The Historian's Wizard of Oz: Reading L. Frank Baum's Classic as a Political and Monetary Allegory
by Ranjit S. Dighe
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ranjit S. DigheEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2002-06-21
ISBN: 0275974197
Number of pages: 192
Publisher: Praeger
Book Reviews of The Historian's Wizard of Oz: Reading L. Frank Baum's Classic as a Political and Monetary Allegory
Book Review: Political and Financial Allegory in Baum's Classic.
Summary: 4 Stars
This book is offered as a teaching tool on the history and economic issues of the 1890's.
Mr.Dighe chronicles the interpretations of "The Wizard of Oz" as imagery of politics and money by various writers starting with Henry Littlefield in 1964.
The author cautions that there are subtle differences between the movie and Mr. Baum's book. The color of Dorothy's shoes is one example.
Mr. Baum's political leanings are a relevant topic of this book. They are basically an unknown. Mr. Dighe suggests that Mr. Baum probably didn't intentionally write "The Wizard of Oz" as political/economic allegory. But the book fills that role surprisingly well!
The first chapter explains money and national finances in easy terms. Some of the subjects in that vein are; the gold standard, gold reserve, and fiat money. They are all efficiently defined.
The story of "The Wizard of Oz" is printed in this book accompanied by numerous footnotes that are educational and interesting. Those footnotes detail some of the interpretations from authors like Henry Littlefield, Hugh Rockoff, and Ranjit Dighe himself among others.
These interpretations are speculative, but some of them are glaringly obvious. The green in Oz's temple for the color of money is one.
He includes William Jennings Bryan's speech at the end of the book. I have mixed feelings on Mr. Bryan. While he advocated the federal income tax(I don't care for that)he has his spot in history that was well-earned by his presidential campaigns and eloquent speeches.
This book addresses a fascinating topic. The question of whether L.Frank Baum intended for his book to serve as an allegory for the politics of the 1890's is one that each reader will have to answer for themselves.
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