CHC2D1 - WW{ Canadian Propaqanda Postef Proiect
Explanation
Sara Constant
For the \AM/1 propaganda poster assignment, I decided to create a poster encouraging women
join
to
the Canadian Army Medical Corps as nurses. The poster depicts four young children gathered
around a young woman, holding out a medic bag and nurse's uniform. In the background is a red
cross. The poster reads, "Please, ma'am, bring Papa back home", with "bring Papa back home"
being the central slogan, after which it recommends enlisting with the Canadian Army Medical Corps.
The overall purpose of this poster is to motivate women to join the war effort as nurses, to give
medical care to wounded or unhealthy soldiers. The young children represent the helpless and
innocent victims of the war who have been parted with loved ones, a situation that most women of the
time could easily relate with due to their husbands, sons, and brothers who were fighting overseas.
By "Papa", the children are referring to those that have become wounded or ill during the war. The
message the poster is attempting to convey is essentially that, without the help of nursepdnd
vofunteers overseas, injured or sickly soldiers would die, causing unnecessary loss ottffie and loved
ones and famify members on the homefront to
The target audience for this particular posterwould be able, healthy Canadian women,
preferably young, with some medical training or experience. The poster targets those Canadians who
would be able to become suitable nurses, possessing qualities like strong will, determination and the
desire to help others. Since many of these feelings are evoked by the poster's images and phrasing,
it would be fairly safe to assume that many of the people who would be motivated by such an
advertisement possess at least a few of these key characteristics.
One of the propaganda techniques employed in this ad is the use of important sounding
speech. Granted, the slogan and speech of the children can hardly be claimed impressive, but use
of the word "enlist" and the full name "Canadian Army Medical Corps" (rather than using initials or an
abbreviation) make the advertisement sound official and professional (as opposed to using a phrase
like'Join us as a nurse", which has an identical meaning and is perhaps more direct but sounds
unofficial and amateurish). The use of this "important-sounding speech" would haveyie{vers think
that a decision to join the war effort as a nurse is supported by distinguished, sugarfor individuals and
gives the impression that the creator is a high-up government committee, rathefthan a lone
government-employed artist.
Other techniques used are the requirement of bias and the manipulation of the truth. The
poster depicts only the positive, life-saving aspects of being a nurse. Neglected by the ad are the
grueling, crowded working conditions, the threat of being killed, bombed, or under attack in the line of
duty, and being constantly sunounded by death and the dying. lt was likely due to advertisements
such as this that many young nurses entered the war effort naiVe and unawa;e.'of the situations they
were about to face. The poster, like most during these times, portrays a o.p{-sided view that only
depicts a small portion of the
One of the main techniques used in this poster is the act of preying on emotions. This poster
is designed to invoke emotional feelings of guilt, sympathy, pity, determination, and resolve in young
women. By utilizing images of innocent, helpless children whose situation was echoed throughout
many households in Canada at the time, the ad attempts to "touch" women and make them feel as
though they have to enlist as a nurse. Guilt is especially relevant here, because no women would
want to tell a young child that they refuse to reach out a helping hand to save their fathe/s life.
Moreover, by placing a women in the illustration with the children, women "live" her emotions as they
visualize the scene, making it all the more difficult to refuse joining in the war effort. In some women,
the poster may also evoke feelings of determination or resolve, responding to the statement of the
children with a type of "don't worry; I will' attitude. Lastly, by repeatedly using the symbol of the Red
Cross, aspects of religion and reminders of the blood shed and the lives nurses could save further
reaches out toward viewers. This advertisement is primarily an emotional one, designed to evoke
strong feelings and "touch" viewers in such a way that they will not forget its intended message.
suffer.
truth.
/
/
Lastly, it is my belief that this advertisement understands and knowe ib audience. By
utilizing words and images that appealto or relate with women, young women would be further
encouraged to read it and relate to it. The use of children, for instance, is highly effective because
the high majority of women were housewives, mothers, and/or older sisters.-Ai peopte with children
or young siblings of their own, the image of devastated chitdren would certainly touch the hearts of
lhe poste/s target audience. A word like "Papa'also creates a strong emotion with people who have
lived their lives among young children. Moreover, for women anxious to prove themselves and
establish equality with men (an important issue at the time) would be further motivated by terms like
"enlisf', which is generally associated with men and soldiers. lt is my opinion that by knoring the
target audience and utilizing that knowledge, the advertisement is made allthe more effective.
Overall, by utilizing various propaganda techniques and researching the imagred of the time, I
feel that I was able to create a fairly realistic representation of a propaganOa poyffrom WIA/1. By
using important-sounding speech, bias, manipulation of the truth, the idea of pt'ying on emotions,
and knowledge of the intended audience, posters like mine managed to recruitoveiZOOO Canadian
nurses during the First World War. Through this assignment, I feelthat I have managed to gain
further knowledge and respect for \Mru1 propaganda posters and their significane. i have iearned a
great deal more about the advertisements that became an essential aspect of life on the homefront,
and remain the basis for many media advertisements today.
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