WWI Poster Analysis

Madi Smith

2/29/16

USH 1 – WWI Poster Analysis

Group 7 – Forrest & Victoria

1) Propaganda was a form of advertising that would draw attention to it through pictures, bright coloring, and key phrasing.

2) Propaganda - ideas or statements that are often false or exaggerated and that are spread in order to help a cause, a political leader, a government, etc. (Merriam-Webster)

My focus is first drawn to the large, red letters "BOYS and GIRLS!" These posters appeal to a very specific crowd, the children. They highlight their focus with the red coloring of the letters and then their want is understated in a smaller black font underneath it. The centered picture interrupts the reading, to show the towering figure of Uncle Sam holding a little girl and a little boy is beside him looking on with an earnest gaze. This is meant to appeal to the masses because it depicts the children doing something for the better good, it appeals to the empathetic and philanthropic side of the readers. The red coloring of the letters stands out the most against the white background and it more appealing than the black lettering below it. 

The first thing my gaze is drawn to is the word "Food". It is the largest font on the poster and the coloring highlights and is similar to that of the men's skin. My eyes are drawn to the depiction of strong men laboring for food, with an outline of corn crops behind them. They appear to be a family and it is noted that everyone is keep their "home" gardens going. The artist is appealing to farms families and any family that might have someone in the service by showing them that they too can help by providing food for the soldiers. There is a sense of pride that is invoked by staring at this poster and the reader too could hold this feeling if they supported the war effort of supplied food. 

The is a pull between the words  "ENLIST NOW" and the depiction of a school girl pushing a plow. Her cheeks are highlighted red in her effort, but it brings forth the idea that women are a driving force (driving the plow) in the war effort. The poster appeals the adolescents, male or female. The ladies are driven to help by preparing food and sending it towards the war effort but men are drawn in by the large red lettering saying "ENLIST NOW". The color of the poster is very mute otherwise and is used to bring out the red letters and the young school girl who pushes the plow. 

I hold no qualms with the idea that propaganda is used to help enlist people in a common goal, but it would be more suspicious to me if it was used for their own personal gain. 

I think the production of Propaganda was used to unite the people of the United States in an effort to help bring the war to a quicker end. 

Common Theme Thesis

Ideas to tie Together:

• Reformers and public figures promoted changing views/attitudes about health/fitness.
• People started to have new expectations about the role of government in promoting higher standards for society.
• People taking measures to protect themselves from new threats/modern issues.
• Innovations in transportation allowed people to move around in new ways
• All-encompassing wave of reform included a variety of strategies to attack problems of all kinds.
• Innovations brought improvements and provoked new fears/anxieties, many of which turned out to be unfounded.

Connections:

• betterment of society as a whole for the people through their active participation, innovations and the active cooperation of Government

Thesis: 

 

Progressivism was movement driven by active participation on every spectrum. As a whole, the movement of forward thinking and positive reformation would not have been possible without the cooperation of the government, active participants in the community, and the great innovations of the time period. Progressivism cultivated the United States into a society more aware of its needs socially and economically and overall it proved to be a positive movement.

Answer Key to Progressivism Questions

1) C
2) D
3) D

Progressivism Multiple Choice Questions

1) Progressives were rather impulsive in their reforms, mostly due to the fact that they did not always agree on the form on intervention that they should take. Each of these choices would be reasons for their reforms except:

         a)      The fear of concentrated power, the need to balance out wealth distribution, and limit authority.

         b)      The belief that the codependency of a singular person was determined by the welfare of the society as a whole.

         c)      The principles of natural and social sciences were not applicable to society.

         d)     The uncontrolled growth of 19^th century.

         e)      Women, children, industrial workers and immigrants were victims of industrialization.

2) All of these women are examples of the new woman, except:

          a)      The single, middle-class woman who never married

          b)      “Boston Marriage” women who lived and maintained long-term relationships with other women.

          c)      Women who initiated their own divorce.

          d)     A “stay at home” mother.

          e)      Highly educated women that were active participants in reformations.

3) The author notes that “Party Attacks” were prominent even in the late 19^th century, in what way did they continue to attack parties in the early 20^th century?

          a)      A discontinuation of the “secret” ballots

          b)      Urban middle-class progressives and powerful aristocratic families remained outside of “vulgar” politics.

          c)      They wrote of their good deeds in influential newspapers.

          d)     Breaking “Party Rule” by permitting people to circumvent partisan institutions with a decrease in their power.

          e)      Break “Party Rule” by giving power to nonelective officials who were also nonpartisan and were insulated from political life.

Living Essay's on Progresivism

I worked with Karen and Thomas to join our Progressive topics together.

