Rhetorical Analysis of Norman Rockwells Rosie the Riveter

By: Kaylin Fussell

 Many propaganda pieces invoking women to join the work force sprang up in the midst

of World War II, but none did so more effectively than Rosie the Riveter by Norman Rockwell.

With its vibrant colors, patriotic undertones, and an iconic female figure, Rosie the Riveter

sparked a message for American women everywhere: women can perform a masculine job, and

they can perform it well. The concept for Rosie was influenced by the actual women working in

industrial units. Most of the women did so when men were called away to war and left gaps in

industrial jobs. From this, women found themselves being able to take over jobs that were

typically for men, and were only inspired more from encouraging posters, pictures, and messages

produced during the time. Rosie the Riveter expresses the ideology that women are equal to men,

shown by the fact that they were able to overtake their jobs for years and perform well at them. It

capitalized on its time period by which if men were not called away to war, most of the women

wouldnt have worked because it was unusual for them to do so. Norman Rockwells portrayal of

Rosie the Riveter invoked an increase in patriotism among women, improved the amount of

women working from three million to nineteen million (Alchin), and established the idea that

women could work not only in the absence of men, but with men as well.

Rosie the Riveter shows specific ideology through its overall appearance. The poster was

specifically made for women of the time, aiming to appeal to those who are working, have

worked, or wanted to work in typically male dominated jobs. On the poster is seen a woman who

is clearly muscular and dirty. The background is an American flag, a hint towards patriotism and

how women contributed to it. Rosie is also seen with her foot on top of Hitlers Mein Kampf, a

message which struck a chord with many people. To women, this established the message that if

they join the workforce and help their men, they can help defeat Hitler and win the war. In turn, a

large amount of pathos was inflicted among working women. The women who saw the poster
could be able to envision themselves into that role, and thus become inspired join the workforce.

The commonplace idea behind the phrase is that women can be equal to men. The ideology lies

within where they proved it women did do the job of men, and they did it very well. Many of

the women of the time joined the effort because of economic strides. Women enjoyed the

benefits of the job and learning new skills, as well as the satisfaction of accomplishing a

typically seen masculine job (UNC). Comparatively, women in the workforce has been seen as

empowering, as shown with the hashtag #EqualPay. For every mans dollar, a woman gets paid

seventy-nine cents (Miller). It was only recently that this issue became prevalent in the media

and in everyday life, and has become a major debate. The ideology underlying this hashtag is

that there should be equal pay for everyone, despite gender. The commonplace reflects that

women are working just as hard, meet the same requirements, and are in the same fields as men,

but are still denied full pay. Similar to Rosie, the hashtag embodies a feminist message, one that

involves the work force and the women in it. Whereas Rosie aimed to push the idea that a

women can do a mans job, the hashtag already proves that a women can do a mans job, but is

still denied the same pay as a male could receive.

Time period is very vital in discussing Rosie, and #EqualPay as well. When the idea of

Rosie first arrived, there was a meaning behind it, and the majority of Rosies impact involved

the time period. Before World War II and before men had to be called away to war, women were

already working. Twelve million women were already contributing to the workforce when the

United States entered World War II (UNC). By the end of the war, that number increased by six

million. During World War II, the percentage of females working in the industrial workforce

increased from twenty-seven precent to thirty-seven percent between the years 1940 and 1945
(Alchin). Many of them overtook jobs of men during World War I, but after the men returned,

women were expected to revert back to their lives as household wives and mothers. By the end

of the war, three million women had already left the workforce, many of them being fired from

their jobs (UNC). Rockwells painting was introduced in 1942, but delayed the message that

women were expected to become domestic once the men returned. Rockwell took the kairos of

the time, which expected women to take on a domestic role as wives and mothers, and twisted it

in order to show a new side of women. Rockwells Rosie the Riveter in particular pushed upon

the message which showed women they didnt have to lose their femininity in order to do a tough

job. This is depicted in Rockwells Rosie perfectly. Despite Rosies larger figure, her obviously

