Though I hadn’t read the book as a kid, to me the movie The Wizard of 
Oz seemed to be nothing more than a simple fairy tale about a girl who travels to a faraway land and meets a number of characters, ultimately learning the lesson that home is the best place to be. But now, having learned a great deal more about American history, it seems obvious that not just this story, but the majority of stories, are reflections of their time periods. I am always really fascinated to find out when the stories I grew up watching or reading have a deeper, hidden meaning, so I was excited to know The Wizard of Oz does too.
Many children’s books, both old and contemporary, are riddled with political undertones. Though some messages are more subtle than others, it is pretty evident that The Wizard of Oz is a clear reflection of the state of America’s political system at the time it was written.
Nearly every character and theme can relate directly toward the Populist movement and its players the years leading up to the publishing of the book. In his essay, Henry Littlefield argues that each beloved character and theme from the story can be linked to the environment of the late 1800 and early 1900s in America. The scarecrow represents the farmer, fighting for the introduction of silver into the economy to boost the dollar, and the Wizard represents politicians themselves and their trickery. I find it hard for the points Littlefield makes to be no more than coincidence when everything from the silver shoes to the twister seemingly finding a tie to something in the real world.
In 1900, when the book was first published, the political and economic state of the U.S. wasn’t that bright. Money and jobs were scarce, and like we’ve seen at other points in history when times are tough, people turn to politicians to resolve the problems but are often disappointed when they realize the politicians have their own interests in mind, not those of the people. In this political cartoon originally published on Bizzaro Comics, Dorothy asks the Cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow and the Tin Man that they must be politicians since the things they “need” are a heart, brain, and courage. While not the original intent of the characters, the images of Dorothy and her crew have been utilized in new ways to reflect many different eras of political distress.
In this more recent cartoon from Righttoons.com, big business is still depicted as sneaky and conniving and having an upper hand in the political scene over the people, just as it was depicted in in the time of The Wizard of Oz. Though it cannot be known for sure if this is the true intent of the story, it shouldn’t really matter. This story and many others have been used to better explain political affairs that may otherwise be confusing. To me, allegories are more than comical comparisons, they can be an important tool into seeing a part of society that needs to uncovered.
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understand why this film exists, and why the fact that it exists is relevant, we have to examine the conditions under which L. Frank Baum created the original Wizard of Oz story in the final years of the 19th century. Baum was a member of the Democratic Populist party, and in the 1890s he ardently supported Populist William Jennings Bryan in both his 1896 and 1900 presidential campaigns – obviously, both were unsuccessful (Littlefield, 49). Henry Littlefield proposes that The Wizard of Oz is an allegory for the political climate during the time Baum was writing it: Dorothy is the common citizen, the cowardly lion is Bryan, and the Wizard represents the U.S. government leadership (the emperor has no clothes). Though Bryan’s dual losses in the presidential election proved that Baum’s Populist party was in the minority, The Wizard of Oz has a happy ending, with all of the characters realizing that what they were looking for was inside themselves all along. If Littlefield is right about the allegory, we can see The Wizard of Oz as a story that Baum wrote with the intent to empower and motivate his fellow Democratic Populists to pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and perhaps be a bit smarter and braver the next time around. Baum was writing for a minority group that didn’t have the political or social clout that it desired.
allegory, I got to thinking about other movies that could have employed the same method. Some further research revealed theories about Star Wars and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz being essentially the same story. Although created in completely different eras, the resemblance between the two works is startling.
Carol on more public school field trips than any person should have to endure. But, despite these unhappy visits to the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, I have managed to preserve my love of musicals by way of Wicked: The Musical. Four t-shirts, one sweatshirt, two Collector’s Edition Grimmeries, one bootlegged soundtrack (oops), four shows in Pittsburgh, and one show in San Francisco later, my mother has forbidden me from purchasing more tickets to see Wicked, and has certainly stopped buying me overpriced clothing with the word “popular” on it.
my mom) so much money. In addition to the powerful message of believing in yourself and the importance of knowing the whole story before making judgments, the sheer creativity and modern political allegory that warns against the power of those in charge are what makes Wicked resonate so well with audiences.
the sounds of L. Frank Baum’s (author of original The Wonderful Wizard of Oz) initials – LFB. This is only one of literally hundreds of references to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the children’s book that Wicked is based upon. Wicked opens as the townspeople of Oz are rejoicing in the death of The Wicked Witch of the West. Glinda The Good Witch arrives (traveling via bubble) and tells the townspeople that they should not be so quick to hate the Wicked Witch, and reveals that a long time ago she was friends with The Wicked Witch, whose name was Elphaba. The rest of the musical is a flashback to Glinda and Elphaba’s time at Shiz University.
