The wizard of oz and political symbolism sophies tale. Maud licensed other authors to write books using the oz characters. From start to finish, the wizard of oz tells the story of humanities struggle against the dark forces of the world, the journey of the soul, and what humanity must achieve in order to advance spiritually and return to god, the source. Believing he is the only man capable of solving their problems, dorothy and her friends travel to the emerald city, the capital of oz, to meet him. Toto is a dog, but his effect is deemed highly influential in the entire book. Frank baums the wonderful wizard of oz, chapter 1 summary. All of the baum written books are in the public domain in the united states.
What is the symbolism of each of the characters in the. Frank baum and originally published in 1900, may have been inspired by the reallife economic struggles during the gold standard. The obvious symbolism is that the main characters each desire a quality they. Learn about the different symbols such as cyclone in the wonderful wizard of oz and how they contribute to the plot of the book. In his reading of the wizard of oz, littlefield believed that dorothy was a standin for the average american, and that the magic silver shoes represented the late 1890s free silver movement. So, for instance, if youve only read the wonderful wizard of oz, be aware that all the character listings will contain spoilers for later books. Unseen for most of the novel, he is the ruler of the land of oz and highly venerated by his subjects. In reality, the wizard of oz deserves to be placed alongside all the other classic works of literature that have been officially categorized as political allegory or commentary. The wizard is one of the characters in the wonderful wizard of oz. Frank baum wrote 14 wizard of oz books, including 1900s the wonderful wizard of oz, which mgm turned into a wonderful wizard of oz.
A modern fairy tale with a distinctly american setting, a delightfully levelheaded and assertive heroine, and engaging fantasy characters, the story was enormously popular and became a classic of childrens literature. Salman rushdie, a noted fan of the wizard of oz who wrote a pretty amazing bfi classics book on the film, believes that one of the things that makes oz so powerful is that it lays bare the. The symbolism hidden within the wizard of oz many people believe that the wizard of oz was and is an allegory for the radically new state of affairs that existed in america in the 1930s, following the stock market crash and the bankruptcy of the united states government which occurred immediately thereafter. The real meaning of these wizard of oz characters you cant judge the book by its intro. Political interpretations of the wonderful wizard of oz. Only dorothys silver slippers can take her home to kansas, meaning that by dorothy not realizing that she had the silver slippers the whole time, dorothy, or the westerners, never realized they already had a. The real meaning of these wizard of oz characters grunge. Learn all about how the characters in the wonderful wizard of oz such as dorothy and. During her travels she encounters a number of characters, some good, some bad.
There is professor marvel who then plays the role of four other characters in oz. Populism and the world of oz national museum of american. The wonderful wizard of oz study guide contains a biography of l. As well as being a wonderful and exciting adventure for children, the. This reading set introduces the reader to the real wizard of oz story, including the backstory on some of the characters and some riveting scenes. Frank baum wrote the childrens fantasy book the wonderful wizard of oz in 1900.
Frank baum, who went on to write fourteen fulllength oz books. What is his origin story in the wonderful wizard of oz novel. The real story of dorothy and the wizard of oz youtube. The wonderful wizard of oz, the book that made baum a household name at the.
Frank baums childrens book, the wonderful wizard of oz. What is the deeper meaning of the wonderful wizard of oz. More than a hundred years after the release of this book, kids everywhere are still enchanted by oz s world of wonder. The following is a compilation of several views of the monetary reform symbolism used by l. The doorman, the guard who cries, the carriage driver, and the wizard of oz. Author and oz series originator frank lyman baum may 15, 1856may 6, 1919 isnt known to have left any indication of a symbolic meaning to his story or its characters. Few, however, recognize that, under its deceptive simplicity, the story of the wizard of oz. The wonderful wizard of oz, childrens book written by l.
Some of the major characters from baums first book the wonderful wizard of oz 1900 from left to right. Fandom apps take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. From greek myth to computer chips, purports that the wizard symbolizes bankers who support the gold standard and oppose adding silver to it. Were off to see the populism of the wizard of oz characters. What is the symbolism found in the novel the wonderful wizard of. The scarecrow is the first friend that dorothy makes on the yellow brick road, and hes exactly. Political symbolism the wizard represents political leaders, particularly any of the us presidents during the late 19th century. Toto may be only a dog, but he sets the whole book in motion. In the book and the play the shoes are silver, not ruby as they were famously depicted in the 1939 film.
