My presentation was on Rosie the Riveter, both the concept and associated images. Rosie the Riveter, the female icon of World War II, represents the millions of women -- many of them entering the work force for the first time -- who worked in assembly plants and factories to assemble ships, tanks, guns, trucks and rations during World War II.
Several women we claimed to be the inspiration for Rosie the Riveter, including including Rose Will Monroe, Geraldine Hoff Doyle and Rose Hickey.
"Rosie the Riveter" was a song released in 1942, written by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb. The lyrics were meant to glorify the idea of women in the work force during World War II and also issue ideals of what a woman should be.
The Lyrics:
All the day long,
Whether rain or shine,
She's a part of the assembly line.
She's making history,
Working for victory,
Rosie the Riveter.
Keeps a sharp lookout for sabotage,
Sitting up there on the fuselage.
That little girl will do more than a male will do.
Rosie's got a boyfriend, Charlie.
Charlie, he's a Marine.
Rosie is protecting Charlie,
Working overtime on the riveting machine
When they gave her a production "E",
She was as proud as she could be,
There's something true about,
Red, white, and blue about,
Rosie the Riveter.
The image most iconically associated with Rosie is J. Howard Miller’s famous poster for Westinghouse, entitled We Can Do It!, which was modeled on Michigan factory worker Geraldine Doyle in 1942. Penny Colman writes that "Since the 1970s, this poster has been mistakenly labeled Rosie the Riveter and has been reprinted on posters, magazine covers, and many other items.”
Artist Norman Rockwell's drawing of Rosie appeared on the May 29, 1943, issue of the Saturday Evening Post, which depicted a different model (Mary Doyle Keefe). It is not clear whether Rockwell had seen the Miller poster, but he admitted that "I made a mistake in the detail that people will be calling me down for.”
The U.S. Postal Service issued a "Rosie the Riveter" stamp in February 1999.
In March 2000, President Clinton signed into law a bill establishing a national park to honor the Rosies. The Rosie the Riveter/WW II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, Calif., was dedicated in 2003. The site includes a museum inside a former Ford Motor Co. assembly plant and a major shipyard where many Rosies worked.
The character is now considered a feminist icon in the US, and a herald of women's economic power to come.
Rosie and her slogan "We Can Do It!" were featured on posters, movies, magazines, political slogans, video games and more.
Applying it to Class:
Bejamin and duplication
Adorno's Historical and False consciousness
McCluhan: Media works us over completely
Sources:
http://www.rosietheriveter.org/painting.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosie_the_Riveter
http://www.nps.gov/pwro/collection/website/home.htm
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1656.html
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=rosie+the+riveter&gbv=2
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