Does 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' have a hidden message? - David B. Parker

In his introduction to “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” L. Frank Baum claims that the book is simply an innocent children’s story. But some scholars have found hidden criticisms of late-nineteenth-century economic policies in the book. Is it possible that one of America’s favorite children’s stories is also a subversive parable? David B. Parker investigates the text for clues.

Lesson by David B. Parker, animation by Avi Ofer.

[prestonestes]

I remember this Wizard of Oz lesson from my American History class. I also remember these facts:
When Dorothy and her friends return to the emerald city after killing the Witch of the West, the Wizard states “You liquidated her.” Liquidation means to sell off assets, implying the selling off or breaking up of the assets of the big banks and corporations.

The Wizard was from Omaha, where the Populist party was centered.

[Thedino]

This make me think of the JRR Tolkien quote "Do not mistake applicability for analogy."

Personally I love how people are able to find so many different meanings in a work of art or literature and every interpretation is correct in their own way.

[HyperDragon]

I often wonder if authors/writers actually intend the symbolism that ends up getting found. Like how much thought did they actually put into their work(s)?

But something I was taught once was that just because the author didn't mean to put some sort of symbolism (or something else) doesn't mean it is not there.

[lizycole]

I actually studied "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" in one of my college literature classes. This is one of the things my professor pointed out that stuck with me:
The Boxer (anti-colonialist) Rebellion occurred in China at around the same time that the book was published.
After leaving the Emerald City, Dorothy and company pass through a town made of ceramic trinket people a.k.a. China Town. Everything and everyone there is fragile and breakable and the more that Dorothy and the Squad try to interfere, the more things break.
In the illustration of China town there is a little dog. The breed of this dog?
A Boxer.

[ranjeetsehgal]

ted ed is the only class i never want to miss, so here i am! who else?

[George]

Oh, come'on. The Wizard of Oz is a lesson in self-sufficiency. The Lion wants courage and yet routinely conquers fear. The Tin Woodman wants a heart and is the kindest of all. The Scarecrow, the smartest of them, thinks he is in need of a brain. And Dorothy already has the means to get home, right there on her feet.
There is this all-powerful Rescuer unseen behind the curtain, who is a fraud. Unneeded. Everything they needed was already theirs.

[-just.the.facts-]

The scarecrow is seeking wisdom, the lion is seeking courage, and the tin man is seeking compassion. It’s an allegory about our journey through life and what we need to navigate it successfully. We are all seeking these things outside of ourselves but they are already within.

[Pikazilla]

fwi the idea that the Emerald City is an 'illusion' is because in the book; everyone is forced to wear green glasses. Nothing in the city is actually green, but the glasses make you think otherwise.

also the wizard is fake. spoilers.

[GhostofTrufflePast]

Issues during a writers generation often times inspire the writer into writing things that correlate to them. Sometimes it's done consciously and with deeper intent, while other times it happens coincidentally. How one chooses to understand that is solely up to them and does not reflect the intent of the writer but rather the way we filter the new information we are receiving.

[cooldudeg]

One of the greatest powers of the human mind is the ability to make something out of nothing (in a metaphysical sense)
I think this is one of those times.

[prestonestes]

I remember studying "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" in this way, twice. Once in Highschool and once in college. I love history and I love the series so that was once of my favorite things to learn ever.

[AvailableUsernameTed]

Strange that literary critics of 1900 did not pick up on these connections.

[frocco]

But hey, that's just a theory...

[ReneeJoan]

"Oz" was also a slang term for Australia. You have to remember, though -- the book is quite a bit different from the movie, and our perceptions of the book are colored by the movie. In fact, I can see in the comments that a lot of people are conflating the themes of the movie with the themes in the book, and yet the book pre-dates the movie by a good forty years. For example, Glinda was the Good Witch of the South, not the North, and Glinda lived in the Land of the Quislings. Quislings was a slang term for collaborators, bordering on traitors. I'm not sure who Baum could have been referring to, but that's something that doesn't even make it into the movie. Remember, Selznick and his writers and directors may have had a very different social message to tell in the late 1930's than Baum in in the 1900's.

[schizoidboy]

I think the last part of this lesson is the most important. Whether or not the Wizard of Oz is an allegory for one thing or another it is definitely a form of American literature on par with other tales of myth and fantasy and shows that America can create its own sort of myths and legends. Star Wars is also a good example of this creation of legends and folklore.

[thehedgehogsdilemma]

The Wizard of Oz is America’s answer to Britain’s Alice in wonderland when it comes to an exciting fairytale with powerful social commentary. The Wizard of Oz is a uniquely allAmerican fairytale.

[pdzombie]

Baum wasn't aware of the connections, but probably channeled all of the unconsciously and that's why it's still a classic. Just like the film adaptation which channels the postdepression era. Great video, thanx!!!

[Richforce]

According to Roland Barthes The intent of the author is not as important as the meaning we ourselves give a work, as such a story is it's own entity.

[yosefdemby]

According to a history teacher that supervised during my previous study period, Baum wrote advocacy for McKinley. Furthermore, he conceived of the name for the magical land from a filing cabinet division: O-Z.

[macmedia]

I love how they come up with a different art style for each video!