Wizard of Oz symbolism

I'm watching some documentary on the wizard of oz on Hulu and it's not touching on some of the cool symbolic things I've discussed with my brother about this movie. I found this online and I'd like some of your takes on it.

"Symbolism of the ‘Wizard of Oz’
Practically everyone has either seen or heard The Wizard of Oz and Dorothy story. The Wizard of Oz over the years has become one of the truly classic movies among children and adults alike. If you have not read the book or seen the movie, you have probably at least heard the well known phrase “I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore” or heard of Toto, Dorothy’s dog.

It tells the story of a young girl who ends up in a tornado and gets carried from her Kansas farm home to a land that is not like anything she has seen ever before. After Dorothy’s house falls on and kills the Wicked Witch in Munchkin Land, Dorothy is welcomed to her new land by the Munchkins. The nice witch Glinda then explains to Dorothy that to find out about getting back home she needs to follow the yellow brick road and ask the Wizard of Oz. Along her way down the yellow brick road Dorothy meets some new friends who all have something they want to ask the great wizard. However, when they finally get to the Emerald City and meet the wizard, they discover he is just a fraud and that everything they had been searching for they can find within themselves.

Whatever you may have seen or heard from the classic book or movie, what most people don’t know is that it is suspected that The Wizard of Oz referenced several late 1800 political issues. Speculation began in the 1960s with a history teacher of parallels between the novel and U.S. history. Henry Littlefield used the movie in his lecture and had students of his help to find the parallels between real life and the movie. The parallels were published in 1964 in American Quarterly and sparked years worth of debate.

Whether any of these speculations are true or not, none of us know for sure. However here are some of the symbols that have been suggested for The Wizard of Oz.

The Symbolism

Dorothy: it is believed that Dorothy represents American values or people. She proves to be loyal, resourceful and determined. Another speculation was that she represents the U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt. Some people put more faith in this theory more than the other one due to similarnames (The-o-dore and Dor-o-thy).

Toto: a small dog that seems to go unnoticed, it is Toto who reveals what a fraud the Wizard is. It is thought that Toto also represents average Americans.

Uncle Henry: Henry Cantwell Wallace was a well known farmer and editor for a leading farm magazine in the late 1800s. He was called Uncle Henry by most everyone.

Cyclone: it is thought that the tornado represents the free silver movement or political upheaval. During the time that the story was written, American farmers were suffering from the effects of federal deflation. Their debts were growing larger as they were getting less money for their crops and other goods. The farmers wanted the dollar value to have fixed ratios of both gold and silver. Some politicians supported this movement and others didn’t.

Munchkins: The little people, the munchkins, are said to represent the common people or ordinary U.S. citizens. The Lollipop Guild is seen as representing child labor.

Silver Slippers: In the novel, Dorothy’s slippers are silver and not ruby. Silver is related to the monetary political issues of the time where farmers want to have the dollar’s value to have fixed ratios for both silver and gold. Another speculation is that the silver slippers are a representation of the power to vote.

Yellow Brick Gold: is a representation of the gold standard, with the gold road leading to power.

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. The Tin Man was immobile and rusted, which is something many factory workers felt when many businesses began to shut down due to a national depression. They felt helpless after they lost their jobs.

Scarecrow: represents western farmers. He complained about not having a brain but wound up as the most adept problem solver among the four travelers.

Cowardly Lion: In the late 1800s William Jennings Bryan, a politician, was a supporter of the free silver movement. It is said that the Cowardly Lion represents Bryan, who was viewed as someone having a load roar, but no power or bite.

Wicked Witch of the West and East: The Wicked Witch of the East represents eastern business and the Wicked Witch of the West represents the politician William McKinley who defeated Williams Jennings Bryant during the time of the free silver silver movement.

Good Witch of the South and North. The Good Witch of the North represents northern workers, and the Good Witch of the South represents southern farmers. This provides a contrast between wicked industrialists from the west with the railroad moguls in the west.

Flying Monkeys: in political cartoons flying monkeys are used for poking fun at politicians. Another speculation is they represent Native Americans. Dorothy and friends are told when they meet up with the monkeys that they were once a free people who happily lived in the forest where they flew from tree to tree eating fruit and nuts and doing whatever they pleased without having to call anyone master. This was years before Oz appeared from the clouds to rule over the land. This appears to relate well with the fate of Native Americans who had been forced from their land by Americans migrating from the east.

Emerald Palace and Emerald City: the Emerald Palace is believed to represent the White House and the Emerald City to represent Washington D.C.

Wizard: it is thought that the Wizard of Oz represents Mark Hanna, who was the Republican party’s chairman, or perhaps president of the United States. In the book, the Tin Man, Scarecrow and Dorothy all saw the Wizard quite differently. This symbolizes the cynicism that exists in politics due to the fact that politicians tend to change face with different people."

http://wickedtour.net/symbolism-of-the-wizard-of-oz

 

The whole movie to me seems to suggest the following:

1. Everyone fails to see what they do have by focusing too much on what they think they don't have. (Can't see the wood for the trees.)

2. Nothing is as it initially appears to be.

3. Everyone has fears, weaknesses, self doubt no matter what they project - and what is projected is not necessarily who they are.

4. There will always be those out to destroy us, those against us, those jealous of us, and those willing to harm us no matter how Saintly we behave in life.

5. There really is no place like (what you call) your "home."

6. Dogs (and animals) know truth.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gXvVUg-VAE"]The Dark Side Of The Rainbow - COMPLETO - YouTube

Here's this just for the fuck of it.

