Rosie the Revolutionary

Revolutionary? What else in united States History has taken so many women outside of their houses and put them into factories to work and get paid? The war gave many women chances to service jobs that would normally be done by men. It did create jobs such as farm workers, gas attendants and welders. The great thing was that the training was free and many women were able to get social security cards and for some, the first job education courses they had ever received. They liked to take mechanic tools and then compare them to household appliances so that women could relate and also learn easier. Many women of the time were just housewives who had not seen any machines outside of their own kitchen, Also, customized tools were made for women in order for them to do the jobs that were usually done by the large hands of a man,
The most impressive thing was that thousands of women, from young to old, responded to the call for workers. A lot of the women felt that making objects such as bullets, guns and airplanes would be directly supporting their husbands in the field. Women finally felt as if they were directly impacting the result of the war by keeping the home-front productive.

the Role of Women in WWII

Although World War II offered the opportunity for women to show the country what they can do, (and they did it), once the men came back from war, they were expected to assume their roles once again as homemakers.

Some argue that society changed their views on women's roles in the workforce after the war. Women took jobs as mechanics, factory workers, gas station attendants and farmers. Their work was evidence that women an do what a man can do. Those who argue this, believe that World War II began the women's movement and opened the door to women accepted in the work force.

But others feel that American society didn't really change their views of the role women played during the war. Women were still in a supporting role. There were limitations on the jobs that women could take during the war.

"These range from the exclusion of women from powerful policy-making bodies
in government through war contractors' resistance to viewing women workers
as permanent hires to the refusal of unions adequately to defend women's
rights during re-conversion."

The traditions role of women as a husband's supporter was simply extended to supporting her husband by working his job. The limitations were placed on women because they women were simply doing their part to support the men over seas as protecting the homeland economically.

Triumph of the Will

I know that a blog for this class usually consists of reading material but i think that Triumph of the Will is the best example of Propaganda that we have seen in this class. I have seen this movie once before in a Mass Media class and am very familiar with it. This is a great example of Propaganda because of the camera angles, organization and overall production of a film based on 1934 Germany. First and foremost, how the camera angles pan from bottom to top on such shots as the German eagle and various other statues is brilliant in that it makes the German empire look larger than life. Also, the shots from up top of the mass crowds of laborers and Hitler Youth organized in perfect order without one person out of place gives the impression that this was a society that was fully united and also might strike fear in the heart of other nations after they see that these massive numbers of people are all ready to do whatever will benefit Germany. the perfectly on key singing of the service laborers, unified answers and overall feeling of German pride and Nationalism that this film brings out is a great example of Propaganda in favor of the Nazis and promoting them as the superior race. This early work of Leni Riefenstahl is way ahead of its time and a great example of how Propaganda is spread to the masses and how it works.

Advertising in Wartime

Advertising in Wartime

“Advertising in wartime has changed its character. Devoted no longer to the promotion of products and services which it can no longer deliver, it has become instead a primary weapon in the sale of social and economic ideas.” (Advertising in Wartime, 236)

This article discussed a disturbing trend in advertising that occurred during WWII. Companies actually dramatically increased their advertisements for products during WWII. There were various excuses from the companies as to why they did this; the most laughable was companies such as Purely Plastics and Chemical Company and the Home Aluminum and Brass Corporations (and numerous companies like these) who increased their advertising greatly. These companies like Purely did not even have a completed product yet they flooded radio and print ads with messages to “remember to ask for their products after the war.” Companies like Purely did not even make a product available to the general consumer, but parts that were given to distributors and dealers to use in other products.

Companies like Ivory Soap®, and Wheaties™ used advertising to suppossibly “remind” the people that they would be there for them following the war. The worst was many companies launched tremendous advertising campaigns claiming that their company or their product was winning the war for America. They tried to create a public notion that without these products, the war would be lost. It got so bad that the U.S. government was beginning to contemplate launching a campaign just to let the public know that the soldiers were needed and helping with the war.

It would seem the main reason most of these companies went on a marketing and advertising tirade was because unlike during previous wars, they were told that their money spent on ads would not be taxable which would allow them to keep some of their profits if they used money towards advertising. The worst of it all is, because it wasn’t taxable, rather then donate money to our war effort, or donate money to our government in this time of need and conflict, they chose to waste their time on frivolous advertisements, instead of truly supporting the war effort. These companies spent on themselves even though they didn’t have much in the way of products being produced let alone sold, instead of spending on our troops.

Lightning Lines

Daniel Critron's "Lightning Lines" spends a large portion explaining the conflicts and triumphs in the monopolization of telegraph lines and companies, which reminded me of many different companies and their situations today.

"Each of the three parties, New York AP, Western AP, and Western Union, signed
contracts with the other two, thus formalizing and perpetuating the existence of three monopolies. Western AP's contract was regional, whereas the New York AP's and Western Union were national. Both news associations pledged not to use the wires of companies other than Western Union and promised to oppose any new telegraph companies." (pg.25)

This behavior of the telegraph industry is reminiscent of the activities that were conducted by the telephone companies. The Bell System used to hold monopoly control over the telephone industry in America until it divested in 1984. Our country has had a long history of monopolization and until reading "Lightning Lines", I was unaware of how blatant it was.

"Rosie the Riveter"

In Maureen Henry's "Creating Rosie the riveter", she expresses her belief that the end of the war precipitated an abrupt change in women's images. Leila Rupp disagrees with the notion and conclude that

"although the media attention to working women was unprecedented in scope during WWII, fundamental changes in attitudes toward women did not occur as a result of the emergency...the new image did not mean that the ideal American woman had changed way beyond recognition. beneath her begrimed exterior, she remained very much a traditional woman."

