Published in 1890, L. Frank BaumÆs The Wizard of Oz is often viewed as a study of history and economic policy in the U.S. as much as it is a beloved adventure story. The book was published during the Gilded Age, a time of wealthy robber barons who amassed great fortunes and a time when the free silver movement was pitted against the gold standard. According to Barlow (p. 476), ôThe book can be understood as an extended allusion to the æFree SilverÆ movement of the 1890s. Thus the Yellow Brick Road represents the Gold Standard, DorothyÆs Silver Shoes represent bimetallism, and the Cowardly Lion is William Jennings Bryan, and so on.ö
The Wizard of Oz also serves as a history of the Populist movement of the era, complete with references to the Prohibitionists in the name of DorothyÆs dog, ôToto,ö what is akin to the slang name for Prohibitionists who helped the Populists, teetotalers, (Baum, p. 3). Toto is the one who keeps Dorothy laughing and from being gray, as described in the book. Further, the twenty-four chapters in the book unfold in both chronological and thematic order. One of the themes that applies to the Populist movement of the era is embodied by the fight between the Cowardly Lion and the Woodman. In this fight the Cowardly Lion, often thought to be William Jennings Bryan since he was represented in political cartoons of the era as a ôlion,ö fails to conquer the Woodman. According to Vella (p. 186) this is another reference to PopulismÆs inability to connect with the labor class in U.S. society during the era, ôThe Cowardly LionÆs failed attempt to attack the Woodman is read as PopulismÆs failure to attract the support of Eastern blue collar workers.ö
The Populist Party is also referenced a number of times in the book, as Dorothy and her friends are referred to repeatedly in the book as a ôparty,ö such when the Woodman helps make a path, ôWoodman set to work with his axe and chopped so well ...