With the shared American ideas of ‘culture’ and ‘commitment’ of the Thirties, came a loss of identity among the American people. The New Deal formed government-funded programs, allowing Americans to work together to further the economy and earn an income. However, this group culture resulted in a loss of individual identity and generalized American individuals to be part of a workforce. Workers, in many instances, carried out manual labor, reduced simply a cog in a machine. This aspect of the American workforce coincides with Herbert Hoover’s denouncement of being part of ‘classes’. Although Hoover promoted entrepreneurship and restricted government intervention, The New Deal perpetuated an ideal of community and collective identity amongst Americans, in effect causing a loss of individual identity. Through the works of Rosie and Riveter, Golddiggers of 1933, and CCC Photographs, we can see this generalization of the American person as a worker, part of a larger group instead of an individual working his way up.
- Rosie the Riveter: when men went to war, women started working in factories and taking the place of men. However, they were simply seen as substitutes for the job and although women had limited individuality at the time, they were seen as temporary substitutes for men in factories, performing menial tasks, nonspecific of their skills and abilities. Women were paid much less than they were supposed to be paid, and were treated unfairly. Although the commercials aired on television portrayed an image of nationalistic fervor and women stepping up to help the economy and fill in for men, they were always portrayed as wanted to go back to the domestic domain after the men returned. The image in the documentary, of women working in factories, dressed in identical uniforms shows a sense of uniformity and collective identity, in effect neglecting individuality. Women were shown as performing their duties to help out on the war-front as much as they could and were therefore generalized as those who were obligated to their country....Unions were a way in which individuality was voiced in terms of unfair treatment, but even that was institutionalized and controlled (more elaboration with specifics and quotes from movie). The role of women, as shown in Rosie the Riveter, proves Hoover's critique of the New Deal because...
- CCC Photographs: are an attempt to show individualism in the sense that all three of the CCC photos show a single man working. However despite this perpetuation of individualism, there is an underlying assumption that this man is simply performing a menial task that is the part of a larger project (building railroads, construction, etc). With the performance of manual labor, one is merely a worker expected to complete one aspect of the project, making it a means to an end. This is pointed out in the sense that the man's job seems seemingly insignificant in the grander scheme of constructing a railroad and in the end, the men make minimal wage and don't recieve any credit for the project. This supports Hoover's contention of the New Deal because it divides the people in classes, these men become 'working class' and therefore cannot progress, but are stuck in their positions as insignificant workers.
- Golddiggers of 1933- the play and the background dancers signify the working class American people, lost in a crowd of others, unable to distinguish one or the other....
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Paper Two Rough Draft
With the rise in consumer culture in America came a Democracy of Consumption in which everyone was able to buy consumer products and had access to similar things. However, this process of expressing individuality, in turn generalized the individual to fit into class, racial and ethnic distinctions geared towards becoming the ideal New Woman. This motivation to represent the ideal woman and in effect, become what one is ‘supposed’ to look like is seen in various instances through out Anna Yeizerska’s Breadgivers through the transformation of a Jewish immigrant identity into that of an American. Through advertisement and commercialization, women were shown images of how they were supposed to look and therefore bought cosmetics and other consumer goods to become the ideal woman, in effect losing their own identities.
The process of Americanization in Breadgivers is symbolized greatly by the new consumption culture. This is shown most overtly in the character of Mashah
- “I looked in the glass at the new self I had made. Now I was exactly like the others! Red lips, red cheecks, even red roses under the brim of my hat” (182)
- “Like a lady from Fifth Avenue I look, and for only ten cents, from a pushcart on Hester Street” (2)- democracy of consumption, can buy same types of things at lower costs, but all to fit into a mold of the New Woman.
- “Mashah came home with stories that in rich people’s homes…She told us that by those Americans, everybody in the family had a toothbrush and a separate towel for himself”
- → Mashah is in a constant craze to become like the Fifth Avenue women, who she sees as living luxuriously and the epitome of Americans. She loses her Jewish immigrant identity which is seen through the rest of her family members. While Bessie and Faniah are out finding work and saving money, Mashah spends her money buying laced collars and new clothes.
- Sarah- (pg 182)- buys makeup and tries to be like other girls
- → attempt at being part of consumer culture and aspiring to be like the ‘ideal’ woman who is advertised and commercialized- process allows individuals to lose their identities (as Jewish immigrants, etc)
Peiss notes in her work that at one point in the shift to consumerism, the cosmetics industry projected contradictory cultural messages linking whiteness with social success and refinement. The consumption of bleach cream and light-colored face powders became an issue of controversy within in Black community as white and Black-owned companies manufactured products aimed at lightening skin tones. This projected the image that light-skinned African Americans were more successful and were more desirable as marriage partners. In this process of commercializing European aesthetic standards, advertisements in the late-nineteenth century advertisement for Hagan’s Magnolia Balm, used images of transformed women from the stereotyped rural Black woman to a genteel lady (Peiss, 388). Certain products such as hair straightening were also highly controversial and were seen as Black emulation of dominant white aesthetics. In this way, the identity of Blacks is threatened by the new consumer culture in America, complicating not only the issues of femininity, but also issues of race.
The process of Americanization in Breadgivers is symbolized greatly by the new consumption culture. This is shown most overtly in the character of Mashah
- “I looked in the glass at the new self I had made. Now I was exactly like the others! Red lips, red cheecks, even red roses under the brim of my hat” (182)
- “Like a lady from Fifth Avenue I look, and for only ten cents, from a pushcart on Hester Street” (2)- democracy of consumption, can buy same types of things at lower costs, but all to fit into a mold of the New Woman.
- “Mashah came home with stories that in rich people’s homes…She told us that by those Americans, everybody in the family had a toothbrush and a separate towel for himself”
- → Mashah is in a constant craze to become like the Fifth Avenue women, who she sees as living luxuriously and the epitome of Americans. She loses her Jewish immigrant identity which is seen through the rest of her family members. While Bessie and Faniah are out finding work and saving money, Mashah spends her money buying laced collars and new clothes.
- Sarah- (pg 182)- buys makeup and tries to be like other girls
- → attempt at being part of consumer culture and aspiring to be like the ‘ideal’ woman who is advertised and commercialized- process allows individuals to lose their identities (as Jewish immigrants, etc)
Peiss notes in her work that at one point in the shift to consumerism, the cosmetics industry projected contradictory cultural messages linking whiteness with social success and refinement. The consumption of bleach cream and light-colored face powders became an issue of controversy within in Black community as white and Black-owned companies manufactured products aimed at lightening skin tones. This projected the image that light-skinned African Americans were more successful and were more desirable as marriage partners. In this process of commercializing European aesthetic standards, advertisements in the late-nineteenth century advertisement for Hagan’s Magnolia Balm, used images of transformed women from the stereotyped rural Black woman to a genteel lady (Peiss, 388). Certain products such as hair straightening were also highly controversial and were seen as Black emulation of dominant white aesthetics. In this way, the identity of Blacks is threatened by the new consumer culture in America, complicating not only the issues of femininity, but also issues of race.
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