Is The Wizard Of Oz A Populist Allegory?
Hey guys! So my history professor gave us a paper to write with three possible topics and the one I chose is about The Wizard of Oz (agreeing or disagreeing with Littlefield's theory if it is a parable on populism) and re-reading the book, as well as several essays on the subject, makes me overwhelmingly happy. If you're interested in reading my essay, continue reading :)
Many written works allude to other famous
works and many children’s books are intended to teach lessons; thus, are
primarily delivered as parables or fables. The
Wonderful Wizard of Oz, a children’s novel written by L. Frank Baum, has
been argued to be a monetary allegory for the Populist movement in the late 19th
century. In the book, a young girl by the name of Dorothy, is swept away from
her home in Kansas and finds herself in the mystical world of Oz. Along her
journey to meet the wonderful wizard, Dorothy is joined by a Scarecrow, a
Cowardly Lion, and a Tin Woodman, each hoping to meet the Wizard for their
personal purposes.[1]
Henry Littlefield, discovered several similarities to the plot of Baum’s novel
and of the Populist movement in the 1890s.[2]
Although a sufficient amount of evidence is given noting the possible allegory,
there is much speculation whether or not this coincides with Baum’s personal
political, economical, and possibly religious beliefs.
The Wizard of Oz takes place in the
world of Oz, where Dorothy finds herself lost and seeking a way to get home.
Littlefield states the setting is a deadly and dull environment that dominates
everyone and everything except Dorothy and her pet, nature seemingly grayly
impersonal and angry.[3]
The Land of Oz is divided into sections of North and South, ruled by good,
while the East and the West are ruled by evil; that is until Dorothy comes and kills the Witch
of the East. Littlefield compares the Eastern witchcraft of dehumanizing the
simple laborer to be faster and better, working more as a machine, to the
Populist view of the evil Eastern influences on labor and industrialization.[4]
After encountering the Emerald City, representing the national Capitol, Dorothy
and her friends are asked by the Wizard to kill the Witch of the West; however,
the golden road does not go in that direction and Littlefield parallels this to
the group following the sun, as many pioneers did in the past.[5]
Also stated in The Wizard of Oz: Parable
of Populism, the concept of the Witch of the West is speculated to be an
evil force of Darwinian nature, correlating with grim Western farmer
mentalities of being enslaved to the west. The complex setting of The Wizard of Oz is what led Littlefield
to theorize possible material similar with the Populist movement during the 19th
century.
In
addition to the well-developed setting, Baum gives the novel several dynamic
characters that hold various symbolic possibilities. According to Littlefield,
Dorothy, the young protagonist, is Miss Everyman.[6]
She is set out to the Yellow Brick Road in search of the Emerald City wearing
the Witch of the East’s magical silver shoes, leading Littlefield to speculate
her being the innocent agent of Baum’s ironic view of the Silver issue.[7]
Next comes the Scarecrow, believed to represent the idealistic Kansas farmer,
in longing of a brain. The Tin Woodman, whom Dorothy meets second on her
journey, was put on a spell by the Witch of the East supposedly representing
the earlier stated Eastern witchcraft dehumanization and is seen as a parallel
to many Eastern workers situations after the depression of 1893.[8]
The Woodman himself is just in search of a heart since he feels he has lost his
ability to love and be kind when becoming tin. They meet next the Cowardly
Lion, feeling he was born a coward and seeks courage. The Lion, in
Littlefield’s opinion, represents William Jennings Bryan.[9]
Upon meeting the group, the Lion, “struck at the Tin Woodman with his sharp claws,…
he could make no impression on the
tin, although the Woodman fell over in
the road and lay still.”[10]
Littlefield quotes this from Baum’s novel stating this is to refer to the fact
that in 1896 workers were pressured into voting for McKinley and gold by their
employers. According to his argument, the King of Beasts is not after all very
cowardly, and Bryan, although a pacifist and an anti-imperialist in a time of
national expansion, is not either.[11]
Interpreted by Henry Littlefield, the interpretation of the four main
characters is the Scarecrow representing farmers, the Tin Woodman representing
industrial workers, and the Cowardly Lion representing Bryan. [12]
Along with this Littlefield suggests the Wizard to symbolize the American
criterion for leadership, the Winged Monkeys to substitute for the plains
Indians, and The Witch of the West to proportions of Mark Hanna or Baker Boss.[13]
Correspondingly,
Baum’s The Wizard of Oz emphasizes
and highlights the significance of color. Dorothy was told to follow the yellow
brick road, which in coherence to the Populist movement, could be represented
as the gold standard; the people of the Emerald City saw everything
through green glasses, paralleling with greenbacks; the silver shoes that held
the power to take Dorothy home, being the coinage of silver.[14]
Unmistakably, Baum alternates the colors as the characters move through Oz;
blue was the color of the Munchkins, yellow was the color of the Winkies, and
red was the color of the Quadlings. [15]
The importance of color was impacting on Baum’s writing style and may or may
not have been significant to the representation believed by Littlefield.
