Washington University in St. Louis
America is Banking on You! Selling American Ideology During World War II
Abstract
dc:description.abstract<p>This essay uncovers advertising from World War II found in tear sheet archives. Through deep reading and contextual analysis, this essay seeks to determine what these advertisements—found in magazines, newspapers, and posters—were asking their viewers to do in response to the global conflict of the 1940s. It argues that advertisers used emotions and racism to entice citizens of specific classes to invest, enlist, and align their values with American ideals. The creators of these advertisements were hired by American companies, who used government sponsored tactics to woo citizens to the American Ideology while keeping the corporate brand in the public eye. Ultimately the paper exposes the self-serving nature of these American War advtisements and their impact upon visual culture.</p>
Degree
thesis:*- Name thesis:degree_name
- Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Illustration & Visual Culture
- Level thesis:degree_level
- Thesis
- Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
- Graduate School of Art
- Year dc:date.available
- 2025
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
-
- Maupin, David W
Subjects
dc:subject × 10Rights
- Language dc:language
- English
Identifiers
dc:identifier.*- Repository record dc:identifier
- https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_illustration/42
- OAI identifier oai:identifier
- oai:openscholarship.wustl.edu:mfa_illustration-1043