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From Riveter to Riveting: the Rebirth of the Femme Fatale

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From Riveter to Riveting: the Rebirth of the Femme Fatale FROM RIVETER TO RIVETING: THE REBIRTH OF THE FEMME FATALE IN POST-WAR AMERICA A thesis submitted to the Kent State University Honors College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Departmental Honors by Hagan F. Whiteleather May, 2015 Thesis written by Hagan F. Whiteleather Approved by ________________________________________________________________, Advisor _______________________________________________, Chair, Department of English Accepted by _____________________________________________________, Dean, Honors College ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES.......................................................................................................vi-vii PREFACE OR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT................................................................viii-x CHAPTER I. RISE OF THE ROSIE THE RIVETER FIGURE..................................1-19 II. FEMME FATALE VILLIAN OR VICTIM.........................................20-26 III. THE MALTESE FALCON..................................................................27-42 IV. DOUBLE INDEMNITY......................................................................43-65 V. LAURA................................................................................................66-83 VI. THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE....................................84-105 VII. THE BIG SLEEP..............................................................................106-126 VIII. CONCLUSION................................................................................127-130 WORKS CITED iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Pennsylvania Railroad Ad: Molly Pitcher, 1944..................................................8 Figure 2. Norman Rockwell’s Labor Day Cover for The Post, 1943................................10 Figure 3. Norman Rockwell’s Rosie the Riveter, 1943.....................................................12 Figure 4. J. Howard Miller’s “We Can Do It!” Poster for Westinghouse Electric Co......12 Figure 5. J. Howard Miller’s “We Can Do It!” Poster for Westinghouse Electric Co......21 Figure 6. Lauren Bacall To Have and Have Not, 1944......................................................21 Figure 7. Sam Spade, Miles Archer, and Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon.28 Figure 8. Sam Spade and Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon..........................34 Figure 9. Lola, Phyllis, Mr. Dietrichson, and Walter Neff in Double Indemnity..............52 Figure 10. Phyllis Dietrichson and Walter Neff in Double Indemnity..............................55 Figure 11. Walter Neff and Mr. and Mrs. Dietrichson in Double Indemnity...................58 Figure 12. Detective McPherson staring at Laura Hunt’s portrait in Laura......................71 Figure 13. Laura Hunt, her portrait, and Detective McPherson in Laura..........................77 Figure 14. Cora Smith in The Postman Always Rings Twice............................................86 iv Figure 15. Frank Chambers, Nick Smith, and Cora Smith in The Postman Always Rings Twice..................................................................................................................................95 Figure 16. Cora Smith, Nick Smith, and Frank Chambers in The Postman Always Rings Twice..................................................................................................................................97 Figure 17. Philip Marlowe and General Sternwood in The Big Sleep............................110 Figure 18. Philip Marlowe and Carmen Sternwood in The Big Sleep............................114 Figure 19. Vivian Sternwood Rutledge and Philip Marlowe in The Big Sleep...............123 v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis would not have been possible without Dr. Kimberly Winebrenner. She made me feel capable of taking on the most daunting assignment of my college career. I was skeptical, and nervous, but when Dr. Winebrenner signed on to be my advisor this thesis actually seemed doable. Dr. Winebrenner has pushed me to take more challenging classes and apply for more opportunities than any other professor or advisor that I have ever known. My time here at Kent would not have been half as productive as it has been without her. To say that my thesis has evolved over the last three semesters is an understatement. Every new book I read led me further and further away from where I started. Each time I made a new connection or shifted my argument Dr. Winebrenner would patiently listen to me attempt to untangle my thoughts, sometimes for hours. I couldn’t imagine her putting more time or energy into advising me. She has been nothing short of outstanding in every step of this process. Dr. Winebrenner has been a constant source of support and encouragement to me. vi I have spent more time in Dr. Winebrenner’s office over the last three years than I have any other room on this campus. I can say without hesitation that she has been the single most influential teacher in my life. I have never seen another professor work as hard as she does for her students. She is the most caring, compassionate, kind, and funny person I know. I am very lucky to have been given the opportunity to know her. I would like to thank Tammy Frietchen for being so patient and kind to me every time I entered her office. She would always make me laugh on days when I desperately needed to. She is one of the sweetest and most considerate people I have met during my five years at Kent State. I am so eternally grateful that I stumbled into 204 Satterfield three years ago. I am grateful to my committee members: Kevin Floyd, Sharon Sciartelli, and Natasha Levinson for taking time out of their busy schedules to read my thesis. I truly appreciate their contribution to my thesis and my education. I am very indebted to The Honors College for giving me an opportunity to try my hand at writing a thesis. This has been such an invaluable learning experience. I truly believe that this process has helped prepare me for graduate school. I was so fortunate to have Vicki Bocchicchio as my Honors Thesis Advisor. She has answered my many, many questions promptly and with great enthusiasm. I couldn’t have been in better hands than hers. vii I am so honored to have been chosen by Beverly Neiderman, Katherine Orr, and Jeanne Smith to receive first place in Kent State University’s 2015 Research Symposium. I am so incredibly grateful that I was not only given an opportunity to present my work, but that I was also awarded for it. It was a surprise, but one of the most pleasant ones I’ve had at Kent State. I would like to thank Marueen Honey, whose book Creating Rosie the Riveter: Class, Gender, and Propaganda During World War II inspired me to make the connection between the femme fatale and postwar propaganda. She created a compelling case linking propaganda to the creation of the Rosie the Riveter figure; I hope I am marginally as successful as she was of convincing the reader of the link between propaganda and the femme fatale. Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for putting up with my frazzled nature as my final semester of college winded down. They have been a source of love and support to me all of my life, and I don’t believe I could have finished my senior year without them. viii 1 Chapter 1: Rise of the Rosie the Riveter Figure 2 World War II gave rise and rebirth to two of the most iconic characters in American history; Rosie the Riveter and the femme fatale of film noir. Neither of these female figures would have been given a national spotlight without the social, economic, and military action caused by the United States entering into the most devastating war the world had ever seen. Both Rosie the Riveter and the femme fatale were born out of the cultural cacophony during and following World War II. Rosie the Riveter is traditionally viewed as an uplifting form of pro-war propaganda. She was a figure of strength in a time of great anxiety and sacrifice. The success of this form of pro-woman, pro-war propaganda cannot be disputed, given the longevity and current relevance the image has. However, the true motivation behind the purpose and power of the figure almost conflicts with the present day interpretation of Rosie. As the history of Rosie’s creation is examined, it becomes clear that she became a greater symbol of female capability than her creators intended, and ultimately led to a powerful backlash in the form of her dark sister: the femme fatale. Many film noir scholars agree that without the male anxiety inducing figure of Rosie the Riveter, the theme of fatal woman would not have been reborn in the form of the iconic femme fatale. In the broadest sense, the femme fatale is generally viewed as a misogynistic interpretation of women as emasculating “man slayers,” or, alternatively, as a powerful symbol of female sexuality and style. Aside from these two prominent views, 3 a compelling tension exists between the perceived sins of the femme fatale in relation to her desires and ambitions. The femme fatale was a product of male anxiety in response to the newly autonomous American woman; it is plausible that she was also a form of reactionary propaganda. Whether creating this anti-Rosie-the-Riveter propaganda character was intentional cannot be definitively stated; however, when the timeline of pro-war propaganda of film, advertisement, and pulp fiction is compared to the rise and peak of the femme fatale of film noir it is not difficult to see a correlation between the virtuous and the vice riddled American cultural icons. Whether intentional or an implicit response
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