After
summarizing Littlefield’s argument, there are plenty of flaws to point
out. To begin, there have not been significant
amounts of discoveries of the interpretation. Although there are many people
that have come to the conclusion that The
Wizard of Oz was an allegory of the Populist movement, there appears to be
no other previous conclusion to Littlefield’s, which was 64 years after The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was
published.[16] Ironically, the people of the time period
seemed to view the novel as a modern fairy tale, whereas now seem to be more
aware of the supposed political symbolism. Most who mention the argument about
the populist interpretation have primarily cited Littlefield’s work and those
who did not cited the works of others who did.[17]
A
point often overlooked is the evidence of Baum’s political views, which is
consequently problematic to the concept of the allegorical interpretation. The
points of Baum having had marched in torchlight parades for Bryan, supporting
woman suffrage, opposing the monopolies, and editing a
newspaper in South Dakota do not imply that he was a Populist or a Populist
sympathizer. In fact, Baum was not reluctant to express his political views and
his anti-Populist sympathies.[18]
For example, the claim that Baum consistently voted Democrat and marched for
Bryan appears to have come from a biographical sketch of Baum by Gardner, whom
provided no references for this claim and is likely to be at odds with the
available evidence on Baum’s politics.[19]
Secondly, his mother-in-law, Matilda Joslyn Gage, was a participate at the
Seneca Conference and co-author of History
of Woman Suffrage and often stayed with the Baums, influencing and
encouraging L. Frank Baum’s ideas on the issue of suffrage. Although interested
with the problems associated with big business and monopoly, this does not
imply Baum being a Democrat or a Populist. Lastly, in relation to his
editorials, he consistently supported Republican candidates and Republican
issues. Baum’s politics seem to lean toward the exact opposite of the
Democratic reform centralized to the Populist Party.
Similarly
to Baum’s views, the characters of Oz were not democrats. On the contrary, all
four of the main characters in The Wizard
of Oz were elevated to royalty.[20]
Although there is some speculating ideas on the anti-allegorical argument that
the coincidences of Oz may be a parody of the Populists, as noted by Hansen in The Fable of the Allegory: The Wizard of Oz
in Economics. In fact, Hansen goes on to list various relations to Baum’s
personal life to the Wizard of Oz. He states that by 1989, Baum had written and
performed in plays; managed a chain of theaters; been a traveling salesman for axle grease, hardware, and chine;
edited a small paper and reported for a large one; managed a general store;
written a book on raising chickens; and edited a magazine on window decorating.
Clearly, all of these concepts are relevant or obvious in his great novel, The Wizard of Oz. Likewise, Hansen
reveals that the importance of color is not restricted to Baum’s Oz books
either. The vivid colors and exact numbers, all expressed in simple language,
are part of what Hollister refers to as the “three dimensionality” that made The Wonderful Wizard of Oz a success
among children.[21]
Furthermore,
Hansen believes it seems reasonable that many of Baum’s life experience
influenced the development of his writing, but the available evidence strongly
suggests that he did not write The Wizard
of Oz as a monetary allegory.[22] The symbolism, although very uncanny, does
not coincide with Baum’s personal beliefs. In the end, it will never be for
certain what Baum was thinking when he wrote the book; however, the allegorical
interpretation seems to be a bit stretched and there is the possibility that he
just wrote a modern children’s fairy tale for the time period.
[1] L.
Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz, Cover.
[2]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 255.
[3]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 51.
[4]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 52.
[5]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 55.
[6]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 52.
[7]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 53.
[8]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 52.
[9]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 53.
[10]
L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz, 33.
[11]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
Parable on Populism, 54.
[12]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 255.
[13]
Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz:
The Parable on Populism, 54-56.
[14]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 255.
[15]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 261.
[16]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 257.
[17]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 257.
[18]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 256.
[19]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 257.
[20]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 260.
[21]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 262.
[22]
Bradley A. Hansen, The Fable of the
Allegory: The Wizard of Oz in Economics, 262.
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