WHAT CAN WAC ADS TELL YOU ABOUT AMERICAN CULTURE IN WWII?

​Advertising is a perennial repository of culture.  
 
Consider the advertisements used by the U.S. Army to recruit women during World War II.  You’ll find a wealth of hints regarding not only the culture of the Army, but also the American public.  As you look at the ads I’ve selected, ask yourself, “Who’s in the ad? Who’s left out? Are they depicted in an accurate or idealized fashion?  Why or why not?” 

WWII - WAAC Recruiting Poster

​May 14, 1942.  The hard-fought battle to create the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was over.  President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the legislation the following day, and the race was on.   But how would the pioneers find a way through the maze of a new phenomenon? 
  
Exemplary performance, of course. 
 
And the power of persuasion.   To persuade women to volunteer, to persuade families and friends to accept the wishes of their loved ones, and to persuade the American public to support women in uniform.  

​The WAAC chose patriotism as their major recruiting theme.  

​And that was enough at first. 

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