.

Milo then attends The Royal Banquet where he personally learns the importance of choosing words with precision. Greeted by the five babbling advisors, Milo progresses to meeting King Azaz who has limited control over Dictionopolis. At the Banquet, Juster uses a clever combination of puns and clichés to make his final point about language. Trying to be polite, Milo orders a "light meal," to which the servers bring platters with "brilliant colored lights leap[ing] from the plates" (86). In his next attempt, Milo tries to order a hearty dinner by ordering "a square meal" which results with "plates heaped high with steaming squares of all sizes and colors" (86). The rest of the guests at the dinner party order their exact meals such as the Humbug's order of "roast turkey, mashed potatoes, vanilla ice cream" (88). The contrast between over analyzing adjectives versus the absence of basic