Women in Flight, WWII

Painting the American insignia on airplane wings is a job that Mrs. Irma Lee McElroy does with precision and patriotic zeal Hollem, Howard R., photographer. CREATED 1942 August

Bowen and Olsen, a riveter and her supervisor, in the Assembly and Repair Dept. at the Naval Air Base, Corpus Christi, Texas Hollem, Howard R., photographer. CREATED 1942 August

Women are trained to do precise and vital engine installation detail in Douglas Aircraft Company plants, Long Beach, Calif. Palmer, Alfred T., photographer. CREATED 1942 Oct.

In analysis of these photographs of women working during World War II, we can see the obvious need for their hard work in the flight industry. The purpose I draw from these photographers is that they are showing how all Americans, especially women because they are not physically fighting the war, are helping the soldiers and thier country. The audience can be thought of as a broad mix of women, men, young adults, and industry leaders alike. Women may be targeted to get more of them involved so that they may feel patriotic too. Men, for the same purpose when dealing with those not already involved in battle, but those who are it shows them the supposrt they have at home by the women they love and left. Young adults as the audience will give them a sence of patriotism also by expressing to them the importance of thier country and its citizens. Industry leaders can be affected because these images show the hard work of women and thier devotion to the production necessary for thier counrty to be successful at war. The production choice set forth by these photographs appears to put the woman into perspective as being tiny compared to the huge object of production. This reinforces the idea that women who previously did not engage in these types of jobs were taking on a huge responsibility. They are also show in action and wearing "men's work" clothes. These incorporations express the idea of the womens extremely hard work and unending efforts. The photographers probably choose these aspects to reinerate thier purpose for taking the photograph and and its context.