L. Frank Baum

Lyman Frank Baum (May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author, and the creator of one of the most popular books ever written in American children's literature, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Baum's beliefs

Politics

During the events leading up to the Wounded Knee Massacre, Baum wrote a racist editorial for the Saturday Pioneer stating that the Native Americans (whom he described as "whining curs") should be completely annihilated. After the Massacre (during which, according to official figures, 153 Indians out of a village of 350?including 230 women and children?were directly killed, with an unknown number of others later dying as a result of their forced displacement) he wrote a second editorial repeating his earlier opinion and criticizing the government for not taking even harsher measures: "wipe these... untamable creatures from the face of the earth". It should be noted that these editorials are the only known occasion on which Baum expressed such views, and that he wrote them when his own fortunes were declining. Some of Baum's work as a children's author, including two of his Oz books, have been criticized for perpetuating racist stereotypes about African Americans.

Related Topics:
Wounded Knee Massacre - Racist - Editorial - Native American - Annihilated - Government - African Americans

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A common misconception is that The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was written as a parable on populism in the sense of bimetallism. Nothing in Baum's biography or style supports this notion, though there are some suggestive parallels between the book and certain historic figures.

Related Topics:
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Populism - Bimetallism

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Religious beliefs

Originally an Episcopalian, Baum and his wife became theosophists, in 1897. Baum's beliefs are often reflected in his writing. The only mention of a church in the Oz books is the porcelain one which Dorothy knocks over in the China Country in The Wizard of Oz. The Baums also sent their older sons to "Ethical Culture Sunday School" in Chicago, which taught morality but not religion.

Related Topics:
Episcopalian - Theosophist - 1897 - Porcelain - Dorothy

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