User:Aeroglove566/Evaluate an Article

Which article are you evaluating?
Political interpretations of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Why you have chosen this article to evaluate?
The article is relevant to how I wish to read literature. I am interested in how political and societal messages come through in literature. Since The Wizard of Oz is a children's book and one of the most beloved American works, I want to evaluate how this article presents its information.

Evaluate the article
The lead section is the best section in the article. It gives a general overview that helps illustrate the topic: interpretation of The Wizard of Oz as allegory or metaphor for the political, societal, and economic events in 1890s America. It mentions how it's applied to different Oz media and the political activism of L Frank Baum and illustrator William Wallace Denslow. The one image associated with the page is appropriate, but a few more could be added.

The first two main section, Monetary policy and Social groups, are the most informative -- giving a great range of the different interpretations and history behind The Wizard of Oz and the Gilded Age. Alternative allegory is a "dump section" that discusses interpretation outside of the last two topics. The article uses language, at times, that gives the impression that this is written like a personal academic essay ("Dorothy would be...", "if this is true, then the Winged Monkeys..."). The sources are numerous and well applied. "Others suggest the City of Oz..." is the only sentence that is needing of a citation. The bibliography and further reading gives recommendations if interested.

I believe the article only needs reworking with the language, to give it a much more objective voice.