Fleming’s 1939 American film The Wizard of Oz is an early pioneer of the use of innovative techniques in camera work, music, visual and special effects in modern day movie production.  The musical-fantasy classic has also become a firm favorite among the American public and coupled with its influence in the film industry, it should be regarded as the most significant American film of all time.

 

Such is the popularity of Baum’s The Wizard of Oz that some critics have suggested that it and other forms of popular culture have replaced biblical teaching and mythology’s position in society’s collective imagination. So thorough is the permeation of the Oz fantasy that a mere mention of any of the popular quotes from the movie will instantly evoke the full comprehension and application of said quote to the context in question. So complete is our exposure to the fantasy that even the act of thinking about certain related issues is reduced to mere reflex. Hastings posits that while the Bible was once the “source of our verbal and visual shorthand” any reference to Biblical characters or quotations in today’s world had best be accompanied by a footnote. Can a fictitious girl and her dog really replace usurp religion’s role in the western world? The issue is definitely up for debate. One thing is for certain though, “Toto, we're not in Kansas any more."

 

Hastings, A. Waller. "Worshiping at the Altar of Oz ." The Lion and the Unicorn.
(21 Feb. 1997). Muse.jhu.edu, 1 Dec. 2008.

Fleming’s 1939 American film The Wizard of Oz is an early pioneer of the use of innovative techniques in camera work, music, visual and special effects in modern day movie production.  The musical-fantasy classic has also become a firm favorite among the American public and coupled with its influence in the film industry, it should be regarded as the most significant American film of all time.

 

In his article Kansas, Oz and the Function of Art , Conlon describes Fleming’s 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz as an expression of art using the film medium. He proposes the idea that the land of Oz is itself the artistic interpretation of the reality of Kansas. While art is generally mimetic, Oz is not just a mere reflection of Kansas. Nor is Oz a conflict-free version of the real world. This much is clear as Dorothy faces arguably more dire perils in Oz than in Kansas. It is true that the characters in Oz resemble their Kansas counterparts in physique and psyche, however the relationships that Dorothy forges with the Tin Man, Lion and Scarecrow are more indicative of her desire to be treated as an equal rather than the meddlesome child she is depicted as while on the farm. Oz also empowers Dorothy with the ability to evoke change in the status quo, in Kansas her opinion is often ignored or dismissed. The article is truly a unique interpretation of the film and shows that this beloved fantasy has a lot more substance than we might realize at first glance.

 

Conlon, James. "Kansas, Oz and the Function of Art." Journal of Aesthetic Education Vol. 24, No. 3 (Autumn, 1990), pp. 99-106. University of Illinois Press. JSTOR, 1 Dec. 2008.

 

Flemings 1939 American film The Wizard of Oz is an early pioneer of the use of innovative techniques in camera work, music, visual and special effects in modern day movie production. The musical-fantasy classic has also become a firm favorite among the American public and coupled with its influence in the film industry, it should be regarded as the most significant American film of all time.

Steinfels, Peter. "Following the Yellowbrick Road, and Finding a Spiritual Path." The New York Times, 28 November 2001. Published November 28, 2001. 28 November 2008 <http://proxy.library.upenn.edu:2101/us/lnacademic/results/docview/docview.do?docLinkInd=true&risb=21_T5253876110&format=GNBFI&sort=RELEVANCE&startDocNo=1&resultsUrlKey=29_T5253876113&cisb=22_T5253876112&treeMax=true&treeWidth=0&selRCNodeID=24&nodeStateId=411en_US,1,23&docsInCategory=65&csi=6742&docNo=17>.

This article offers a religious interpretation of The Wizard of Oz and, further, posits that the film is a direct reflection of traditional American values. Steinfels recounts a speech given at the Convention of the American Academy of Religion during which Dr. Paul Nathanson suggested that Dorothy's journey mirrors a routine religious story about origin and destiny. In the film, Dorothy's adventure is split up into three sections-Kansas, Oz and Kansas-and ultimately she ends up right where she began. Nathanson claimed that Dorothy's homecoming is like the Israelites return to the Promise Land after years of exile. Nathanson also emphasized that while religiosity is not overt in the film, these values are also deeply ingrained in the American tradition. Steinfels explains Nathanson's second assertion which proposes that Dorothy's journey also represents a desire in the United States to return to a traditional, agrarian-based society. In 1939 America was still recovering from political and economic corruption and it is possible that Americans yearned for a more traditional lifestyle, like Dorothy's experience in Kansas.

This article's religious references are interesting because, as Nathanson says, numerous religious values are in fact embedded in traditional American culture. Furthermore, it is likely that many Americans turned to their respective faiths extensively during the Depression, and the years immediately following the disaster. If what Nathanson suggested about Dorothy's journey following a religious storyline is also correct, then it is likely that religious Americans found solace in Dorothy. Americans could identify with her quest and eventual return to Kansas, just as they wished to return to their pre-Depression lifestyles. Notwithstanding the utility of Nathanson's religious references, it seems unlikely that his idea about Americans in 1939 desiring a return to an agrarian society is correct. They may have sought traditional values, family structures and workplaces, but not an eradication of technology. Steinfels' retelling of Nathanson's speech offers insight into the ability of Americans to relate to Dorothy in light of dire economic circumstances. Interestingly, this high level of identification may have also led to the immense success of the film.

Paige, Linda Rohrer. "Wearing the Red Shoes: Dorothy and the power of the female imagination in The Wizard of Oz." Journal of Popular Film and Television. Vol. 23 (Winter 1996). pp. 146-153. 28 November 2008 <http://proxy.library.upenn.edu:2659/hww/results/getResults.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.20#record_5>.

Linda Paige's article discusses the Wizard of Oz from a feminist perspective and suggests that the ruby red slippers, which Dorothy inherits from the Wicket Witch of the East, represent the power of the female imagination and the possibility of escaping mainstream, patriarchal society. When Dorothy puts on the slippers and begins her journey down the yellow brick road she is on her way to liberating herself from the traditional, domestic female role, which is reflected through Auntie Em's character. Paige reminds readers that when Dorothy is wearing the slippers she shows her strength and power as a female who has the ability to help her male counterparts find the essential elements of life which they lack. Moreover, Paige suggests that the color red represents passion, and spilled blood, and, as a result, Dorothy's journey in the slippers may be viewed as an act of rebellion against conventional society. However, when Dorothy decides to return home at the end of the film and, in turn, give up the slippers, she succumbs to the comfort of a traditional, male-dominated society.

This article is interesting because is offers an entirely new framework within which to view this classic film. During the 1930's the United States was riddled with unemployment and, as a result, women who went to work were seen as un-American for taking jobs away from unemployed men. In the case of The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy is "un-American" for attempting to revolt against conventionality and break the shackles of patriarchy. Paige's article coincides with the desire in America to maintain the traditional family because ultimately Dorothy takes off the slippers, leaves her powerful imagination behind, and regresses toward the traditional female role. Dorothy's overt desire to return home, which is exemplified when she clicks her heels and says "there's no place like home" three times, promotes conventional American values and suggests to viewers that the traditional, middle America family is the ideal. Paige's ideas about the slippers and, more importantly, Dorothy's final decision to return to Kansas, accurately reflect sentiments in the United States during the 1930s.