Article originally published through Doorway Publishing.
(All comments below are focused on Gene Wilder’s character from the 1971 film, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.)
The man in the orange felt hat has a secret.
Though he is known for his extraordinary confectionary delights, the secret I am going to discuss isn’t concerning his formula for making the world’s best chocolate or for his jaw-breaking Everlasting-Gobstopper. Nor is the secret concerning how he rescued a whole village of Oompa-Loompas from Loompaland before the Whangdoodles, the Hornswogglers, the Snozzwangers, and the Vermicious Knids ate them whole. Willy Wonka’s secret isn’t even about the hyper-advanced technology of his Wonka Vision (I would love to get my hands on that so I could sell it to Elon Musk and make a billion).
No, his secret is much more significant than simply dreaming up some new invention or revealing to the world a dazzling work of wonder. It is actually something that is attainable for all of us, but very few seem to have obtained it.
His secret is joy.
Willy Wonka is a deeply satisfied man which makes him completely secure in himself. There is no greater power than being secure in yourself, which is a clear sign that joy resides deep within. And Willy Wonka had joy in spades. Because of that joy, he is one of the most compelling characters ever to grace the silver screen. For that reason, he is one of my personal heroes, a man I have tried to emulate over the years.
What is Joy?
Joy is living in a constant state of being content with yourself. When you are satisfied with your person, you are full, and you don’t need anyone or anything to fill you. The result of this is a wellspring of bubbling joy. And it is joy that lies behind that secret smirk, puts a bounce in your step, and provides the confidence in knowing that everything will be alright because I already have found what I have been looking for. And when everything is alright, you are untouchable. Willy Wonka has that.
How Joy Affects a Soul
Willy Wonka was a unique man — eccentric, talented, quirky, and convinced. He was completely himself, and it isn’t easy being yourself in a world that wants compliance. People-pleasing is a weary business, jumping through other’s hoops depletes a soul faster than helium escaping a popped Zepplin over Danzig. But if you can find contentment in yourself alone, you will no longer need to jump. Willy Wonka found contentment with himself, he had his own personal joy, which allowed him mastery over areas of his life that most of us are slaves to.
.01 Willy Wonka did not find his significance in others.
First of all, look at how the man dressed: an orange felt hat, a purple jacket, a lace ruffled lavender vest, and a golden bow tie to complete his costume. A gaudy ensemble one might mockingly say, but he didn’t care. Only a secure man could wear such hideous fashion. Gene Wilder said that in creating the character of Willy Wonka he wanted him to be playful, dangerous, and unpredictable.
Throughout the movie, you could see all three of these qualities come out in his acting. One of my favorite scenes which perfectly encapsulates Wonka’s wacky character was the boat ride through the tunnel of the chocolate river. The adults and children were caught completely off guard as his eerie poetry kept building to a state of hysteria. I loved how it was so unnerving, a true wonder to behold. Only a confident man could be so mad. And when the father of Violet Beauregarde yelled, “Get me off of this boat,” it demonstrated for me how one brave soul can disrupt the soul-crushing behavioral norms that we succumb to every day.
It is so much fun to watch someone upset the status quo with mirth and mischievous delight.
It is hard to be playful in our world. We are so busy trying to be liked we have lost ourselves in compliant seriousness. No one wants to upset the adults in charge, that would be the worst thing you can do for the people-pleaser. And who are the adults? Those who have unspoken expectations for the world around them, and demand assent. We must do everything we can not to offend our cultural gatekeepers, don’t ever disturb them or make fun of them. They are serious people who don’t like to be played with. And then when the world grows gray from bored compliance, a courageous man like Willy Wonka enters with joy and glee, breaks the mold, and he simply doesn’t care.
He is a dangerous person because he is someone who is wholely themselves. And it is a person like this that knows how to bring excitement to life. They may not gain many followers or have the market share in popularity, but they are themselves. And that counts for everything. Authenticity is not about being weird just to be weird, it is about living in your contentment, remaining that one person who has no problem being themselves.
.02 Willy Wonka was not cowed by the opinions of the critic nor apologetic towards the proud.
