The Wizard of Oz
Wizard of Oz, The (1900),widely considered the most popular American fairy tale, is the first in a series of 14 Oz books by L. Frank Baum. Hard hit by the brutal economic depression of 1890, this actor, journalist, and window decorator established himself as an author of children's books with Father Goose: His Book (1899). From rewritten nursery rhymes, Baum turned to the wonder tales of Andersen and the Grimms. Writing during the vogue of utopian novels, he wanted a ‘modernized fairy tale’ that would omit both romance and nightmare‐causing violence yet still provide an entertaining morality for children. He also modernized the talking beasts of folklore into sentient machines like the Tin Woodman: in this way, he could introduce turn‐of‐the‐century industrialization into a fairyland where no one is injured (wicked...
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