Rosie the Riveter Research Essay
Throughout history we’ve had many people who have influenced, Americans by
changing its look such as inventing tools, being an advocate for something, or being a peace
leader, from a group or religion. Many American from now and back then have shaped the
history and helped change the way it looks now compared to then. One person who is a famous
woman, who was used as advertisement for women's job equality, was Rosie the Riveter. “Rosie
the Riveter is the female icon of World War II….She represents any women defense worker. And for many women, she’s an example of a strong, competent foremother” (“Rosie the Riveter: real
Women Workers in World War II”). Rosie the Riveter is a name given
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to ladies who worked on riveter and were very big and strong in women working on men jobs.
Rosie the Riveters’ were a
big part for ladies during the time when men were out fighting in World War II and ladies were
working at home and trying to help the men on making them weapons, clothes and other
necessary needs and materials while during the war.
There were many people who were called and got the name Rosie the Riveter, but the
person who is in the picture that is very well known is a woman named Geraldine Hoff Doyle.
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“Geraldine Hoff Doyle …worked at an Ann Arbor, Michigan plant that manufactured metal”
(“Rosie the Riveter”). She worked as one of the riveter, but one day a man came in to take a
picture and she was the one whose picture got transformed into something very significant.
Geraldine Doyle was known for that much except for being known for the famous picture that
was taken of her and being another Rosie the Riveter. “After she married a dentist, Geraldine
Doyle became Geraldine Keefe. Born in 1924, she lived in lansing, Michigan with her family.
She was 86 when she passed away. Hse had five children and many grandchildren” (“Rosie the
Riveter”)
The name Rosie the Riveter, was given to ladies during World War II who worked
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on riveter in the factories. This name was something special for the ladies who worked because it symbolized that they were being recognized for their service.
“In movies, newspapers, posters,
photographs and articles, the Rosie the Riveter campaign stressed the patriotic need for women
to enter the workforce” (“History Rosie the Riveter”). Usually though if they were named or
called Rosie the Riveter it is also because their name was called Rosie, “the composite of Rosie
was based on a group of women, most were named Rose, who varied in class, ethnicity,
geography, and background” (“American national Biography Online”) How ever not every lady
who was called Rosie the Riveter had the name Rose because the lady whose picture became
popular worldwide was named Geraldine . But every year the war went on, there were more
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names that added into the Rosie the Riveter list because so many women decided to work and
become more patriotic during that time because it was very popular.
For any women it was a goal, to known and called the name Rosie the Riveter because it
had such pride, strength and honorability anytime some said it, and so many women wanted to be
a patriotic idol that was known during the time of war and sadness. “The riveter used a gun
to shoot rivets through the metal and fasten it together. The bucker used bucking bar on the other side of the metal to smooth out the rivets. Bucking was harder than shooting rivets; it required more muscle. Riveting required more skill” (“Rosie the Riveter: real Women Workers in World War II”). For women to do these jobs it took a whole lot of time and muscle and that is why only certain people seemed to accomplish the name and fulfilling the duties past the limit. But as many people all over the world who were fighting with allies were doing, many people wanted to defeat Hitler, so many of the advertisements on were to help defeat Hitler by participating with fighting or making products for the men. “She will help crush Hitler” “The American flag background, red, white, and able, adds to the patriotism of the cover” “Rosie is powerful, competent and womanly’ “She’s mescaline; look at the size of her arms, which are a real focus of the cover” “She’s working with a very large and heavy riveting gun” “She’s dirty; she’s doing a man’s job” Waskin 4 “She’s wearing overalls, men's clothes” “Yet she’s feminism.” (“Rosie the Riveter: real Women Workers in World War II”). Many said that the picture with Geraldine Hoff Doyle represent how women are strong enough to do men's jobs and help out the military. “Between 1940 and 1945, the female percentage of the U.S workforce increased from 27 Percent to nearly 37 percent and by 1945 nearly one out of every four married women worked outside the home” (“History Rosie the Riveter”). During this time many people were either off, such as the men, and the women were just beginning to get out of the house to help work the jobs there men used to do, to help them support them as they were off fighting. “World war two began in September 1939 when Britain and France declared war on Germany following Germany’s invasion of Poland. Although the outbreak of war was triggered by Germany's invasion of Poland, the causes of the war are more complex (“World War Two Causes”). Even though it was between Europe and the whole other part of the world, World War II involved numerous countries all over the world including the United States. This made the United States very busy, drafting men to go fight in the war, and women taking care of the house, children and other jobs that were needed during that time. “During the World War II years, it is estimated that between 8 and 16 millions women were employed in the critical trades, including automobiles, shipbuilding, aircraft manufacturing, electrical