U.S. Navy: "Here he is, Sir"

U.S. Navy: "Here he is, Sir"

Recruitment: Military

This poster features an avuncular Uncle Sam clasping a young woman on the back as she leads her male companion towards enlistment. The caption, "Here he is, Sir" is emblazoned underneath the image, and the entire poster is framed by the phrase "U.S. Navy: We need him and you too! Navy Recruiting Station." The image of a woman shaking Uncle Sam's hand as she leads her male friend/relative to enlist in the navy creates a powerfully gendered rhetoric of obligation and responsibility which targets both male and female viewers. The poster places responsibility for enlistment on American women as well as American men; the woman's role as an intermediary in the enlisting process is rewarded with a firm handshake and an avuncular pat on the back from Uncle Sam himself. If the woman in the image is a symbol for American femininity, the text beneath the message ("We need him, and you too!") is explicitly aimed at drawing women into the war effort by encouraging their "hims" to enlist.

This poster also reaches out to male viewers through the aformentioned gendered rhetoric of shame. While the man in the poster is the picture of strapping American masculinity, he is belittled and rendered subservient within the context of the poster. Compared to the powerful, dynamic figure of Uncle Sam, the man in this poster seems very meek and humble; his hat is off, his posture is shifted slightly forward in supplication, and his arm is inextricably bound up in the dominating grip of the female figure, who herself is made subservient to Uncle Sam through his possessive gaze and grasp. The artwork and text objectify the male figure, casting him as a commodity which must be herded into patriotic service. The "Here he is" caption underlines the ignominy of the transaction, as the man is robbed of all agency in his enlistment. And while the female figure recieves a hearty thanks from Uncle Sam, the man in the poster is left out in the cold from the exchange. While the poster seems to be primarily aimed at female viewers, the message for men is clear: enlist now, before you suffer the shame of being dragged to the recruiting office by a more patriotic female relation.

Charles Dana Gibson

McFarlin Library, Department of Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tulsa. 2933 E. 6th St. Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104-3123

Latham Litho. and Ptg. Co.

Between 1910-1920

Courtesy of Life

(C) All Rights Reserved

JPEG, 500x339

English

Recruitment Poster

1992.004.5.77

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United States of America

Poster

99.7 x 68.2