Dublin Core
Title
The Minute Men of To-day are Going to Plattsburg
Subject
Recruitment: Military
Description
In "The Minute Men of To-day are Going to Plattsburg" the poster’s artist draws a definitive connection between the legendary patriots of the Revolutionary War and the recruits of WWI. The implication that war enlistment directly correlated with one’s civil responsibility would have elicited a motivation for young men to protect their traditions and tribes. This point is highlighted by the posturing of the characters in the poster. The soldiers appear as a blockade between the viewing public and the ambiguous, empty space depicted behind them. This positioning illustrates the soldier’s protection of American citizens from the unknown (or, international) space, which threatened to transform the pleasant livelihoods of the American public.
Surprisingly, though not without cause, this poster makes little use of the rich colors generally associated with other posters created during the same era. The significance of these types of posters was placed on the physical text. According to scholar Meg Albrinck, a poster like this may “point to a gendering of location: men are there, in ‘the ranks,’ or (by inference) in the trenches, whereas women are here, in the crowd, or at home.”
Investigation into the military training camps in Plattsburg, New York shows that the camps were home to the elite of the American military, but as John Garry Clifford has noted, were sometimes criticized as being “too exclusive to be democratic.” Despite the criticisms, one may see why the “Minute Man” poster adequately marketed a scion of American volunteers who were concerned with excellence, tradition, and high achievement.
Surprisingly, though not without cause, this poster makes little use of the rich colors generally associated with other posters created during the same era. The significance of these types of posters was placed on the physical text. According to scholar Meg Albrinck, a poster like this may “point to a gendering of location: men are there, in ‘the ranks,’ or (by inference) in the trenches, whereas women are here, in the crowd, or at home.”
Investigation into the military training camps in Plattsburg, New York shows that the camps were home to the elite of the American military, but as John Garry Clifford has noted, were sometimes criticized as being “too exclusive to be democratic.” Despite the criticisms, one may see why the “Minute Man” poster adequately marketed a scion of American volunteers who were concerned with excellence, tradition, and high achievement.
Creator
Anonymous
Source
McFarlin Library, Department of Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tulsa. 2933 E. 6th St. Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104-3123
Publisher
Military Training Camp Association
Date
1910-1920
Language
English
Identifier
1992.004.5.11
Coverage
<kml xmlns="http://earth.google.com/kml/2.0"><Folder><name>OpenLayers export</name><description>Exported on Tue Feb 5 11:42:59 CST 2013</description></Folder></kml>||||osm
United States of America
United States of America
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Poster
Physical Dimensions
68.5 x 52.1 cm