big muscles, the ham sandwich in her hand, and the dirt on her face, she still holds a certain

femininity. Her facial expression is determined yet soft, her hair is done, her fingernails are

painted, and she has fresh lipstick on. She holds a gun riveter in her lap, balancing it with poise

and grace. This demonstrated to women that to be a Rosie, not all femininity must be lost, and

in fact what makes being in the workforce so much greater is that it can include both women and

men, heightening the message of equality. The time period is so vital because if we were to see

the image of Rosie today, it may probably look ordinary. Now, we see all kinds of women and all

different types of femininity, whereas in the 1940s, it was expected of women to be very

feminine and refrain away from masculine ideals (Alchin). In reference to appeals and how they

intertwine with kairos, Rockwells poster inflicts pathos by allowing women to see themselves as

Rosie. It allows them to not only envision themselves as someone who may not be typically

feminine or have feminine qualities, but it encourages them to notice that its acceptable to lack

those qualities. Not only that, but the poster appeals to a sense of patriotism and work ethic. If
women step up and fill the positions of men, the they are helping the country in the most

effective way they can, which is truly specific to the time period and the war which was

occurring. Without the war, there would be no purpose in making a poster, let alone actively

wanting women to gravitate towards working. In relation to the #EqualPay movement, kairos

applies in that this issue has been around since women have been working, but only became

well-known and recognized due to social media. Without the help of the technological age, the

wage gap may not even have been noticed. This is similar to Rosie in that Rockwell took

advantage of the opportunity to appeal to women who were already working, as well as women

who wanted to work. It not only inspired women, but it encouraged them as well. The #EqualPay

movement encourages everyone to take notice to the issue, inflicting pathos by appealing to

anyone who has any sort of relation to a women who works and doesn't get paid well. Similar in

the way in which Rosie often ignored that women were only expected to work during that time,

the #EqualPay movement displays logos by not only shedding light on the fact that female

workers make seventy-nine cents to every mans dollar, but that African-American women make

sixty-eight cents, and Hispanic fifty-five (Miller).

Examining the pieces appeals without reference to the time period, Rockwell managed to

embody all of logos, ethos, and pathos within one iconic image with the simplest of choices.

Through a perspective involving logos, Rosies" influenced the economy and increased the

number of working American women from 12 million to 20 million by 1940, and the numbers

only grew from there (UNC). Rockwell establishes his credibility when painting Rosie because

he makes his position on gender very clear, as he does in other pieces, and actually met many of

the Rosies, one of them being his main inspiration for the poster itself (Knight). He portrayed

Rosie as strong and determined, patriotic and dedicated, which is shown by the buttons on her
collar: a Red Cross pin, a Blue Stars Mother pin, etc. This only enhances the level of patriotism

which Rockwell aimed to associate with these women.

Norman Rockwells Rosie the Riveter was not only a reflection on the real women of the

1940s, but the role they accomplished and the work that they did. The culmination of kairos,

logos, pathos, and ethos tie the efforts of working women to the impact which it had on society.

The call for women to fill jobs directly influenced the way women were perceived after that time

period and sparked a movement that not only involved patriotism, but feminism as well. In

relation, the Equal Pay hashtag reflects Rosie by relating to its heavily feminist tones and

progressive manner. Although society has changed and functions have been moved around, there

is still some aspects of Rosie in our everyday lives, as shown by the Equal Pay movement, and

hopefully the Rosie ideal will even further equality between men and women.

Works Cited:

Alchin, Linda. "Rosie the Riveter." : US History ***. Siteseen, Apr. 2016. Web. 09 Oct.

2016.

"7.5 Rosie the Riveter." Rosie the Riveter. UNC, n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2016.

Knight, By: Marcy Kennedy. "The Saturday Evening Post." Rosie the Riveter. The

Saturday Evening Post, July 2013. Web. 09 Oct. 2016.

Miller, Kevin. "The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (Fall 2016)." AAUW:

Empowering Women Since 1881. N.p., Sept. 2016. Web. 09 Oct. 2016.