Rosie The Riveter Analysis

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December 7th, 1941 marked the entrance of the United States into the Second World War, an international conflict fought with technologically advanced battleships, submarines, airplanes, and other modern weaponry. World War II would be an extended four-year-long battle fought on two fronts, and the manufacturing needs would be great. Of course, the troops were of utmost importance, but fighting men are of little use without firepower. Victory would go to the side with more weapons in this war of production. Unfortunately, the United States was ill prepared for war, and the enemy nations of Germany and Japan had been amassing wartime equipment for a nearly decade (Streitmatter). After the bombing of Pearl Harbor catapulted America into the war, …show more content…

These articles were usually accompanied by photographs of real-life Rosies working confidently in. They described women workers as national heroines willing to run the factories in the men’s absence. A song about Rosie the Riveter even became popular on the radio in the 1940s. Advertisers strategically appealed to women’s sense of patriotism while subtly reminding them that their brothers, sons, and husbands were threatened by a dangerously low supply of equipment. At first, manufacturing companies hesitated to hire women and other marginal laborers such as blacks, but President Roosevelt warned, “We can no longer afford to indulge such prejudice” (Melosh). Eventually, the companies also encouraged employment by offering women higher wages than ever before during a time of financial …show more content…

First, the poster was not a product of the government’s propaganda campaign. “We Can Do It” was one poster in a series Miller designed for the Westinghouse manufacturing company. The posters were intended to encourage production for men and women who already worked for Westinghouse. This makes sense because the poster’s message “We Can Do It” seems to imply a specific audience familiar with the task at hand. The posters were displayed on the factory floor, and because of security protocols during the war, it is unlikely that anyone outside of the factory ever saw Miller’s Rosie. Therefore, the poster was not nearly as famous during World War II as it is today. In fact, “We Can Do It” was virtually unknown except by the employees of

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