Terann Edwards

Huma 1100
04/21/2016
Final Project Reflection

To begin, my proposal was going to be an interview about my mother. I have made a few
changes to make my project more effective. The proposal was the idea of interviewing my
mother and going into detail how it applies to the course of Identity, Privilege, and Inequalities.
How womens rights has been shaped in America. I would like to change the route of my paper
by discussing and analyzing Rosie the Riveter and also include my mothers experiences. It still
covers and incorporates what we have learned in Identity, Privilege, and Inequalities, war
propaganda, and interpreting art. This semester I had the opportunity to go to Norman
Rockwells exhibit at BYU. His display of Rosie the Riveter has always intrigued and inspired
me and that is why I have chosen this as my project. I have a passion towards womens rights
and am amazed at how women had to fight for the small and simple things. Just like how my
mother has in the past. Rosie the Riveter is an amazing example of Womens Rights, what
women are made of. This painting has taught me things I had no idea about.
I will explain the themes I have included and how they go into the painting. First is
Identity, Privilege, and Inequalities. Rosie the Riveter shows how women gained privilege in the
war by supporting the working class men and showing what they can do for the United States.
How women back then were viewed as not important and just needed to stay in the kitchen. That
was their role- taking care of the children, cook and clean, and be there for their husband. Next is
war propaganda, it obviously is Pro War. Analyzing the piece you see the patriotic background of
red white and blue. And you notice what her feet are resting on a book, Hitlers book Mein
Kampf, the book seeming old, faded, and yellow; the pages are starting to ware. This meaning
that we will fight Hitler and crush him in this war. I also learned that Norman Rockwell being
creative as he is depicted his Rosie as the prophet Isaiah in the sealing of the Sistine Chapel. A
very strong, religious prophet was the focus for Rockwell to depict for Rosie the Riveter. A very
strong woman with her head held high, confident eating her sandwich. You notice other things in
the painting that are interesting. For example, her goggles and head mask, her dirty face but still
wearing makeup and nail polish. You also see that she is not wearing a wedding ring, so she is
probably supporting her family when her father and brother(s) are out to war. You see her
patriotic tags on her overalls; one for victory, her blood donation, and her security badge. Her
lunchbox on one side and her cradling her riveting tool in her lap. She could have put it down on
the ground while on her lunch break. But seeing this makes me see that this tool was very
precious to her. This was an opportunity to have rights just like the men and she is very grateful
for what she has been given.

Prompt 2: This assignment came to be because of the change of my project. I was going to
interview my mother. But I needed something to include that inspired me and makes me think of
my mother. Having a parent who needed to take on the role of a father is not easy. I wanted to
hear what experiences my mother had to go through to where she is today. But I needed
something that depicted it in a picture. Rosie the Riveter is the perfect example of my mother.
She needed to make sacrifices to gain success. She needed to earn rights from others and had to
show them her will to fight. Norman Rockwells Saturday Evening Post is an amazing painting
showing how much strength and will America has in times of war. Men and women fight every
single day for our freedom and women fought for freedom in America as well. Now my mother
might not have been in the same situations as the women from World War II. But she did fight
for respect. In her workplace women need to fight twice as hard and fast. As you get there you
still have to prove yourself. My mother worked in the Air Force ROTC right after graduating at
BYU and they hired a retired sergeant who didnt have a college degree to do a job and they
came to my mother and told her they will be paying him more because he had a family to
support. And my mother was starting our family. That is one example of the many situations of
inequality my mother went through and it gives me so much respect for what my mom did. I
especially am grateful for the women in America that were fighters and gained equality for their
children and their childrens children. Rosie the Riveter will always have a positive view on
womens rights and the fight for Americas rights. And will always be one of my favorite
paintings.

Works Cited:
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/rosie-the-riveter 2016, A&E Television
Networks, LLC. All Rights Reserved
It Begins with our Questions The Humanities as a Call to Action, edited by Paul Allen,
Claire Peterson Hayden-McNeil 2015