An Analysis of American Poster Art as a Medium of Communication During World War I.

摘要

Effective communication on a massive scale between the government and the people of the United States was essential between 1917 and 1919 to mobilize the American people in support of the First World War effort. This study examines the use of the pictorial poster as the primary medium of communicating the government's needs to the American people for the waging of war. The study is illustrated with 129 plates, consisting primarily of reproductions of World War I was posters. Categories of need are defined as groupings of war posters with similar themes designed to reinforce, or change, public attitude or behavior to produce tangible products that answered governmental needs: (1) awareness of the threat, (2) the call for resources, (3) societal support of the combatants and the allied effort, (4) humanitarian, (5) finish the job-on to victory, and (6) retrenchment. The categories of need, themes, messages, and symbols are summarized in a matrix at plate 129.