Research-Informed Essay-Rhetoric

 

 

 

 

Samuel Burgess                                                                                                                   Burgess 1

COL McDonald

Rhetorical Traditions I

11/03/2014

 

The Gravity of Art: Propaganda Posters in WWII America

American Propaganda posters aimed at American civilian audiences during World War II display a quintessential example of the principles of classical rhetoric defined by Aristotle. The wide variety of means of persuasion laid out simply through these four selections shows the degree in which the authors of WWII propaganda posters understood rhetoric as a faculty. The artistic proofs of ethos, pathos, and logos are employed in every poster we see, whether the message be to conserve materials, to buy war bonds, to trust in famed figures, or to censor strategic military plans or operations in your community. Finally, the American propaganda posters of WWII show a joint effort to unify a country against a common enemy, which is an aspect of contemporary American life that has all but vanished.

The first American WWII poster aimed at the general American public shows a man riding in his car with a shadowy outline of Hitler in full military regalia sitting in the passenger seat. The caption reads “When you ride alone, you ride with Hitler! Join a Car-Sharing Club Today!” The largest theme that is present throughout all of these government messages is the power of emotion. The civilian market for goods such as gasoline, rubber, sugar, butter, and meat were severely rationed during World War II, with the US military taking precedence over the country’s supply (The National Archives, 1995). With this is mind, the US Government took on

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an intensive campaign to persuade the general public to both conserve and salvage the limited stocks of such goods as gasoline (The National Archives, 1995).

This poster is a clear attempt to convince Americans to pool resources through certain programs. A car-sharing club is one example with the goal of limiting fuel consumption in mind. Although the man in the picture is riding alone, he is most likely not (as an individual) going to affect the gasoline available to troops. In fact economically speaking, since the military has precedence on gasoline, the only harm he would be committing would be slightly raising the price of fuel that was left over and rationed to the US civilian need (Brainworks, 2009). However, since gasoline in this case is more of a tragedy of the commons problem than, for example, handing a Nazi a rifle, the authors of the poster decided on a more emotionally charged approach. It is much easier to affect the judgment of an individual through a passionate emotional appeal than through simple economics. Therefore, this poster riles the large audience of the American public to action through the threat of helping the common enemy of Hitler.

The author of this poster attempts to unify American citizens by approaching the public as a trusted and reliable source.  This is a particularly interesting case of the employment of relying on the testament of character in the author of the poster, because the rhetorician is the US Government. In the case of WWII, where news of what was happening in foreign theatres of combat came almost exclusively through government broadcasts, the US Government certainly held the attention of its citizens as a knowledgeable and viable figure. However, in a day and age where US citizen lives were so dependent on the government for basic necessities such as food, gasoline, and other commodities, it is hard to say whether the government was trusted for its good character or its necessity as an institution. It is arguable that the government had the best

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interests of America as a whole at heart when they created this poster. For example, this poster encourages American drivers to keep the price of gasoline low for everyone.  However, the example they create is rather extreme and only partially reflects the truth of the situation. In reality, the most damage an individual could inflict by riding alone in a car was to slightly raise the domestic price of fuel, which in no way had a direct effect on the war effort.

The author of this propaganda poster capitalizes on the fear of uninformed American citizens by over exaggerating the logical outcomes of not rationing gasoline. Aristotle believed that logos was “the study of the arguments employed in practical decision making, and in particular of the enthymeme” (Herrick, p.74). Although whether or not to consume gasoline is a matter of practical decision making, the message of this poster shows drastic scenarios of not following the author’s prescribed approach. This poster reveals an enthymeme of sorts that would follow: Gasoline is a limited good, over-indulging in gasoline can hurt Americans, therefore, over-indulging in gasoline aids the enemy. While buying more gas would not necessarily aid the enemy, the logic of the message can sway an uninformed audience.

