The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz is an iconic movie with its witty characters and heartfelt message. It was made for entertainment purposes, but it seemed to have a hidden allusion. After learning more about the populist party, The Wizard of Oz may have a little more to the story than four friends going on an adventure. This old-time tale is an allegory to explain when America had gone through a rough patch where businesses and industrialization were overpowering everything.
In the story, most of the characters and objects had a symbolic meaning to them. For example, the yellow brick road was gold and Dorothy’s slippers were silver, which represented the Populists' solution to the nation's economic issues. The leader of the populist party was William Jenning Bryan, or the Cowardly Lion. In the story it was all bark but no bite for the Lion, causing him to want to find the wizard or McKinley and ask for courage. This represented the demand in taking action and having a voice to support the farmers and laborers (The Wizard of Oz and the 1890’s). Another character that appears in the story is the Scarecrow or the “wise but naive” farmer. The Scarecrow wanted nothing more than to have