equipment manufacture and transportation” (“Rosie the Riveter “We Can Do It” Waskin 5 Women’s Stories come to Life”). For all the many lives that were during the war and the lives that were but to labor for the work and material that were needed during the time was remembered and recognized. Many of these people had gone down in history for fighting for what they believed and ended changing the way the world is looked upon. “During the Second world war, women proved that they could do “men’s work, and do it well” (“Women and Work After War II”). After the war many women and men took notice that women were strong enough and capable to do these job that required sweat and work. “If women didn’t do them, quote, “Our civilians life would break down” “These were necessary civilian jobs” and women were urged to take them” (Rosie the Riveter: Real Women Workers in World War II). Rosie the Riveters were “iconic figure of the women who worked in the defense industries during World War II, was a composite of the experiences of many real women...Rosie was used to refer to all women who worked in the defense industries and not just riveter” (“American National Biography Online”). The name started out for many of the women who did work with riveters, but because there were so many jobs that women took, during 1939 to 1945. Many of these women made a big change in the way women are able to have equal rights to work, and prove to men and many other women who did not believe that women could do men’s work and get dirty. One person who is very well known for being a riveter is a woman named Geraldine Hoff Doyle, because of the poster that was made by her with the caption “We Can do It.”
This interpretation of Rosie was firmly entrenched in the concept of women entering the workforce as their patriotic duty. In the painting you can see that Rosie is stomping on a copy of Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler’s 1925 autobiography and political manifesto. The message was clear; although men did the physical fighting on the frontlines, women were also doing their part to defeat the enemy (Hawkes). The war industry during WWII gave women the opportunity to earn their own living and contribute to the war effort. The imagery of “Riveters” we are accustomed to serve as an allegory; the war propaganda used “Rosie” as a metaphorical representation of the millions of women (of all colors and socio-economic classes) who took action during war time when patriarchal order was relaxed. These women joined the work force in order to help their country, to gain the benefits of employment, and to improve their quality of life
In Rose 's essay he gives personal examples of his own life, in this case it’s his mother who works in a diner. “I couldn 't put into words when I was growing up, but what I
The article was published on February 6, 1943 in the midst of World War II. Women had become an asset to the war effort and were then considered "At Home Soldiers" or "Riveters". They worked in the factories constructing submarines for the Navy, planes for the Air Force, and became medics.
The film titled, “The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter”, looks at the roles of women during and after World War II within the U.S. The film interviews five women who had experienced the World War II effects in the U.S, two who were Caucasian and three who were African American. These five women, who were among the millions of women recruited into skilled male-oriented jobs during World War II, shared insight into how women were treated, viewed and mainly controlled. Along with the interviews are clips from U.S. government propaganda films, news reports from the media, March of Time films, and newspaper stories, all depicting how women are to take "the men’s" places to keep up with industrial production, while reassured that their duties were fulfilling the patriotic and feminine role. After the war the government and media had changed their message as women were to resume the role of the housewife, maid and mother to stay out of the way of returning soldiers. Thus the patriotic and feminine role was nothing but a mystified tactic the government used to maintain the American economic structure during the world war period. It is the contention of this paper to explore how several groups of women were treated as mindless individuals that could be controlled and disposed of through the government arranging social institutions, media manipulation and propaganda, and assumptions behind women’s tendencies which forced “Rosie the Riveter” to become a male dominated concept.
Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States whom represented the women who worked in factories during World War II, many of whom produced military equipment and war supplies. These women sometimes took entirely new jobs replacing the male workers who were in the military. The symbol of feminism and women's economic power was often amplified through Rosie the Riveter. "Rosie the Riveter" was a popular phrase first used in 1942 in a song of the same name written by Redd Evans. Auto factories were converted to build airplanes, shipyards were expanded, and new factories were built, and all these facilities needed workers. While the men were busy fighting in war, women were dominant in assistance. Companies took the idea of hiring women seriously. Eventually, women were needed because companies were signing large, lucrative contracts with the government just as all the men were leaving for the service. The various elements or figures of Rosie was based on a group of women, most of whom were named Rose. Many of these women named "Rose" varied in class, ethnicity, geography, and background diversity. One specially, who's had the biggest impact of all Rosie's was Rose Will Monroe. Rose Will Monroe, the most influential "Rosie" at the time, represented women during World War II by working most of her time in a Michigan factory.