Sacrifice and dedication to troops overseas were perhaps the two strongest and most widespread values shown in domestic America during World War II. One of the most successful ways in which Americans at home contribute to the war effort was through war bonds and stamps. Propaganda posters for war bonds and stamps were a way for the government to encourage and guilt citizens into financially backing the American effort in WWII. This monetary commitment from a large faction of American society bonded every American’s interest in winning the war. War bonds were essentially an $18.75 promissory note investment into the government who would then use the money to purchase military equipment, uniforms,

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ammunition, and the like (The Historical Museum at Fort Missoula, 2012). Additionally, citizens purchased ten-cent stamps that served the same purpose of investing in the country’s war effort (The Historical Museum at Fort Missoula, 2012). The next propaganda poster displays a wounded soldier sitting despondently against a wall, covered in bloody bandages and wearing a ripped uniform. The title reads “Care is costly… Buy War Bonds and Stamps.” Although the motivation, as written, is to inspire the purchase of bonds and stamps, which would give the government the ability to continue defense spending, the delivery of the message aims at to guilt the audience. This, along with the previous poster, is based off of the overwhelming use of pathos. The first striking employment of pathos is found in the color scheme of the poster. The text that reads “Care Is Costly” contains a mud-ridden brown that blends into the disparaging surroundings the soldier is forced to live in which is part of the goal of emitting sympathy and guilt within the audience. Even the follow up message that prompts the audience to buy war bonds and stamps plays on the guilt and sympathy of the American public. The blue of the text deafens what is, in actuality, the government soliciting the general public for financial support. However, the underplayed and cold blue that was chosen makes the purchase of bonds and stamps seem almost to be a tax on the public, or an obligatory mission.

In a time where every American, soldiers and civilians alike, were sacrificing time, money, and resources to contribute to the war effort, the author of this image made sure to play on the guilt of the domestic American by differentiating them from the fighting man. While there are many things a civilian at home could have done to support the troops overseas, they never faced bodily harm in the same way that the soldiers fighting for them did. The author plays on

 

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this fact and through the disheveled, war torn soldier, attempts to stir an emotional response from the audience.

As we can see in the next poster, the US government cleverly exploited the trust and confidence Americans held in its celebrities to rally a nation to action. The third poster shows Joe Louis, a beloved American icon, fighting as an enlisted US soldier. Joe Louis became well known far before WWII as the boxer “Boxer Brown” (The Mariners’ Museum, 2013). Starting in 1936, Louis became the international representation of the United States when he had the chance to box a white German man named Max Schmeling (The Mariners’ Museum, 2013). The first time around, Schmeling knocked out Louis, which gave Hitler the means to spread propaganda asserting his belief of the racial superiority of the Caucasian race (The Mariners’ Museum, 2013). However in their 1938 rematch, Louis readily defeated Schmeling, gaining both a moral victory for African-Americans, and the United States as a whole. Following his victory in the ring, Louis decided to accept the call of duty in 1942 and enlisted in the US Army (The Mariners’ Museum, 2013). Instead of fighting on the frontlines, it was Louis’ duty, along with other celebrities, to inspire a nation to join the fight against America’s enemies (The Mariners’ Museum, 2013). Louis, and other prominent African-American advocates also recruited many African-American men and women as they strove to gain a “Double V-victory over fascism abroad and over racism at home” (The National Archives, 1995).

The appeal to Joe Louis’ fame in this poster is overwhelming, and follows the Sophistic idea of gaining credibility based on past accomplishments. It is no accident that the largest text reads “Pvt. Joe Louis says.” This bold title commands respect from the audience as the orator has already claimed his glory as a boxer long before he is shown here as a soldier. Therefore, the

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audience is willing to listen to what Louis has to say because he has already become a household name. This is one example of an artistic proof following a Sophistic, as opposed to an Aristotelian version of rhetoric.

In this poster, the author forms an emotionally charged logical claim by using religion as a basis of power, and then using this power to assure the audience of victory. In WWII era America, there was hardly the same separation between Church and State that we see in contemporary America. Consequentially, the presence of religious references that drove at the audiences’ moral foundations (as we see in the Joe Louis poster) was not uncommon. To further persuade the audience, the quote of Joe Louis saying “and we’ll win because were on God’s side” rationalizes the war and gives American audiences confidence in victory.

The final poster in the collection shows what is presumably a US sailor sinking into murky, black waters. The caption reads “Someone Talked!” and the man’s grave and somber eyes stare straight into the viewer as his right hand seemingly points through the poster and burns into the chest of the audience. During WWII, the US Government was very concerned about domestic security and the leaking of pertinent information, especially from everyday citizens (The National Archives, 1995). The US Government believed there to be enemy saboteurs and spies hidden in domestic America, and therefore launched propaganda campaigns to warn, and in some cases guilt, the American public into limiting careless talk (The National Archives, 1995). Some examples of pertinent information include troop movements and other logistical details that would aid the enemy and hurt the cause (The National Archives, 1995). This campaign to fight outside intruders as a network of citizens, shows a nation coalescing.