When you have joy, you don’t have to live in the forced reality of other people. You can live on your own terms in your own way. Authentic living isn’t about creating a false land, it is about looking on the bright side of life and seeing each situation from a fresh perspective rather than succumbing to your critics’ and experts’ old, crusty, negative perspectives. Let me give you one quick example. In one scene where Willy Wonka is talking about the Oompa Loompas, he is looked down upon by a teacher, our culture’s expert class, insinuating that he is a complete fool. Listen to the dialogue:
Mrs. Teevee: Loompaland? There’s no such place.
Willy Wonka: Excuse me, dear lady, but…
Mrs. Teevee: Mr. Wonka, I am a teacher of geography.
Willy Wonka: Oh, well, then you know all about it and what a terrible country it is. Nothing but desolate wastes and fierce beasts. And the poor little Oompa Loompas were so small and helpless, they would get gobbled up right and left. A Wangdoodle would eat ten of them for breakfast and think nothing of it. And so, I said, “Come and live with me in peace and safety, away from all the Wangdoodles, and Hornswogglers, and Snozzwangers, and rotten, Vermicious Knids.”
Willy Wonka never lets this disgruntled and haughty teacher dictate the terms of the conversation, or succumb to her settled reality because he wasn’t intimidated by her critical spirit. We are so quick to let people dictate negativity in our world, especially the self-proclaimed experts and leaders. Critics don’t want people to live in joy, if they are miserable, they want you to be miserable too. If you have new insight and information that they don’t have, they don’t want you to enjoy that.
But the secure person is confident in what they know, not allowing their joy to be stolen by the haughty indifference of another. Cynicism is ruining everything these days, especially people’s playfulness and wonder. Adults want people to stay put, don’t dream, and never try something new. But Willy Wonka didn’t care, he knew what he believed, and enjoyed what he created, and he was sticking to it.
His philosophy was clear when he shut down the bitter, petulant, spoiled Veruca Salt by quoting the poet Arthur O’Shaughnessy, “We are the music makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams.”
Those who live in joy keep trying even if no one understands. Those who live in joy let criticism slide off their back like water off the feathers of a duck. You are free to create because you are already whole. Joy makes you impervious to other people’s critical spirit.
.03 Willy Wonka was so full of his own personal joy that he had to share what he had with others.
He wanted other people to find delight in what delighted him. When you have tasted joy you will want to share your joy. Why else would Willy Wonka send out the golden tickets and open up his chocolate factory to the public? Because he wanted someone to share his joy with.
Joy must be shared.
He was looking for people who appreciated his world, he wasn’t looking to be liked, he was looking for someone who liked what he appreciated. Willy Wonka found a fellow dreamer in Charlie Bucket.
Willy Wonka: How did you like the chocolate factory, Charlie?
Charlie: I think it’s the most wonderful place in the whole world!
Willy Wonka: I’m very pleased to hear you say that, because I’m giving it to you.
Grandpa Joe: [sounding shocked] You’re giving Charlie the…?
Willy Wonka: I can’t go on forever, and I don’t really want to try. So who can I trust to run the factory when I leave and take care of the Oompa Loompas for me? Not a grown up. A grown up would want to do everything his own way, not mine. So that’s why I decided a long time ago that I had to find a child. A very honest, loving child, to whom I could tell all my most precious candy making secrets.”
Charlie Buckets are out there, you just have to be content enough in your joy to not change until you find them. We live in a world where people will do anything to be liked. They will morph, change, wear the same fashions, and adopt the same ideologies, just to be let in with people they think will give them significance. We even will alter our ideas, and silence our own creativity, just to be liked.
But those people who have already found joy in themselves don’t need others to enhance their joy. I have seen countless people stop trying because no one understood them at first. It takes courage to try. It may take a long time for someone to connect with your dream, and when they do they will understand the joy. But don’t change just because you are not understood.
Where Joy is Found
But where is this joy found? Where is satisfaction in self to be obtained? Where is contentment possible? Only one place, at the foot of the cross. It is there you realize that I am special because God sent his Son for me. I am accepted in the beloved. Once I know that the God of the Universe is for me, I don’t need others to complete me. And then once I am found by him, I will want to share what I found.
Willy Wonka puts it like this. Talking to Charlie he asked,
Willy Wonka: But Charlie, don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he always wanted.
Charlie: What happened?
Willy Wonka: He lived happily ever after.
With Jesus, you gain joy now and then live happily ever after.
