The Wizard of Oz, a story communicated by author L. Frank Baum in a third-person point of view manner, entails the story of a girl who gets stuck in the middle of a tornado which ends up taking her to the land of Oz. Along her way, she encounters different people being a lion, tinman, scarecrow, and witch along with magical events giving this experience a dream-like feeling. Although this appears to speak to a younger audience and comes across like a children’s book, once analyzed and paid attention to, this story has deeper meanings and messages which speak to an older audience and can be considered an adult story.
In chapter 18, they use the word wild to refer to a beast. ” I am really a wild beast,” says the character and, throughout the other chapters as well, wild is used when describing animals which would be in a way dangerous since they have not been tamed and act to survive. Similarly, in another case, the author writes “wild crows”. In this paragraph, we can see logos when they say “there are wild beasts in the woods” since the woods can be seen as a dangerous place that contains dangerous animals, and in this place that would be beasts. We see ethos because himself the character is saying “I am a wild beast” so we know he is a credible source.
I, too, agree with the sentiment that this story isn’t directed toward children alone. Instead, the allegories Baum provides are social commentary that would otherwise fly over children’s heads. However, I would say that the fantastical nature of the story is appealing to children through the colorful imagery Baum entails.
I think that you could also apply pathos to the word “wild” in your rhetorical analysis. The term “wild” which refers to the dangerous creature mentioned, could also reveal an appeal to the audience’s emotions. By describing the unknown creatures that dwell in the forest, Baum attempts to make the reader feel the same kind of anxiety that the characters are going through. He uses the term “wild” to convey that the creatures are dangerous and terrifying.
-Anna Allen
I also agree that Baum uses wildness to instill fear and anxiety in both Dorothy and the readers. Baum uses pathos as he uses the text to produce emotions in the readers to convey his message.