Date Approved
2025
Degree Type
Open Access Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department or School
History and Philosophy
Committee Member
Steven Ramold, PhD
Committee Member
Ashley Johnson Bavery, PhD
Abstract
Popular imagery of Rosie the Riveter has colored our collective consciousness to assume the women entering manufacturing jobs during World War Two permanently expanded the gender roles of women in American society. However, historians Leila J Rupp, Susan Hartmann, D’Ann Campbell, and Maureen Honey have shown that during the war, publicly espoused gender roles continued to restrict women to the point of “going back to the kitchen” once the war ended. Their research focuses on societal expectations of women but not how women responded to these questions in their personal lives. Reading correspondences between men and women after the attack on Pearl Harbor can help answer the question of why women’s gender roles did not continue to experience change after the war and gives a unique insight into the little-studied realm of the private lives and relationships of women during World War Two. Hand-written letters, a common way for those serving in the military to stay connected to their loved ones at home, describe daily life, jobs, leisure activities, dating partners, and the expectations men and women had of each other, even when they were continents apart. By analyzing these letters written between family, friends, and lovers, this paper shows that women valued their femininity and chose to highlight this within their personal lives, which in turn influenced societal expectations of women and limited any significant and lasting change to the roles of women after the end of the war.
Recommended Citation
Yaeger, Jesse B., "Arsenal of femininity: Women, relationships, and gender roles during World War II" (2025). Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations. 1289.
https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1289
