Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Gender Studies and Sexuality
Year: 2024
DOI:
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Smoke & Mirrors: The Weaponization of Gender in Postwar America
Deena M.P. Ronayne
ABSTRACT:
This research focuses on a collection of literature that brings into focus what I refer to as the “smoke & mirrors” gender role propaganda that was put forward as standards for American life in the years after WWII and leading up to The Civil Rights Era. When envisioning the late 1940’s and the majority of the 1950’s, a visual and verbal narrative comes to the mind’s eye of white men in suits with cigars or pipes, mastering all they survey and white women in linen dresses admiring themselves as they pass a mirror while vacuuming. But how many American women/families actually fit this stereotype at the time? Additionally, how many women either could not live up to it or railed against it? Where did single women, working-class women, and women of color fit into this picture, or were they simply denied representation in what was being put forth about American life? A lot of propaganda about what Americans looked like, how they thought, and what they wanted focused on a very narrow view of what was the true reality of how many Americans lived or wanted to live. This research creates a further understanding of who or what entities or people put forth these American “ideals,” specifically for women, and why they did so at this point in history, and to further understand whom these ideologies served. It also delves into how the “American dream” and post-war fundamental values such as duty, stability, and consumerism came into play when painting this picture. Since many still perceive this point in time as one of willing conformity, this work looks at the counter cultures, protestations, and living realities of the time that were often refused to be considered typical or ideal. Finally, this research highlights how gender was weaponized into one of the most powerful tools to create an “us” vs. “them” mindset against America’s greatest rival of the time: The Soviet Union.
keywords: American Post-War Era, Gender Roles, McCarthyism, Culture of Gender, Feminist Research, Feminist Studies, Gender and Democracy, Gender and International Development, Gender and Politics, Gender and Popular Culture, Gender and Public Policy, Gender and Sexuality, Gender and The Workplace, Gender Equality, Gender Stereotypes, and Politics of Sexuality