Sorensen, Aja, Rosie the Riveter: Women Working during World War II. Retrieved from http://www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/rosie.htm, (n.d.)
Women have historically been pushed out of the labor market, regardless of their low cost to employers. As Ruth Milkman cites in her work “How Women Were Purged from the War Plants,” the reconstruction of the pre-World War II workforce after the war was the most severe instance of sexual division of labor. According to Milkman, women workers were excluded from heavy industries because there was minimal resistance from the union or women workers and because the Fordist revolution changed the way management appropriated labor. The narrators of “The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter,” however, would more likely agree with Ngai’s ideas about labor policy in Impossible Subjects. According to Ngai and “The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter,”
During the war, men were off fighting for America, and the women were left behind to take over their jobs in the factories. Women proved that they can do almost all of the same jobs as men. Rosie the Riveter, a picture of a woman flexing with a caption of “We Can Do It,” became the symbol for women all across the nation. After the war, years later, women began to receive equal pay for the same jobs that the men were doing. Many other minority groups, such as African Americans, played a huge
At the start of World War II, most nations were experiencing a shortage of resources. In the United States, food, gasoline, and other scarce goods were being heavily rationed, and many government controls were initiated to lessen the economic burden of the war. At the same time, unemployment was at a record low. Wartime production created a huge labor market, eclipsing the available workforce. Due to the military conscription, most able-bodied men were led overseas to fight in the war, so the country turned to civilian workers, including women. Soon, “Rosie the Riveter” had become a national heroine, representing women laborers, who began replacing men in every facet of industry and performing with excellence (Carl, 34).
helped support the struggling couple. They divorced in 1942. She lived in Carmel Valley, CA after and died February 8, 1983.
These questions are still being studied and debated by historians today. Several books have been written on the subject, including "Rosie the Riveter Revisited" by Sherna Berger Gluck, "The Home Front and Beyond: American Women in the 1940s" by Susan M. Hartmann, and "Creating Rosie the Riveter" by Maureen Honey. Additionally, scholarly articles such as "Working Class Rosies: Women Industrial Workers During World War II" by Sherrie A. Koussoudji and Laura J. Dresser and "Beyond the Feminine Mystique: A Reassessment of Postwar Mass Culture, 1946-1958" by Joanne Meyerowitz have contributed to the ongoing discussion.
Rupp, Leila J.. “From Rosie the Riveter to the Global Assembly Line: American Women on the
Warner Brothers released the film in 1945, a year many American soldiers returned from World War II. It left millions dead, but the calamitous event also boosted women's place in society. During the WWII period, women became the main providers for their families while American men were at war, a situation that lead to increased independence for American women. Popular slogans and icons of the time, like Rosie the Riveter, encourage women to work and take charge of their lives. However, when men returned and re-entered the workforce, society expected women to step aside and rejoin the cult of domesticity. This background knowledge adds many layers of meaning to the movie and is vital to understanding the message of the movie.
Women became the main workforce while almost all the men went off to fight in World War II. As men began shipping off to battle, they left their wives, sisters, and mothers behind. They also left behind millions of jobs, the ones they vacated and the new ones needed to help with the war. As a result, hundreds of thousands of women entered the workforce. In factories, women built weapons, planes, and tanks to help the boys overseas. They took control of stores and farms, and organized fundraisers to keep spirits high. Rosie the Homemaker became known as Rosie the Riveter, a symbol of the evolving role of women during this era. The economic boom created by the wartime industry pulled the nation out of the Great Depression, paving the way for postwar prosperity. And the dedicated effort of working Rosies’ across the country propelled the nation toward victory. Women helped keep our country together during the war. Our lives, our country, our entire world would be extremely different if women were not encouraged to enter the
This essay will be focusing on women who worked during the world war two and their roles in the community. Not only would it focus on their roles it will also look at the fashion of these women; what they wore to work during the war, after the war and what is being worn to work nowadays. The research on the fashion change relates to my work the most as i’ve tried to portray the changes in the fashion of these working class women, what it means and how it shows off women as a being. Even though most of the women that worked during the second world war were said to be in the middle-class range this essay will focus on the working-class females in the society. One of the major subject matter in this essay will be the “Rosie the Riveter” poster although created by various artist during the World War II, the meanings in each posters mirrored the next. Also this essay will reflect on some of the numerous female war artists that used women to portray strength, elegance and raw femininity.