BOOK & ORIGINAL FILM:
Interpretations
Political interpretations of "The Wizard of Oz" include elements of the modern fairy tale (written by L. Frank Baum and first published in 1900) as a metaphor for the political, economic and social events of America in the 1890's. The political interpretations focus on the first three, and emphasize the close relationship between the visual images and the story line to the political interests of the day. Biographers report that Baum had been a political activist in the 1890's with a special interest in the money question of gold and silver, and the illustrator William Wallace Denslow was a full-time editorial cartoonist for a major daily newspaper. For the 1901 Broadway production Baum inserted explicit references to prominent political characters such as President Theodore Roosevelt.
Many contemporary readers have interpreted The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as a political allegory, particularly with regard to American economic policy. For example, the yellow brick road represents gold and wealth, and the Scarecrow and the Tinman represent farmers and industrial workers who have been shut out of the Emerald City and high society because of their class.
Many contemporary readers have interpreted The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as a political allegory, particularly with regard to American economic policy. For example, the yellow brick road represents gold and wealth, and the Scarecrow and the Tinman represent farmers and industrial workers who have been shut out of the Emerald City and high society because of their class.
Source(s) -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_interpretations_of_The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz
https://www.enotes.com/topics/wonderful-wizard
https://www.rareozbooks.com/Political-Symbolism-in-The-Wizard-of-Oz.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_interpretations_of_The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_interpretations_of_The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz
https://www.enotes.com/topics/wonderful-wizard
https://www.rareozbooks.com/Political-Symbolism-in-The-Wizard-of-Oz.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_interpretations_of_The_Wonderful_Wizard_of_Oz
Populism in The fILM:
According to Ranker, it doesn’t take much analysis to see that the book has a subtext relating directly to the politics of the 1890s; specifically it relates to the rise of Populism that was going on at the time, and to the debate over whether to hold on to the gold standard for currency or start using silver as well. It might sound far-fetched that a child’s tale dealt with such weighty issues, but not only was Baum a political reporter for part of his life, he was also a resident of South Dakota for several years. This meant that he was present to observe the rise of the Populist movement among farmers of the West, and their formation of the People’s Party to address a variety of economic issues in the country.
Littlefield concludes by noting that the themes of fiscal and political struggle run through just about every part of The Wizard of Oz to such an extent that it’s hard to believe it wasn’t intentional on Baum’s part.
Littlefield concludes by noting that the themes of fiscal and political struggle run through just about every part of The Wizard of Oz to such an extent that it’s hard to believe it wasn’t intentional on Baum’s part.