Well partially true. It was a metaphor about the people vs the elite, but not just the Eastern elites. Wicked Witch of the East represented the banks/eastern concerns and the Wicked Witch of the West represented the gold miners/western concerns.
So even then it was flyover country vs the coasts.
Tin Man represented factory workers
Scarecrow was the farmers
Cowardly lion was William Jennings Bryan
Emerald city was the greenback
Bryan was in support of moving the dollar to a bi-metal basis using both silver and gold. Slippers represented silver on top of a gold base (silver slippers walking on top of a gold road). Bryan is represented as cowardly because he changed his presidential campaign platform from a focus on Free Silver (which was the main focus in 1896) to an anti-imperialism focus in 1900. Free silver was still on the platform, just not talked about. Bryan was for a free Cuba but upset after the Spanish-American war that the US took possession of the Philippines. Despite this opposition he encouraged fellow democrats to vote for the Treaty of Paris to end the war.
I suppose a better interpretation of the Emerald city would be the Treasury vs just the greenback. But the idea is that silver arrives to take on the western concerns-gold only standard for the greenback and gets treasury support in the end.
Thanks. I had forgotten the details.
the Wicked Witch of the West represented the gold miners/western concerns.....and the drought. She was destroyed by throwing water on her.
The scarecrow represented the Midwest farmer who believed he had no voice in Washington, and who was under the domination of the Wicked Witch of the West.
The Munchkins were "the little people" and the yellow brick road was gold.
The "poppies" are popular issues, used to put the public to sleep and distract them from reality.
Of course it took place in The Land of Oz....with oz being the abbreviation for ounce....the wizard being an unnamed US president. Emerald City....the color of "greenbacks".....(Washington DC)