V for Victory: “We Can Do It!”, J Howard Miller (1942)

13 May 2011

“We Can Do It!”, J Howard Miller (1942)

  The "We Can Do It!" Poster, often referred to as Rosie the Riveter, was made by an American artist, J. Howard Miller, during World War II, as part of the American propaganda campaign. During the war, the majority of the men in the nation were enlisted in the army, which led to a lack of workers in the nation. Often identified as the iconic American feminist poster, this piece of work lured women left at home to take over the jobs that men had once held. War propaganda in general had many goals, one of them being patriotism; through patriotism, the government implied the idea that the war is for the benefit of American people and that the government is involved in the war for its people (National Park Service, Par 1). This poster is no different.
  In this poster, we see a muscular woman, dressed as a riveter. She resembles a male, except a red bandana on her head implies that she is fashionable, if not feminine. The slogan asks fellow women to be strong and participate in the workforce that they have rarely been a part of up until now. The government is asking women to consider how they can help their country, stirring up patriotism in an effort to gain their support for the war. The slogan “We Can Do It” implies that the government wants women to step up and take the position of men, suggesting that the government is pro-feminist. The slogan also suggests that the nation can win the war, with the help of women. The government created this poster not to support feminism, however, but to help the government satisfy its short-term needs for labor. Like the other works of art in this gallery, therefore, the government is involved in the war to satisfy its needs, not necessarily the needs of people. All the other works of art in this gallery reveal that war helps the government more than the people, even though the government claims that the war is for the benefit of the people. This work of art suggests the opposite, although if you examine it deeply, this work of propaganda functions otherwise.
  The government’s intention with this poster was revealed once the men enlisted came back after the war; the men sent female workers back to their domestic labor, demanding their position in the workforce as men. Factories started sending away their female workers, but these women questioned their role in society. They knew now that they had the ability to work in the same positions as men. This would spark the feminist movement in the United States. Although the government’s intention in this poster was to extinguish their short term problems of a lack of workers, their campaign was the stepping stone to the feminist movement in America.

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Welcome!

Have you ever thought about why we, as human, are always involved in a war? The reason seems unclear, though our government repeatedly proclaims that the war is for the people and their well being. As we look back, government’s claim seems questionable. Who is it supposed to benefit? Are we really going on a war for the benefit of the people, not for the thirst to gain more power? All the artists in this gallery question the core reasons of war and the overall result in the end. While Picasso, Bansky, Neshat and Fairey question and criticize the government for their shadiness, Miller’s “We Can Do It” poster shows our government’s intentions at the war. Is what you're fighting for the same as what the government's fighting for? If not, what does this tell us about the truth behind all the wars we've encountered?

Femininity in Propaganda

Ariana's Blog, Femininity in Propaganda questions the role of American women during the times of war. While this gallery questioned the purpose of war and the shadiness behind it, Ariana's blog questions the role of women during the American propaganda campaign. In V for Victory, it questions the usage of "We Can Do It" poster and the government's attempt by stirring up the feminist movement and Neshat's Rebellious Silence questions the difference between what the women are seeking to get out of the war versus what the male dominate government seeks. Femininity in Propaganda goes even further, comparing works of art that portrays women as weak soul that needs protection, such as Enlist by Spear, to some other propaganda posters, like Rosie the Riveter by Rockwell, where the government provokes women to take the position of men, much like Miller's "We Can Do It", and what the difference signifies. Femininity in Propaganda questions the women's role in the war, which also questions what women's purpose in the war, compared to the government's, is.

The Needlessness of War

What is the purpose of war? Exactly why do people fight and what (or who, or how) is it supposed to benefit? Both sides of the war kill millions of people and yet everything seems to be justified in the end. While V for Victory asks these questions, Derek's The Needlessness of War states that no matter what the war is for, "in the end, it just wastes people's lives" (Derek). He also states that "no matter how much progress is achieved through war, there is just as much and more regression". He is absolutely correct in saying this- one war leads to another war due to the regression it brings in the end. In the blog, he uses Fairey's Hug Bombs and Drop Babies to show the irony of U.S. government and their slogan, "We need to use our global supremacy to protect our children", though we use our children at times of war. Furthermore, in the art work Phan Thi Kim Phuc by Nick Ut, he points out that the United States was involved in the Vietnam War to persecute their beliefs of communism, though the U.S. is famous for freedom of rights and liberties. Though not all of the art works in this blog relates to the questioning of war, some of the art pieces in The Needlessness of War points out that war is pointless because the purpose of war is, pointless.