Dwight D. Eisenhower and Postwar American Manhood
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THE PRESIDENT IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT: DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER AND POSTWAR AMERICAN MANHOOD By PETER MARK NADEAU Bachelor of Arts in History Salem State University Salem, MA 1996 Master of Arts in History Tufts University Medford, MA 1997 Master of Arts in Theological Studies Reformed Theological Seminary Oviedo, FL 2005 Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate College of Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May, 2016 THE PRESIDENT IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT: DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER AND POSTWAR AMERICAN MANHOOD Dissertation Approved: __________Dr. Brian Frehner__________ Dissertation Adviser __________Dr. John Kinder___________ Committee Member __________Dr. Elizabeth Williams______ Committee Member __________Dr. Stacy Takacs___________ Committee Member ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS During the window of years that this dissertation was conceptualized, researched, written, and edited, my wife gave birth to our three children. A dissertation, much like a newborn, requires constant attention, a large savings account, and the assistance of many to survive the long hours and sleepless nights. I was blessed to have a large group of supporters that made this project possible. Among my most valuable backers were Dan and Terry Van Syoc, Erica Van Syoc, Jonathan Dorst, Marion Carroll, Shirley Campbell, and Anthony Bocciardi. My graduate committee at Oklahoma State University was top-notch and offered plenty of helpful advice and skill to insure that my project entered the world alive and well. John Kinder is a superb scholar who was the first to inspire me to think about gender and the presidency. His comments and encouragement were invaluable to my project. Brian Frehner served as a longsuffering advisor and provided me with the conversations about history, writing, and the profession that I needed to keep going. Others scholars who offered valuable criticism include Elizabeth Williams, Stacy Takacs, Richard Rohrs, James Huston, and Michael Logan. Numerous men and women working at different archives and libraries assisted me in finding valuable documents and materials. The staff at the Eisenhower Presidential Library made each of my visits to Abilene highly enjoyable. I particularly wish to thank Kevin Bailey, Chris Abraham, and Chalsea Millner for their assistance and kindness. The ladies of the Abilene Public Library made my visit memorable and pleasant despite the seemingly endless rain outside. The entire library staff of Edmon Low Library at Oklahoma State University demonstrated remarkable skill in locating and securing primary and secondary sources for my project. Other librarians and archivists who proved to be special include those at Harvard University, Columbia University, the University of Central Arkansas, and the Stars and Stripes Library in Bloomfield, Missouri. My name may be on the cover of this dissertation, but I struggle to identify much in my life that does not in some form bear the influence, support, or encouragement of my parents, Donald and Diane. Sadly, my father passed away in the middle of this project. I would have enjoyed reading and discussing it with him. Sarah has been a model of patience and encouragement while her husband spent long hours in dusty libraries and staring at a flashing cursor. My work on this manuscript often left her alone to tend to an infant while enduring another pregnancy. I could never thank her enough for her support during this time. Our three children, Luke, Kate, and Jace, provided hours of free comedy and entertainment that made living on a graduate student’s budget more bearable. Our children’s growth and my success as a historian are due primarily to Sarah’s love and perseverance. It is to her that this manuscript is dedicated. iii Acknowledgements reflect the views of the author and are not endorsed by committee members or Oklahoma State University. Name: PETER M. NADEAU Date of Degree: MAY, 2016 Title of Study: THE PRESIDENT IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT: DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER AND POSTWAR AMERICAN MANHOOD Major Field: HISTORY Abstract: In recent years presidential historians and men studies specialists have combined their fields of study to examine how conceptions of male identity have informed, shaped, and altered the American presidency. Dwight Eisenhower and his administration has thus far been neglected in these studies. This dissertation endeavors to examine the history of Eisenhower’s construct of maleness, identified as dutiful manhood, and how that construct emerged, challenged, supplanted, and eventually surrendered to its more common construction of American male identity, identified as masculinity. Dwight Eisenhower’s conception of male identity stemmed from his small town, rural upbringing in a religious home that emphasized the virtues of duty, self-control, and maturity. This dutiful manhood was the predominant conception of manliness in nineteenth- century America and was not supplanted until the contemporary conception of masculinity, denoted by virility and toughness, became popular in the nation’s urban areas at the beginning of the twentieth century. Eisenhower absorbed little of the new masculinity in his persona. Rather, the tradition-bound institutions of West Point and the interwar military incubated the previous century’s manhood in him and others. Whereas the Great Depression significantly weakened prevailing notions of masculinity, the Second World War rallied the masculine ethic of American males. Mass social dislocations, the horror of combat, and anxiety surrounding the nascent atomic threat, however, made a return to prewar masculinity seem reckless and dangerous. World War II sparked a renewed interest in dutiful manhood and its postwar product bore a strong resemblance to the previous century’s model. Veteran adjustment literature hastened the adoption of manly virtue on a national scale. Eisenhower’s virtual draft into the presidency and his perspective on the office reinforced the necessity and popularity of manhood well into the 1950s. Yet, even as the late forties and fifties preached the duties of men, a whole bevy of new male identities emerged to challenge the supremacy of dutiful manhood and succeeded in usurping its men and the White House in the 1960s and 1970s. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1 I. MANLY MEN ..................................................................................................... 17 Manhood Established ......................................................................................... 18 Manhood Promoted............................................................................................ 29 Manhood Reared ................................................................................................ 40 II. MASCULINE MEN............................................................................................ 50 Masculinity Flexed ............................................................................................ 51 Manhood Derided .............................................................................................. 64 Manhood Preserved ........................................................................................... 70 III. MILITARY MEN ............................................................................................. 85 Masculinity Depressed ....................................................................................... 86 Masculinity Drafted ........................................................................................... 93 Masculinity Disillusioned ............................................................................... .105 Manhood Commanded ..................................................................................... 117 IV. DUTIFUL MEN ............................................................................................. 135 Manhood Revived…………………………………………….……………........136 Masculinity Lamented……………………………………….....………………..145 Manhood Elected…………………………………………….....……….……….158 v V. CONTAINED MEN………………………………..………………….………...174 Masculinity Contained………...………………………………………………...176 Manhood Sheltered……………………………………………………………...187 Manhood Enforced………………………………………………………………200 VI. MATURE MEN………………………………………………………….….…216 Masculinity Patronized………………………………………………………….218 Manhood Matured……………...……………………………………………….225 Manhood Administered…...…………………………………………………….232 VII. OLD MEN…………………………….……………………………………….243 Manhood Besieged….…………………………………………………………..244 Masculinity Revived..…………………………………………………………...257 Manhood Aged……...…………………………………………………………..266 Masculinity Elected……………………………………………………………..275 Manhood Taps…………………………………………………………………..283 EPILOGUE………………………………………………………………………….291 REFERENCES…………………………………….………………………………..308 vi INTRODUCTION I am not sure when I first began to think about the duties of being a man. It was probably when the last bits of meat were being pulled off of a turkey and the last bites of apple pie were being scraped off a desert plate at one of the holidays I spent growing up around the “greatest generation.” My grandfathers, uncles, and great-uncles were enormously proud of the stories they had to share about surviving the Depression, making it through the war, and achieving success in the immediate aftermath. They spoke about doing what needed to be done, enduring difficulty, and providing for their families during tough times. They