Date of Award:

5-2010

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

English

Committee Chair(s)

Evelyn Funda

Committee

Evelyn Funda

Committee

Melody Graulich

Committee

Steve Shively

Committee

Victoria Grieve

Abstract

This thesis analyzes the marketing of the Women's Land Army (WLA) using archival sources. I explore how farmerettes, the name given to WLA members, used their patriotic work on the farm as a means of redefining femininity and interrogating the definition of "true womanhood." "That Dame's Got Grit" discusses how the WLA was sold in World War I and World War II. The first chapter describes the press book used to market Little Comrade, a 1919 film about a fashionable farmerette. The theme of uniforms, an idea that weaves throughout the thesis, emerges strongly in this chapter. "A Seductive Smile," the second chapter, discusses the WLA posters in terms of the pin-up genre. The thesis concludes with an analysis of the Oregon State University Extension Service photos. In all of the chapters, farmerettes struggle with crafting an image based on hard work and an attractive appearance.

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Comments

This work was revised and made publicly available electronically on July 28, 2011

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