Hoffman's Experience During World War I

During World War one, the United States Navy Recruiting Bureau, and the United States Treasury Department each commissioned posters featuring women who encouraged citizens to participate in the war effort. The two posters, despite being intended for the same purpose, depict women in particularly contrasting light. Analysis of the contrasting war posters can help illustrate society’s perspective about women during the early 1900’s, their expected roles pertaining to the war effort, the strategies used to engage citizens and encourage them to become involved, and the use of imagery and symbolism that were used to achieve the posters’ objective.

worked in factories expanding industrial output, and helped raise money in the community. The women are what helped keep the country running. When women filled jobs that were traditionally men’s, this aided the country as a whole because while men fought in the war, women were able to keep the country moving. Women not only worked in factories and offices, but working in the community played an immense role in helping the soldiers fighting. Women raised money for the war, collected blood, rolled bandages, aided in civil defense, tended Victory Gardens, and hosted troops. Some women still worked at home centering their work around what the soldiers needed. They recycled aluminum foil and other materials that were scarce, they raised children as usual, and mourned for the soldier that had died. Women were assisting the troops with all that they could in order to make life easier for them.

The structure of workforce changed, all out war effort and lack of working age male in factories brought women into factories across Europe in incomparable way. Thousands of women worked with the army as nurses and ambulance drivers, with nominal supplies and harsh condition of the front line, they helped wounded soldiers and provided some solace to the dying. Propaganda Picture by E.V. Kealy, P-524, on its poster says “Women of Britain say-GO” I think which means that all the men can go to the war and fight for the nation, while women are taking care of the house. War had changed role women were assigned to but they were refusing to go back to their old Victorian traditional role and challenged the gender status quo of the women after the war which completely changed the patriarchal European states, and American society as

We can see in the poster the woman's triumphant pose with raised arms helps to associate women working in factories with a victory for great britain. As well as through the slogan used “women of Britain come into the factories” will motivate the women to join and help with the war efforts. This poster is effective at convincing the women because it will make women feel that they will have the power and influence over the outcome of the war.

Many people question if women went into the war because of patriotism or because they lacked other opportunities. Women responded to the call differently depending on age, race, class, marital status, and number of children. They switch from lower-paying female jobs to higher-paying factory jobs. While patriotism influenced women,

Women were taking jobs in factories, built planes, made war supplies, worked on assembly lines. This poster was not just directed at women to inspire them to join the workforce during the war, it was directed at husbands as well, to show them that women can do it. During this time one of the down falls was, pay was never equal, men were receiving $54.65 a week, and women were making $31.50. But more good than bad came out of working in factories and assembly lines. African American women were really affected by these changes, they were now working alongside white women and this forced a break in social barriers, and brought the equality brought on from the civil rights movement to reality. Entering the war there were 12 million women in the work force, at the end of the work about 20 million women were in the work force, 3 million of those women were factory

As young men responded to their call of duty and enlisted in the armed services, this left the American war industry with a severe labor shortage. With so few men left to satisfy the labor needs, a call went out to women to fill this void. However, the initial response to this request was not satisfactory . As a result, the government devised a propaganda enriched advertising campaign to motivate the masses of women by appealing to their sense of patriotism as well as telling women their labor efforts would help end the war and bring soldiers home more

When the American Civil War began on April 12th, 1861, over 3 million Union and Confederate soldiers prepared for battle. Men from all over America were called upon to support their side in the confrontation. While their battles are well documented and historically analyzed for over a hundred years, there is one aspect, one dark spot missing in the picture: the role of women in the American Civil War. From staying at home to take care of the children to disguising themselves as men to fight on the battlefield, women contributed in many ways to the war effort on both sides. Though very few women are recognized for their vital contributions, even fewer are

An example of this is the extremely well-known poster of Rosie the Riveter created by J. Howard Miller. The poster reads, “We can do it!” (Document B), and was meant to encourage women to join the workforce while men were fighting, specifically in the weapon production field (History.com). This is an instance in which the United States tried to devote all resources to the war. Rather than staying at home and practicing the life of a stereotypical woman during the time, women were motivated to take on new responsibility in order to provide for the war effort, putting the war above all things.

The United States during the Civil war was a divided nation and filled with gruesome fighting. It hit all parts of the country and brought the fighting right to the back yards of families. While the men of the nation fought the combat war, woman fought different wars in the shadows. Fighting split millions of families up, and it affected woman in multiple ways. Challenges differed for woman from North and South. While some woman’s homes were turned into hospitals, other woman had to learn how to tend to their plantations while their husbands were away fighting. Many women disguised themselves as men to fight in the war because in the 1860s, a woman fighting in the war was not allowed yet. Numerous enslaved

The editorial “Including Women in the Draft” was made in 2003, when the American people were extremely patriotic, with a strong desire to send troops overseas to war. It was meant for university students, suggesting that this was meant either in a manner to recruit women, but possibly to humor these university students about a draft. The persona the author presents in the editorial is one that shows pride in the country, and expects that pride to be reciprocated by the readers. Like any rhetoric, the author wants to persuade the reader that his perspective is the correct perspective. The author structures the piece in such a way that by suggesting women not going into the draft is unsupportive of gender equality, as other countries include

During the Second World War, both married and unmarried women worked in wartime industries and factories to take the place of men who joined the service. Although women didn’t play a significant role on the battlefields in Europe compared to males, it would be logical to conclude that women played an integral role in the participation and victory in WWII both at home and abroad. Yet when one considers their contribution, it is hard to imagine how much more they could have done given the conservative views of gender role at that time. In the context of traditional gender roles and boundaries, women conceivably maximized their wartime efforts by working in a variety of jobs including industry, volunteering, and serving as support staff for

Women served an important role in WWII. They not only took the challenge and stepped up to take the places of the men off fighting in the war to work in factories, but they also fought side by side with those risking their lives and fighting for their country. They were needed everywhere during the war. There were an unbelievable amount of job opportunities for women during the war and many supported the brave acts of voluntary enlistment. “‘A woman’s place is in the home’ was an old adage, but it still held true at the start of World War II. Even though millions of women worked, home and family we considered the focus of their lives” says Brenda Ralf Lewis. Without the help of those women who were brave enough to

This image applies similar techniques as the previous image analyzed above. Again the woman is the center point of the image which gives insight into the target audience without even reading the words. In the background of the image a soldier is waving goodbye as he leaves to go fight in the war, but the woman is too busy doing her part in the war effort to notice. This is attempting to have the effect of portraying the message that if women make munitions, they will be so busy “doing their bit” that they won’t even think about their man going off to fight. The words above also have a purpose similar to the journal articles mentioned above.

The sexist stereotypes of men and women greatly enforced their roles in the Vietnam War. While women were not included in the draft and protected from war’s brutality and tragedies, men were forced from their homes to be enlisted in the army. In Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, a platoon is comprised of struggling young men whose lives are challenged each day. On the other hand, women are blissfully living in the states, providing complete security and comfort, both of which the soldiers are not able to acquire. According to society, women are supposedly the homebound sex, too fragile and moral to be exposed to the world outside their own, and unable to empathize with the emotional baggage that the soldiers carry.