The Role of Propaganda During World War II

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Table of Contents

Works Cited
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C

Propaganda is a powerful weapon designed to manipulate people’s beliefs. It has existed for thousands of years of recorded history; however, it was most prominent in the 20th century (Welch 9). During World War II, propaganda influenced people to enroll, fight, work. Let us assume that the propaganda messages used both a masculine representation of men and feminism to pressure on guilt and to invoke responsibility for people’s lives.

One of the major themes in WWII propaganda involves enrollment being a masculine quality. For example, the Royal Air Force pilots projected the characteristics of hegemonic masculinity the most due to its importance to the British army (Hitlan 3). As such, in Appendix A, the men are focused on army airplanes while women are being occupied with a picnic. The poster encourages men to enroll in the army to protect the peaceful lives of women and children. Despite that, other methods of propaganda took an opposite turn and used women as brave and strong figures as well (Boğ 15). Appendix B appeals to the women’s suffrage movement by portraying them as an essential power behind the factory productions. Another method used by propaganda was guilt for not directly participating in fights together with the responsibility for the lives of those who did (Welch 107). Appendix C demonstrates how workers’ mistakes can lead to defeats. It puts the blame of malfunctioning machines on factory workers, manipulating them into believing that they are responsible for soldiers’ lives.

Knowing no boundaries, propaganda messages tried to appeal to both masculinity and feminism, as well as pressure guild and responsibility for soldier’s lives in people who did not fight. By manipulating emotions and feelings, propaganda influenced people to enroll in the army or work harder. The posters were persuasive due to their alignment with prevalent mindsets.

Works Cited

Boğ, Eren Evin Kılıçkaya. “Women as an Image in War Propaganda Posters.” Proceedings of the 4th World Conference on Women’s Studies, vol. 3, no. 2, 2018.

Hitlan, Savanna. “Boy Meets War: A Critical and Creative Analysis of Civilian Masculinities in Britain During the Second World War”. Senior Independent Study Theses, 2020.

Welch, David. World War II Propaganda: Analyzing The Art of Persuasion During Wartime. ABC-CLIO, 2017.