The Evolving Role of Women
The role of women during World War II had evolved drastically from the start of the war effort. Originally, women were expected to uphold traditional roles such as tending to the home and children. As the war progressed, this idea of what women were expected to do changed. Many of them went to work to help in the manufacturing and production of supplies for the war (McEuen). This is depicted through the Office of War Information's posters in conjunction with Walt Disney's films and shorts in the timeline below.
The following timeline shows the progression of this through posters and other media. As the years pass, note how women were illustrated in a different light and how the idea of a "traditional" woman was changed due to the war in both what the OWI and what Disney and other companies produced.
The media prior to 1943 showed women in small dresses with lots of makeup and very feminine features, which contrasts with how they are portrayed in later years. Both "Keep These Hands Off" and "Even a Little Can Help a Lot" illustrate this point. That is a contrast to Women of Steel and the other pieces of media nearing the later years of the war.
The idea of what a woman is and how she is represented in media has evolved. Since women were encouraged to have these industrial jobs, this shows how these "traditional" norms were broken compared to years prior. This shows how the Office of War Information used media to promote its goals. Women were encouraged to take certain jobs as depicted in these posters, and Hollywood also portrayed that message (McEuen) (Roeder).
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*Here are all items featured in the timeline
