Specifically, Littlefield
Littlefield
Littlefield is a city in and the county seat of Lamb County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,372 at the 2010 census. It is located in a significant cotton-growing region, northwest of Lubbock on the Llano Estacado just south of the Texas Panhandle. Littlefield has a large denim-m…
How does Dorothy symbolize populism in 'The Wizard of Oz'?
Kansas – a Populist stronghold, home of Dorothy, symbolized the national heartland. Cyclone (toronado) – the free silver movement, compared at the time to a political “cyclone” that swept Kansas, Nebraska and the heartland and aimed at Washington; also the depression of the 1890’s which was compared to a “cyclone” in a famous monetary primer of the time and which robbed people of their homes and farms.
Is the Wizard of Oz good or bad?
Most people don't think about the wizard as a bad guy because by the end of the (1939) movie he is portrayed as an old grandpa type victim of the system that put him in charge. He didn't know what else to do so he used he tools he had, even though they were dishonest, deceitful, coercive, and intimidating.
How does The Wizard of Oz relate to politics?
The nation seems to be in the midst of yet another contagion - not the Omicron variant, but reality celebrities convinced they should be high-profile political leaders. Talk-show host Dr. Mehmet Oz is the latest mutation in this epidemic, announcing his ...
How did The Wizard of Oz deal with politics?
Turns out, the Wizard of Oz (who represents President McKinley in this allegory) requires his citizens to wear green spectacles, night and day, in order that they might think that there is plenty of money everywhere and for everyone.
How does populism relate to the Wizard of Oz?
Frank Baum's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was first published in 1900. It has been suggested that the book is full of symbolism reflecting the Populist Era of U.S. History. The Populist Movement was a push from farmers and laborers that grew from the grassroots farmers' fraternity known as The Grange.
Is the Wizard of Oz based on the Populist movement?
As conceived and written by Lyman Frank Baum in 1900, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” was a political allegory of turn-of-the-century America. Written in the waning days of the Populist movement of the late 1800s, it was the story of the sad collapse of Populism and the issues upon which the movement was based.
What does the land of Oz represent in populism?
Littlefield interpreted the yellow brick road as representing gold and Dorothy's silver slippers (which were changed in the movie to ruby slippers) as representing the Populist call for backing the dollar with silver. Oz was the abbreviation for ounces, a reference to the Populist call for the government to coin.
How does the Wizard of Oz relate to history?
Frank Baum's book "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz," upon which the movie is based, was a political allegory for American politics at the dawn of the 20th century. Dorothy, the Kansas innocent, represents the nobility of middle (and Midwestern) America; the Tin Man is industry, the Scarecrow is agriculture.
Who does the Wizard represent in Populism?
The Wizard represents President William McKinley. “The Wizard in his Emerald City is none other than the evasive, hard-to-pin-down President William McKinley: '[h]e symbolizes the American criterion for leadership-he is able to be everything to everybody'” (Earle, 8).
What is the hidden message in the Wizard of Oz?
The Wizard of Oz symbolism goes incredibly deep, from the main characters to the cyclone, those famous slippers, and even Toto. And the central message in the book is all about the rise of Populism and the debate over gold versus silver.
How can The Wonderful Wizard of Oz be seen as an allegory regarding the free coinage of silver?
Thus, according to this interpretation, Dorothy (representing America and her honest values) wearing silver shoes (representing the free silver coinage) recruits the Scarecrow (representing the American farmer), the Tin Man (representing the American worker), and the Cowardly Lion (William Jennings Bryan), to accompany ...
What does the Oz symbolize in the Wizard of Oz?
Oz: an abbreviation that stands for gold, a hot political topic of the day where people were rallying for fixed gold and silver ratios. Tin Woodman: is a representation of industrial workers who often experienced being dehumanized.
How does the Wizard of Oz represent the Gilded Age?
Hugh Rockoff suggested in 1990 that the novel was an allegory about the demonetization of silver in 1873, whereby "the cyclone that carried Dorothy to the Land of Oz represents the economic and political upheaval, the yellow brick road stands for the gold standard, and the silver shoes Dorothy inherits from the Wicked ...
How does the Wizard of Oz represent the Great Depression?
In 1900, when the book was first published, America's economy was depressed, and Baum's Oz can be interpreted as a parody of America under the influence of the Populist party, which had arisen at the turn of the century to champion farmers and laborers against corporate America.
What is the Oz tale?
Therefore, the Oz tale is best viewed as a symbolic and satirical representation of the Populist movement and the politics of the age, as well as a children’s story.
Who developed the analogies in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz?
Incorporating the analogies developed by Littlefield and others, and adding a few of his own, Rockoff provided a detailed and sustained analysis of the political and economic issues symbolically refracted in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
What movement did Baum's story cover?
This view would change completely when an obscure high school teacher published an essay in American Quarterly claiming that Baum’s charming tale concealed a clever allegory on the Populist movement, the agrarian revolt that swept across the Midwest in the 1890s.
What was the central backdrop for Baum's allegorical adaptation?
According to Rockoff, the monetary politics of the 1896 campaign, which divided the electorate into “silverites” and “goldbugs,” supplied the central backdrop for Baum’s allegorical adaptation.
What was the biggest problem for western and southern farmers?
The biggest problem for western and southern farmers was the extremely low prices for wheat and cotton. The SubTreasury Plan would allow them to store their crops in government warehouses and get government loans while they held their crops off the market during harvest season.
What happens when Dorothy clicks the silver slippers and returns from Oz to Kansas?
When Dorothy clicks the silver slippers and returns from Oz to Kansas, nothing has changed in Kansas (a point that the movie made in a visually stunning and effective way when the movie reverts from Technicolor to black and white).
How many levels does Oz have?
Quite simply, Oz operates on two levels, one literal and puerile, the other symbolic and political. Its capacity to fascinate on both levels testifies to its remarkable author’s wit and ingenuity. Editor's Note: This is a long article. We have included the beginning and the end only.
Oz and Ounces
The yellow brick road represents gold because the populists thought it would lead them out of the depression like it led Dorothy to Emerald City to go home.
Emerald City and Washington D.C
Emerald City represents D.C. because that's where the wizard was which is equivalent to McKinley being in D.C. Emerald City also represents the green paper money in Washington D.C.
Scarecrow and Farmers
The witch of the west represents the dangers of the west in America. Two of the dangers were fire and drought. She uses fire and it spread quickly in the movie just like it does out west. She represented drought because of how she melted when the water was thrown on her.
Tin Man and Industry Workers
The tin man represents industry workers because they do the same thing all day, everyday. Their job is repetitive and does not change. It makes them seem like they are heartless machines.
Witch of the North and Populist Support in New England
The witch of the north represents the populist support in New England and the rest of the north. She told Dorothy to follow the yellow brick road which was like the American people following the money so they would be able to buy the food and clothes they needed.
The Wizard and William McKinley
The munchkins represent the children of America at the time. Children were being forced to work like the munchkins were. The munchkins were happy when the witch of the east got killed because then they didn't have to work anymore.