Who can do it? Women can! The millions of women working for the war effort led America to victory against the Axis Powers. Rosie the Riveter, as their mascot, symbolized women 's efforts and started a movement for women 's rights across the country. "Rosie the Riveter" was a character created to inspire American women to stand up and join the workforce. Riveting was usually seen as a man 's job because it requires the worker to hold a heavy riveting gun that shoots out metal bolts. Consequently, the recoil is very rough, and the riveter needs to be strong to absorb the force. Government propaganda during World War II was responsible for much of the change in society 's acceptance of women in the workplace. Posters, radio programs, magazine
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The iconic "We Can Do It" poster, by J. Howard Miller (pictured right), was the first of the "Rosie" series to emerge in early 1942 (Rosie The Riveter). It depicts a white woman flexing her muscle, and representing women working in industrial jobs during the war. In February 1942, Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb wrote a song entitled "Rosie The Riveter" (Colman 15). Norman Rockwell got his inspiration for his painting (pictured left) from lines like "Rosie buys a lot of war bonds, that girl really has sense, wishes she could purchase more bonds, putting all her cash into national defense" (Perkins). His painting shows a more masculine woman holding a riveting gun on her lunch break. "Rosie the Riveter" symbolized to America the effort of all women workers toward winning the war. Before the war, women were less than 1% of the wage earners in the shipping industry (Miller). During the war, the term "Rosie" was used to refer to all women who worked in defense industries, not just riveters …show more content…
These women were no longer thought of as just housewives, but were seen as capable of “men’s” work. WACs, WASPs, and Rosie the Riveters proved that they were capable and reliable. The Rosie the Riveters helped the United States defeat the Axis Powers in World War II by producing tanks, guns, artillery pieces, warships, and ammunition. In addition, WACs and WASPs assumed noncombat jobs and freed men for combat overseas. These women were not confined to traditional roles but, instead, created new paths for women to follow. Furthermore, these women became resourceful and self-sufficient (Lockhart,
The iconic "We Can Do It" poster, by J. Howard Miller (pictured right), was the first of the "Rosie" series to emerge in early 1942 (Rosie The Riveter). It depicts a white woman flexing her muscle, and representing women working in industrial jobs during the war. In February 1942, Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb wrote a song entitled "Rosie The Riveter" (Colman 15). Norman Rockwell got his inspiration for his painting (pictured left) from lines like "Rosie buys a lot of war bonds, that girl really has sense, wishes she could purchase more bonds, putting all her cash into national defense" (Perkins). His painting shows a more masculine woman holding a riveting gun on her lunch break. "Rosie the Riveter" symbolized to America the effort of all women workers toward winning the war. Before the war, women were less than 1% of the wage earners in the shipping industry (Miller). During the war, the term "Rosie" was used to refer to all women who worked in defense industries, not just riveters …show more content…
These women were no longer thought of as just housewives, but were seen as capable of “men’s” work. WACs, WASPs, and Rosie the Riveters proved that they were capable and reliable. The Rosie the Riveters helped the United States defeat the Axis Powers in World War II by producing tanks, guns, artillery pieces, warships, and ammunition. In addition, WACs and WASPs assumed noncombat jobs and freed men for combat overseas. These women were not confined to traditional roles but, instead, created new paths for women to follow. Furthermore, these women became resourceful and self-sufficient (Lockhart,