 

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The primary appeal that is used to elicit a response from the audience in this poster is guilt. Americans are proud of their freedoms, one of which being the freedom of speech. In this poster, the US Government attempts to limit uncensored speech by associating careless talk with the image of an American serviceman dying a horrible death. This poster loudly implicates the viewer in the deaths of honest and innocent American servicemen. The water is black, blue, and eerily murky. The sailor’s eyes are dark, accusing, and indignant as he sinks below the surface of the water. There is a newfound motivation elicited in the viewer to carefully censor every conversation they have from that moment on for the sake of American lives. The logical appeal of the poster follows the enthymeme: the enemy wants to kill our soldiers, and loose talk aids the enemy in killing our soldiers, so your loose talk kills American soldiers. Therefore, to save the sons and daughters of America that are overseas, a united America must learn to be careful with loose talk.

The end goal of the WWII era United States government in the use of these propaganda campaigns was to use confrontational messages to create a synergy between civilians at home, and the war efforts abroad. While war is never an attractive pursuit, the American government realized the necessity of a united front against the nation’s enemies wherein every citizen was vital to victory. To achieve a synergistic effect, the US government marketed the war effort to the American public as a civic duty. These propaganda posters show that the heart of an American victory lays in a joint effort from all. To achieve this end, a propaganda campaign was launched that used Aristotelian principles of classical rhetoric, which were mainly based in pathos as we see through strong appeals to guilt, empathy, and fear. However, we see other

 

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artistic proofs such as ethos in the use of respected national icons like the American boxer Joe Louis.

Unifying a country is no simple matter, and while the effectiveness of this domestic propaganda campaign is difficult to measure, millions of Americans took up the war effort at home and, ultimately, the Allies defeated the Axis. The alliance that was shown between American civilians and soldiers alike in the WWII effort is not something has been present in the country since. The Vietnam War marked the beginning of skepticism in the general public and a true divide between US government action and public opinion. It seems as though the contemporary American public is either disheartened or apathetic and as a result, US foreign policy now begins and ends in the upper echelon of government.

The moral of this lesson is that we, as American citizens, need to learn from our past. The propaganda posters of WWII show US government interest in the assistance of all citizens as a untied front against our enemies. As servants of the people, US government officials need to reflect the opinions of the public. Consequently, whether this results in a unified American war with popular support, or keeping US soldiers out of a conflict, American citizens must look back and discover what it is we have lost in the past century that is worth fighting for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

 

Care Is Costly… Buy and Hold War Bonds. 1945. Government Printing Office for the Office of War Information, Washington DC. By Adolph Treidler. Web. 3 Nov. 2014.

“He’s Watching You.” Powers of Persuasion. National Archives and Records Administration, 18 Feb. 1995. Web. 10 Nov. 2014. http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/powers_of_persuasion/hes_watching_you/hes_watching_you.html.

Mirenda, Genna. “Object of the Month- Pvt. Joe Louis.” Hidden In The Hold at The Mariners’ Museum. The Mariners’ Museum, 5 Feb. 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2014. http://www.marinersmuseum.org/blogs/collections/2013/02/05/object-of-the-month-pvt-joe-louis.

Pvt. Joe Louis says– “We’re going to do our part, and we’ll win because we’re on God’s side.”. 1942. United States. Office of Facts and Figures. Washington, D.C. UNT Digital Library. Web. 3 Nov. 2014

Someone Talked! 1942. Government Printing Office for the Office of War Information, Washington DC. By Siebel. Web. 3 Nov. 2014

“The Need To Sacrifice.” United We Will Win. The Historic Museum at Fort Missoula, 2012. Web. 3 Nov. 2014.

Vessenes, Ted. “Ride With Hitler.” Brainworks. Blogspot, 12 Jan. 2009. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. http://brainworks-ai.blogspot.com/2009/01/ride-with-hitler.html.

When You Ride Alone You Ride With Hitler! 1943. Government Printing Office of Price                    Administration, Washington DC. By Weimer Pursell. Web. 3 Nov. 2014.