I agree with Rupp's notion that the ideal woman did not change after the war because if you think about it, yes they were doing men's jobs, yes they were doing things that American society didn't think they were capable of doing, but all the while they were still cooking for their household, cleaning and keeping the home stable. They still had to do the stereotypical things that America wanted them to do. the things they felt were there duty to do. There was no one to take their place when they took the place of the men who went to war so they had to do both and once the war was over majority of them went right back to doing the same things. They fell back into the "housewife" role. They went back to the lower paying jobs too while other protested and felt that they had over come something the object of them being a woman was still clear ad the stereotypes still remained the same. Yeah it was proven that they could do the same work as the men, even better than the men, but America wasn't ready to accept that as a new meaning of being a woman.

Rosie the Riveter

Ok so now I know from seeing other peoples post that they liked the idea of Rosie but i think that some people forget the negitive effects that also came from her. I am defenitly not saying that it she was bad but there were things that people do not remember about it or over look. For starters many people forget how the Rosies were used to force black workers to work for less money and they both were competeing for the same jobs. This was hurting the struggle for equality In many ways because it was almost like saying to the blacks we can get white women to do your job for cheaper because they are doing there patriotic duty. another thing that people forget espically after WWI was what do women do when the men get home. I defenitly have no problem with women working but I also think it gave women of that time period a sence of false hope that they would be able to support there family by them selves after the war was over and they would be able to make enough money alone and not worry about a dual income. I think that Rosie gave them a false dream without any sort of back up plan because for the most part after the war Rosie the Riveter became Rosie the house wife.

Creating Rosie the Riveter

The article by Maureen Honey was a good read. It gave women the image that they needed. It proved that women can work hard and be successful at it. It also shows that women can be just as good as men and that gender doesnt matter. During this time period women were forced to step out of their comfort zone and into the workforce. This turned out to be a good thing, because it boosted their confidence as citizens.

"War work became a vehicle for women to shoulder their civic and moral responsibilities as good citizens rather than as a way to become more independent and powerful (Honey, 8)."

Creating Rosie the Riveter

I enjoyed this article on the strong and mighty Rosie the Riveter. It proves that women can work just as hard as men and succeed in job positions normally filled by men ( they are hard industrious workers too). During World War II many women had to enter the work force and take positions usually filled by men. They did a great job and Rosie the Riveter proved this. The war sort of pushed women into the labor force and they performed quite well.

Creating Rosie the Riveter

After reading "Creating Rosie the Riveter" the article examines "homefront propaganda and images of women during the war years,...". (13) The author examines two major magazines of the time and they are the Saturday Evening Post andTrue Story. Each magazine depicts images of women in different ways during the war years. What must be understood is that "Images work a powerful effect on the mind.".(12) These magazines sent the "message that women could and should occupy all jobs." (12) First they did this with the help of the government. At that time the government made all magazines aware of their propaganda needs. (14) Fictional stories played a huge role in changing people's opinions and recruiting women for the workforce. The use of fiction worked as a "powerful technique because the reader is not examining the story in conscious, rational way and may therefore be more receptive to the message." (15) True Story differed from the Post because it "concentrated on the problems that hampered its readers from acheiving the American Dream." (14) This magazine exspecially appealed to women because they held mediocre jobs such as secretaries, housekeepers, and nurses. This magazine helped their minds explore and think about what new job opportunities could provide them withfor the future. Next, the Saturday Evening Post opened up its markets to women and the middle-working class. They heavily used fictional stories in their magazine for mass persuasion. Last, advertising visual pictures left impressions in all readers minds. An example would be of the photograph depicted in this blog. Finally, even though only for a short time during the war women were empowered and explored the workforce. Even though they successfully proved that they could work any jobs the poor "propaganda strategies for unifying the homefront and to a top-down impetus for social change left the new images vulnerable to swift annihilation." (17) Personally, it amazes me that all of the magazines were made aware of propaganda needs by the government. Also, the numerous ways magazines tried to persuade and empower women at the time proves that the media was a force to be reckoned with during the war and it still has the power of persuasion today.

Creating Rosie the Riveter

"The campaign to attract women into war production was part of a drive to weld the home front into an economic army, well disciplined, highly motivated by patriotism, and willing to make sacrifices for the good of American soldiers... War work became a vehicle for women to shoulder their civic and moral responsibilities as good citizens rather than as a way to
become more independent and powerful" (Honey. 8).


Maureen Honey is discussing the altered role of women during wartime. as able-bodied women were drawn out of their homes and thrown into the factories and into all spheres of the American economy. Though this movement into the work world shook up all notions of women's traditional gender roles, it was a shift born out of the necessity of the times. Women were simply "shouldering their civic and moral responsibilities" as they headed out to do their work shifts.

Though women certainly proved they were capable of the tasks handed over to them, women were asked to hand the jobs back over to men when they returned from war, and go back to their domestic domain. Rather than. long-lastingly. shaking up traditional views of gender roles, the demands of a wartime economy only temporarily moved women into the "front-lines" of the American economy.

By the late 1940s and 1950s, women were handed back their aprons and vacuum cleaners, and Rosie the Riveter had, for the most part, handed over her pants and replaced it with a well-starched and ironed dress. The "feminine mystique" was reborn.