• Annie Oakley: Encourage women to take care of themselves
• Spanish Flu: Mass disease control, health regulation
• Gillette Razor: Personal Hygiene, streamlining the razor design 

-Intro-

During the Progressive Era masshealth regulations along with recognition of the benefits of a healthier lifestyle lead to a more informed society that was more conscious of their personal hygiene. The innovation of the Gillette Razor helped lead men to create a better standpoint of personal hygiene, while women were looking up to Annie Oakley as a role model for women’s health and respect of their bodies. The Influenza pandemic of 1918 lead to an overhaul of health regulations that would help increase the quality of life of everyday citizens, men or women.

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-Conclusion-

Had it not been for the quick thinking and influential figures of the time period like Annie Oakley and King Camp Gillette the importance of personal hygiene would not have been so widely accepted. These steps towards betterment of health made the mass reformation of health regulations, after the “Spanish Flu” pandemic more widely accepted and easier to enforce. Had Progressivism not taken such drastic measures to change the way American’s live, would we still be living in third-world conditions?

The "Spanish Flu" and Progressivism

"I had a little bird

And its name was Enza

I opened to window

And in-flew-enza"

'Enza' the bird.

The influenza pandemic of 1918 was so catastrophic to the United States and the world that a child's jump rope rhyme was sung throughout the time period. It was like "Ring Around a Rosie", the rhyme which had been created during the Bubonic Plague. The "Spanish-Flu" is a misnomer considering the contagion actually started in Kansas, in the winter of 1918. Doctors had been dealing with bouts of pneumonia all winter and with the coming spring, the military base Fort Riley became a hot bed for the development of the rampant and mutated form of influenza known as Influenza A (H1N1). Doctors were continually perplexed by this new disease because it showed signs of a normal flu, but the patient would develop brown spots on their cheeks and would eventually die from suffocation, because of fluid and blood in their lungs. 

Infected rates of international cities.

I learned that the Influenza pandemic was a wake up call to health officials. The initial understanding of influenza was very limited, and this new strain of the virus was more than anyone could have expected. H1N1 was so  infectious that it was a pandemic rather than just an epidemic. That made all the difference. The level of infection was world-wide making it a pandemic. Had it just infected Fort Riley, Kansas like the Yellow Fever in Philadelphia, it would have remained a small epidemic limited to the state. Seeing this made me understand the difference between pandemic and epidemic. This in turn also made doctors of the time period work vigorously to disinfect the population and find a cure. This fit into the agenda of progressivism because it pushed for the betterment of public health and living conditions for citizens.

Laws of this time period became very extreme to aid in the sanitation of living conditions and to help kill off the virus. Laws would have included the banning of gathering in groups, coughing in public without properly covering your mouth, and even spitting 'carelessly'! Progressivism was a very aggressive movement and so were the procedures that were put into place during the Influenza Pandemic of 1918. Many of these procedures are still in existence because they were placed as measures against the spread of a highly infectious disease, should one appear yet again. 

• Raymond C. Bloom Dies of Pneumonia At Camp Funston, March 14, 1918, Alburquerque, NM
• Strange Disease Is Sweeping Spain. Mysterious Plague Resembles Influenza--Nearly Half of Population Affected, May 28, 1918, Trenton Evening Times
• Spanish 'Flu' Spreads over All of Europe. 600 Deaths from Epidemic in London, August 8, 1918, Columbus Ledger
• The Spanish Epidemic of Influenza and Its War Aspects, July 11, 1918, Macon Telegraph
• Boston Is Hard Hit by Flu. Schools Closed as Death List Mounts, September 24, 1918, Salt Lake Telegram
• Beware of the Kiss! Germs of Deadly Spanish Influenza Spread by Osculatory Performance,September 20, 1918, Salt Lake Telegram
• Infowebs Website Link to The "Spanish Flu"

3rd Quarter Reflections

Reflecting over third quarter we've gone over a multitude of topics, many of which fell under Imperialism. One of the biggest improvements I noticed overall about my understanding of history is that I want to know the information and I've retained a lot of what I've learned. In previous I was not particularly interested, nor had a teacher that piqued my interest in the subject we touched over like Mrs. Lawson has, and because of this I am absorbing the information and remembering it long after we've moved on! You would not believe how happy this makes me.

I do not want to sound arrogant when I say I don't believe I struggled with much this year. The way the class is taught really lends itself to the way I learn and understand things, which has made this class one that I enjoy coming to. The questions that Mrs. Lawson had applied to help us learn our material this quarter has pushed me to better understand what I'm learning, but is still enjoyable. The discussions elicited out of these homework assignments is even better, because we the students can understand each other views and understandings of the chapter and sometimes gain new insight that we might not have previously understood.

Improving Randolph

Our image of Randolph after 20 years include improving the athletic programs and offering incentives like scholarships. With this in mind it would also be beneficial to expand the college counseling arena and give students more help and contact specific colleges on their behalf. To help create a more global mindset we should teach more language, expand our campus ad facilities and in that light bring in more students and faculty.