“Be a Marine: Free a Marine to Fight”: Women’s Identity and Military Recruitment in World War II

Though women served in many earlier conflicts, World War II marked a century of increasing change regarding women’s military service. A growing number of women joined the military in a variety of capacities during this time. While the majority of female recruits returned to their role as homemaker after the end of WWII, their contributions during the war opened opportunities in new areas for these women and their daughters. Recruitment posters portrayed very specific versions of feminine military service, simultaneously upholding previous gender norms and encouraging women into male-dominated occupations. These posters exhibit distinctions between male and female subjects, reflecting differences in the conceptions of gender roles encouraged by male or female-centered posters. These details show different military ideals for women than men. The feminine military ideal represented by women in these posters allowed average individuals, not necessarily interested in feminist rhetoric or reform, to participate in transgressive gendered occupations without violating their current gender norms. At the same time, new experiences allowed these women to consider altered versions of women’s roles, even if they did not continue in these occupations in the post-war years. Such forays into male dominated space allowed a gradual shift in women’s roles over subsequent years.