The symbolism of the wizard of oz came to light again recently after the famous filmmaker, bill still, produced a twohour documentary film, the secret of oz, in which he shakes up the existing economic paradigms and contends that the book contains a solution to the economic problems that plague this country. After a brief introduction, we will go over a summary of the plot and a list of the characters. In addition, it also stands as a tribute to the spiritual tradition of selfhelp and selfreliance, which can bring us happiness and freedom if we are willing to surrender to god and live fully in the wisdom. Still, the main characters dorothy, the scarecrow, the tin woodman, and the lion embody traditional american values. Not unlike the way the characters in the wizard of oz correlate to important elements in the crusade against the gold standard, they also just happen to map out the various figures described in the. The political and economic symbols hidden inside the wizard of oz. The wizard of oz follows the story of dorothy, a young farm girl from kansas. Tin woodman, toto, dorothy gale, cowardly lion, and scarecrow. The wonderful wizard of oz lyman frank baum character analysis. All of the wizard of oz characters suffered from a lack of confidence. It told of an orphaned kansas girl swept by a tornado into a fantastical world, but who wants to return home to her aunt and uncle. It is a celebration of consumer culture as the the very meaning of america, this bright and shining land where men and women are happy to deceive themselves into believing a fairy tale, which, as the wizard of oz himself admitted, every sensible person ought to know is. The oz books form a book series that begins with the wonderful wizard of oz 1900 and relate the fictional history of the land of oz. Heres the real, forgotten meaning of the wizard of oz.
Hidden christian themes in the wizard of oz faith and. Turns out the book and movie may be an economic fairy tale about america in the late 1800s and gold. And it is dorothys fearless independent character that compels her to question her. Other putative allegorical devices of the book include the wicked witch of the west as a. On a stormy and dark day she is swept away in a tornado and lands in a faraway land of the munchkins. The wonderful wizard of oz 1939, like many fairy tales depicting a series of fantastic adventures, is really the story of an individuals inner journeya story of personality integration and coming of age.
It is later revealed that he is a humbug circus performer named oscar diggs from omaha, nebraska. Political interpretations of the wonderful wizard of oz wikipedia. Dorothy gale, who finds herself transported to the land of oz after a tornado hits her house. Wizard of oz symbolism the wizard of oz is a nostalgic tale of dorothy, a young farm girl from kansas, who is swept away to a magical land by a tornado.
Carl jung and later joseph campbell described how certain symbols and motifs appear in mythology, fairy tales, stories, and religions throughout the world. Dorothy and the wizards head from the book, the wonderful wizard of oz. Dorothy would represent the goodness and innocence of human kind. Literary scholars have long interpreted the wonderful wizard of oz as a fable of populism, but it is more than that. In the wizard of oz, characters like glinda the good witch represent the mother archetype because she looks out for dorothy, and toto represent the trickster, because he. Sharetweetemailwith its memorable story and its cast of colorful characters, the wizard of oz quickly became an american classic. The wizard of oz is the title character of the first book. Find a summary of this and each chapter of the wonderful wizard of oz. The wonderful wizard of oz character analysis course hero. Christian sermons have discussed the wizard of oz s biblical meanings, comparing dorothys song over the rainbow to the end of the tale of noahfrom the book of genesis, or claiming that the.
Even while he was alive, baum was styled as the royal historian of oz to. It blinded them into searching for things they already possessed. The wonderful wizard of oz is too long to be a parable and not quite didactic enough to be an allegory. It is filled with symbols and metaphors, all pointing to other things. Dorothy, the main character in the novel, is said to represent the. A monetary reformers brief symbol glossary by patrick s. While it is a great family movie, like most movies based on a book, the book is better. The wizard of oz film symbols, allegory and motifs. The symbolism hidden within the wizard of oz jabajabba. The occult roots of the wizard of oz vigilant citizen.
Garland won the role of dorothy despite substantial competition. The lead character, dorothy gale, symbolizes the average american. Scarecrow, tin woodman, dorothy, wizard, toto, cowardly lion. Dorothy gale, the lead character of the wonderful wizard of oz, is an 11yearold orphan girl who resides in kansas with her aunt em and uncle henry. An orphan whos being raised by her aunt and uncle on the.
The wonderful wizard of oz as a fable of modern america. The wonderful wizard of oz reading comprehension passages. The 1939 film starring a young judy garland was based on lyman frank baums book, the wonderful wizard of oz, published in 1900. The wizard of oz film study guide contains a biography of richard thorpe, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The wonderful wizard of oz chapter 1 summary course hero. In the story of the wizard of oz, dorothy, the tin man, the scarecrow and the lion defeat the wicked witch and return to the emerald city.
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