Rockoff, Hugh. "The 'Wizard of Oz' as a Monetary Allegory. The Journal of Political Economy. Vol. 98, No. 4 (Aug. 1990), pp. 739-760. 28 November 2008 <http://proxy.library.upenn.edu:2097/stable/2937766?&Search=yes&term=Allegory&term=Monetary&term=%22Wizard+of+Oz%22&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3DThe%2B%2522Wizard%2Bof%2BOz%2522%2Bas%2Ba%2BMonetary%2BAllegory;gw%3Djtx;prq%3DBaum%2527s%2B%2527Wizard%2Bof%2BOz%2527%2Bas%2BGilded%2BAge%2Bpublic%2Brelations;Search%3DSearch;hp%3D25;wc%3Don&item=2&ttl=35&returnArticleService=showArticle>.

This article offers an economic interpretation of The Wizard of Oz. First, Rockoff outlines the history of the debate over whether or not money should be tied to gold or silver, which ensued while L. Frank Baum wrote the story. Rockoff continues, throughout the article, to suggest that almost every main character and event symbolize something of the free silver movement. For example, "the cyclone is the free silver movement itself. It came roaring out of the West in 1896, shaking the political establishment to its foundations" (Rockoff, 745). And, the Scarecrow represents the typical Midwestern farmer during this era, who proved that "the people, the farmer in particular, were capable of understanding the complex theories that underlay the choice of a standard" (Rockoff, 746). Moreover, the Yellowbrick Road is a direct allegory of the gold standard, which many Democrats believed were hindering the growth of the United States economy at the time. Rockoff proposes that Baum's story is a definite promotion of a bimetallic standard (as was also advocated by the free silver movement), which would have allowed for the release more cash into the economy.

Hugh Rockoff's article is important to this discussion because it was the first analysis of The Wizard of Oz in light of the battle over free silver that was waged in the late 1890s and early 1900s. It departs from previous critiques of the film by not only discussing the politics in the film, but the economics too. It also, probably, allowed for the writing of Ziaukas' article, which discusses The Wizard of Oz in light of the great "financial question" as well. More importantly, this article can also lead to an interpretation of the film version in light of the "financial question." While the cyclone probably did not stand out as a reference to the free silver movement to viewers in 1939, the Yellowbrick Road as a representation of the gold standard was still highly relevant when the film was released. As discussed through Ziaukas' article above, during the Great Depression, the United State temporarily went off of the gold standard and, therefore, once again, people did not have great faith in the system. In Baum's story, and MGM's timeless film, the Yellowbrick Road leads Dorothy to a land of artificial promises and unattainable grandeur. In both cases Dorothy eventually wishes to return to her traditional lifestyle, away from the spectacle (or gold standard) and, as a result, this allegory functions well in both the 1890s and in the post-Depression era.