 

Yeah, the grass is never greener in the other field

 

Awesome! I haven't seen that in so long. I think I need to break out the ol' pipe for this.

 

Or maybe those dried shrooms. No idea why I didn't eat them months ago. I'd rather throw them out and get fresh, but this is that kind of sat night I guess. See you all later.

 

It's only green where you water it

 

But even when you do it can be disappointing

 

Nevermind on the dried. It's only been like 10 min and I'm already looking up at the ceiling and pondering. In another 20 it will be time to grab some headphones and go walk around outside. What did you do Lodog, hahaha.

 

I got sucked into video I posted. It's been 10 years since I watched that! hahaha.

When I told a friend about it we killed the lights and smoked up. His dorm always had people coming in and out and this black guy walked in making fun of us for sitting in the dark listening to Floyd. When the witch comes on the screen riding the bike and all the alarms go off he screamed this really high pitched squeel and bolted out of that room like a bat out of hell! funny shit.

I like how the Great Gig in the sky ebs and flows with the tornado... there's all kinds of cool shit. Two minutes into the video I busted out the bud I've been saving for about a week.

 

Yes their is tons of symbolism with the banking system and the movie.

I suggest you watch this documentary.

http://www.themoneymasters.com/mm/

you might be a ble to find the full film on youtube. i did a few years ago...

 

Thanks Broony I'll look for it and post it here if I can find it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDtBSiI13fE"]The Money Masters (1996) [FULL DOCUMENTARY] - YouTube

over three hours... eh why not?

 

Yes ive seen that full film. Its more knowledge then many can handle. I watched it in 1/2 parts...

I posted about it years ago..

Once you watch that then study 9/11 and building 7.... its like taking the red pill...you will look at everythign differently. Including finicial problems in Europe and everyone else on a debt based system...

Also thats not the film, the Secret of Oz is a different one, done by the same people. Both excellent.

 

Here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swkq2E8mswI"]The Secret of Oz - Winner, Best Docu of 2010 v.1.09.11 - YouTube

Now even though they are both based on the banking system...Money Masters is a more ful film on banking in general, with quotes from many many famous people, in and out of the business.

The secret of Oz focuses more on...welll Oz

 

That's one of the best documentaries I've ever watched.

 

You just ruined the movie for me.

 

I watched it not so long ago, the line that gets me is: "Only bad witches are ugly"

 

I'd like to read all of the books, as I think the film perhaps takes some liberties with the story. I think not all the subsequent books were written by the same author - so perhaps it is their take on the symbolism's etc. I suppose you can always also read too much into these things.

The Occult Roots of The Wizard of Oz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSavFUWX7rI"]Randall Niles - Symbolism of the Wizard Of Oz - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VruXnEaSKII"]The Wizard of Oz-Movie Magick-illuminati Hollywood - YouTube

According to author and Oz series originator Lyman Frank Baum [May 15, 1856-May 5, 1919], The Wizard of Oz is an American fairy tale for the enjoyment of children. But there are those who see within Baum's work representations and symbols that aren't acknowledged in his writings as among his overt intentions.
One interpretation is the political representation of Baum's royal history of the beautiful, enchanted, magical lands and peoples of Oz. That interpretation is couched in the Populist terms of the 1890s, when Baum already may have been working out characters and plots in the decade before publishing the first of 14 books in his Oz series.
According to the interpretation, Dorothy Gale represents the level-headed, everyday American. In Toto, some see the Teetotalers against losing hard-earned money to alcoholic drink. The Scarecrow is the American farmer, who has much more common sense than educated brains. The Tin Woodman is the American worker, who is driven by the money and power holders to work ever harder, ever faster, ever better until he's nothing more than their machine. The Cowardly Lion is William Jennings Bryan [March 19, 1860-July 26, 1925], who fought for the rights of common people, and for free coinage of silver, to release them from the deathly grip of the bankers and industrialists. In fact, the symbol of that money standard is the pair of Silver Slippers, that have the secret power to allay the scary, rough, bumpy trek down the gold standard route of the Yellow Brick Road.
The book ends with the Slippers being lost in the desert, in the transition from the magical world of Oz to the real world of Kansas. Likewise, in the transition from political economic theory to political economic realities, arguments for free coinage of silver ended in 1900, which was the year in which The Wizard of Oz was published.
The journey of the five friends down the Road represents the walk of Jacob Sechler Coxey, Sr. [April 16, 1854-May 18, 1951], with unemployed farmers, disaster-struck farmers, and Populist politicians, to petition the President to provide for their needs. The Emerald City therefore is Washington, D.C.
The Wizard is the President of the United States, and therefore tries to make people think that he can give them what they want and need.
The Winged Monkeys are the aborigines, who belong to the land, and don't want to leave it. For they consider themselves the originally free residents of the land until the Wizard drops out of the skies, and into national government, be it Oz of the book or the United States of the real world. The winged monkeys can also represent Eastern bankers who, along with the harsh environment, make the lives of farmers difficult.
And the Wicked Witch of the West represents the cruel natural forces that so plague the farmers with cyclone, droughts, and other environmental stresss. Drought is a major environmental stressor, what with its aiding and abetting role in wildfires. Is it no wonder that the Witch's life, and the slings and arrows of outrageous nature, can be ended with a bucket of lifesaving water?

 

Dunno. Never thought about it. All I know is that the gobshite BBC is banning playing the full length of "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead". Fucking morons.

I'm just amazed the ginger witch wasn't strung up with piano wire. Cue reply from simpletons who've never been to England, let alone know anything about politics....