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A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
Ebook36 pages24 minutes

A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"

By Gale and Cengage

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A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Novels for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Novels for Students for all of your research needs.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJun 15, 2016
ISBN9781535840637
A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"

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    A Study Guide for L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" - Gale

    1

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

    L. Frank Baum

    1900

    Introduction

    L. Frank Baum never imagined the impact The Wonderful Wizard of Oz would have on children's writing or the appeal the book would have to generations of readers. Although he wrote numerous books, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is easily his most enduring. Baum wanted to write a fairy tale that was American, not European, although he introduced elements of traditional European fairy tales (witches, castles, forests) into the story. By presenting a female protagonist, casual language, characters such as the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman, and settings such as Kansas, Baum created a new approach to children's writing that is distinctly American.

    Before The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, children's books were stilted morality tales designed to instruct or to frighten readers into behaving properly. Baum, however, presented a thrilling adventure from a child's point of view, showing the child's ability to solve her own problems and return to the security of her home.

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz received praise from critics and readers alike. Critics applauded Baum's simple storytelling, his message, and his imaginative, believable characters. Readers fell in love with the wonders of Oz and demanded more books about this enchanted land. Although the book did not win any awards during Baum's lifetime, it was given the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1968.

    Author Biography

    Lyman Frank Baum was born on May 15, 1856, in Chittenango, New York, to Cynthia and Benjamin Ward Baum. Benjamin was a wealthy barrel-maker and sawyer who made his fortune during the Pennsylvania oil rush. The Baums' loss of four of their nine children in infancy and Frank's heart condition led the parents to indulge and shelter their young son.

    As an adult, Frank Baum had a wildly varied career. Over the years, he was a newspaperman, an actor, a playwright, an axle grease maker, a dime store owner, a salesman, a Hollywood entrepreneur, and a chicken breeder. While touring with an acting troupe performing his play The Maid of Arran, Baum met and fell in love with Maud Gage, the youngest daughter of suffragette Matilda Josilyn Gage. Although the elder Gage opposed the union, Maud was determined to marry Baum. They wed in 1882 and built a

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