Living being in The Oz Series
Button-Bright
Also known as the fox-boy, little Button-Bright.
A small lost boy in sailor clothes found sitting beside the seventh road, digging a hole with a bit of wood; he cannot say his real name, where he lives, or how he got there, and answers nearly every question with "Don't know."
Appears in 10 chapters, first in chapter 91, last in chapter 100.
This encyclopedia covers chapters 1 to 100 of the story and shows the world as it stands at chapter 100, so it contains spoilers up to that point. To read it spoiler free, one chapter at a time, open the interactive codex.
What the story establishes
| Affiliation | Newly joined traveling companion of Dorothy, the shaggy man, and Toto. (as of ch. 92) |
| Age | a young child, about two or three years younger than Dorothy (as of ch. 91) |
| Appearance | Currently wears a fox's head magically conferred by King Dox in place of his own face: a hairy head with a sharp nose, pointed ears, and keen little black eyes, with his ears now tied with a pink bow; his own pretty curls, round face, and big blue eyes are gone for the duration. He still wears his sailor hat, blouse, and shoes underneath. (as of ch. 93) |
| Being nature | Human child |
| Body conditions | round, chubby face; big blue eyes; pretty curls covering his head |
| Conflict | He is lost, with no memory or knowledge of where he lives, where he came from, or what will become of him. (as of ch. 91) |
| Current goal | No longer digging alone by the roadside; now traveling with the group, holding the shaggy man's hand, and being marched with Dorothy and Toto to see King Dox of Foxville after the fox-soldiers stopped them. (as of ch. 92) |
| Dialogue style | Terse and repetitive; answers most questions with a flat "Don't know," often turns questions back on the asker, and speaks with perfect calmness even under pressing. (as of ch. 91) |
| Equipment | a sailor hat with a gilt anchor on the band; a sailor blouse with a broad collar bearing gold anchors on its corners; sailor trousers, long and wide at the bottom (as of ch. 91) |
| Gender identity | man (as of ch. 91) |
| Health condition | Has good stamina; does not tire easily even after walking briskly for an hour or two. (as of ch. 94) |
| Is alive | yes (as of ch. 91) |
| Maturation stage | child |
| Motive | Drawn along by simple curiosity and enjoyment of the moment, such as delighting in the sound of pounding the drum. (as of ch. 92) |
| Personality | Calm, sober, and persistent to the point of incuriosity; unbothered by being lost or by being called stupid, and stays placidly focused on his digging. (as of ch. 91) |
| Quirks | answers nearly every question with a calm, unvarying "Don't know", and often turns questions back on the asker instead of answering (as of ch. 91) |
| Referential profile | masculine (as of ch. 91) |
| Sex profile | male (as of ch. 91) |
| Skills | A good, tireless walker, able to keep pace on a long journey without tiring. (as of ch. 94) |
| Social status | An unranked lost child among strangers, addressed dismissively as "little boy" with no status of his own. (as of ch. 92) |
| Status | Traveling as an accepted member of Dorothy's group well past the Foxville episode: hosted overnight in Dunkiton by King Kik-a-bray with supper, straw beds, and breakfast (not held as any kind of prisoner), and now continuing the road journey beyond Dunkiton toward Oz. (as of ch. 96) |
Relationships
- member of → the Shaggy Man ch. 91Found digging alone beside the seventh road and unable to tell his real name, home, or origin, the lost boy Button-Bright is taken in by the Shaggy Man, who decides someone ought to care for the poor little chap and that he should come along with them; the boy willingly joins the party as a dependent under the Shaggy Man's care.
- member of → road_to_oz_traveling_party ch. 91Button-Bright joins Dorothy, the Shaggy Man, and Toto's traveling party after the Shaggy Man proposes taking the lost boy along with them.
- transforms ← King Dox (ended) ch. 93King Dox waves his paw and magically transforms Button-Bright's curly-haired, blue-eyed head into a hairy fox's head, over Dorothy's and Button-Bright's protests.
- imprisoned by → Scoodlers (ended) ch. 99Button-Bright is captured with the others and imprisoned in the Scoodlers' cave, terrified and repeatedly wailing that he does not want to be made into soup; during the escape the Shaggy Man carries him out of the cave on his shoulders because his short legs cannot run fast enough.
- captures ← Scoodlers (ended) ch. 99The Scoodlers surround Button-Bright along with the rest of the group and march him into their cave as a prisoner, terrifying the boy with talk of the soup kettle.
- recruits ← the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 91Seeing that the lost boy has no one to care for him, the Shaggy Man decides someone ought to look after him and proposes he come along with their traveling party.
- rescues ← the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 99The shaggy man carries Button-Bright on his shoulders during the escape because the boy's legs are too short to outrun the Scoodlers, getting him safely across the bridge.
- communicates with ← Dorothy (ended) ch. 91Dorothy questions the little boy at length about his name, parents, home, and how he came to be alone on the road, but he answers almost everything with 'Don't know,' leaving her exasperated and concluding he must be lost.
- communicates with ← the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 91The Shaggy Man good-naturedly settles on calling the boy Button-Bright like his mama does, remarks that no one knows everything, and later jokes that he is just as clueless as Button-Bright about where the road leads.
- communicates with → Allegro da Capo (ended) ch. 97Button-Bright calls the fat man a 'reg'lar musicker' and, after listening to his songs, declares that he likes him and thinks he's nice.
- communicates with ← Dorothy (ended) ch. 93Dorothy comforts Button-Bright over his new fox head, promising that Ozma will be able to restore his original head.
- communicates with ← King Dox (ended) ch. 93King Dox questions and teases Button-Bright, praising his supposed cleverness, before transforming his head into a fox's head.
- expresses love → the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 92Button-Bright, affected by the Love Magnet, loves the shaggy man at once and willingly takes his hand.
- fears ← Dunkiton Donkeys (ended) ch. 95Mistaking Button-Bright, who wears a fox head, for an attacking fox, the donkeys made their scaring racket and eyed the strangers with fear and trembling until the shaggy man clarified he was not really a fox.
- fears ← King Kik-a-bray (ended) ch. 96King Kik-a-bray eyes Button-Bright sharply and warily, seemingly afraid of the little boy's strange fox head.
- communicates with ← the fox-captain (ended) ch. 92The fox-captain patiently fields Button-Bright's rapid-fire questions about what a prisoner and a captive are, and ends up complimenting his cleverness.
- praises ← the fox-princesses (ended) ch. 93The three fox-princesses praise Button-Bright's new fox face as lovely, sweet, and beautiful, comforting him after the transformation.
- protects ← the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 92The shaggy man keeps a firm grip on Button-Bright's hand, keeping the gawking boy from stumbling and falling as they are marched through Foxville.
- gives ← the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 98Shaggy Man divides his two saved apples into four pieces and gives Button-Bright his portion, which the boy is glad to receive.
- communicates with → the Shaggy Man (ended) ch. 96Button-Bright crossly tells the shaggy man to stop braying 'hee-haw' after his donkey head sounds off at daybreak.
From the text
"Don't know," said the boy.Chapter 91
"Papa always said I was bright as a button; so mama always called me Button-Bright," he said.Chapter 91
"What's a pris'ner?" asked Button-Bright.Chapter 92
"I'm not a fox!" cried Button-Bright.Chapter 93
"Will the Scarecrow scare me?" asked Button-Bright.Chapter 95
"If I swallowed a mouth-organ, what would I be?"Chapter 97
See Button-Bright chapter by chapter in the interactive codex →