Howl's Moving Castle

One of the themes of Howl's Moving Castle is that when people try to conform to society's norms, they are unhappy, or they are not always how they seem. Howl's Moving Castle is set in pre-modern times starting in the countryside and then it changes from city to countryside for the rest of the story. The story is about Sophie, a young girl who works at a hat shop and while she was closing the shop the Wicked Witch of the West cursed Sophie. So, Sophie goes out into the world on a journey. Characters within the story try to change themselves trying to make themselves beautiful, because in society prettier people are considered better while uglier people are considered lesser. Examples of these characters are Howl, the Wicked Witch of the Waste, and Sophie.
Howl would dye his hair blonde and change his eye color because in society blonde hair and blue eyes was considered the natural beauty. This gave Howl a lighter, kinder appearance this hid the darker side of him, when he turned into a black bird. This goes back to how no one is perfect in society and they are not how they seem. This change in Howl shows his internal struggle with good vs evil and being true to himself or conforming to society. Also, Howl wore green ear rings and green is the symbolic archetype of greed. Therefore, Howl is not perfect because he changes his appearance, has an evil side within him, and wears green which is a symbol of