![]() ![]() William Jennings Bryan in the election of 1896, and, though notĪn activist, consistently voted for Democratic candidates. That Baum was sympathetic to the Populist movement, supported In the late 1880s and early 1890s, a period that coincided with Newspaper in Aberdeen, South Dakota, Baum had written on politics and current events In supporting this thesis, Littlefield drew on Baum's experienceĪs a journalist before he wrote Oz. Of the new century (Littlefield 1964, 50). The discovery was little less than astonishing: Baum'sĬhildren's story was in fact a full-blown "parable on populism,"Ī "vibrant and ironic portrait" of America on the eve Story line of the Oz tale to the political landscape of the Mauveĭecade. Littlefield linked the characters and the ![]() Quarterly claiming that Baum's charming tale concealed a cleverĪllegory on the Populist movement, the agrarian revolt that sweptĪcross the Midwest in the 1890s. This view would change completely whenĪn obscure high school teacher published an essay in American Is Oz, however, merely a children's story, as its authorĬlaimed? For a quarter of a century after its film debut, no one Yet, as everyone knows, The Wizard of Oz is more than justĪnother celluloid classic it has become a permanent part of American The film has delighted young and old alike for three generations. With its stirring effects, colorful characters,Īnd memorable music (not to mention Judy Garland's dazzling performance), The hearts of the movie-going public, and it has retained its Though not a smash hitĪt the time of its release, The Wizard of Oz soon captured Imagination was, Baum could hardly have conceived that his "modernizedįairly tale" would attain immortality when it was adapted Popular children's story published in 1900. Written solely to pleasure children of today" (Dighe 2002,Ĥ2). "The story of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' was Political satire on monetary reform or merely an entertaining Frank Baum claimed to have written The Wonderful Wizard of Oz "solely to pleasure theĬhildren" of his day, but scholars have found enough parallelsīetween Dorothy's yellow-brick odyssey and the politics of 1890s Has travelled a yellow brick road of its own. So, as you are about to see, we have come full circle, and gold ![]() Will be recongizable to those with an interest in golden matters. While many today consider gold an instrument of financial and personal freedom, in Baum's tale, it is painted as a villain - the tool of oppression. Wizard of Oz' was written over 100 years ago, the themes University invitingly titles the piece presented below 'MoneyĪnd Politics in the Land of Oz'. Most of us have seen the movie version of thisĪllegorical tale, but few of us are aware of what the variousĬharacters, places and things represented in the mind of Frankīaum, the tale's author. Editor's Note: Here is the extraordinary storyīehind the extraordinary story of 'TheWonderfulWizard of ![]()
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