Cultural Focus
Mandy Bartley. Dutton. 2nd
Women in Feudal Japan
1. The women in Feudal Japan played many different roles.
-Samurai Women
-Geisha Women
-Low and high ranking women
-Women that just took care of their families and children.
2. SAMURAI WOMEN-
-Samurai women were trained to fight as a samurai does.
-The ideal samurai woman was docile, humble, and submissive to a man.
-The main purpose was so that the Samurai women could defend their homes and children in times of dire need.
3. GEISHA WOMEN
-Geishas were amongst the most respected women in Japanese society.
-As young girls geishas are actually called a Maiko
-Maiko learns how to converse with men, perform traditional dances to perfection, and sing and play stringed instruments.
4. LOW RANKING WOMEN
-Women of low class typical had jobs cooking, cleaning, and caring for the children of wealthier families.
-They also farmed alongside other men and had the freedom to use the money that they earned as they wished, to pay taxes, provide their children with clothing.
-Women of low-class had more freedom when it came to marriage and had say in whatever many she ended up marrying.
5. HIGH RANKING WOMEN
-Women of high status in Japan could not escape marriage.
-Families always tried to choose the man of another family that would increase their social status and affluence.
-The only way that they could remain single was if they became a monk or a nun in Buddhism. After a woman did this her social ranking became significantly lower and she was from then on perceived as a deceitful and amoral woman.
-Though Japan valued men over women, women still played a big role in Feudal Japan.
World War 2 Propaganda- USA
1. World War 2
It often masqueraded as traditional musical entertainment. In 1940, Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels helped create “Charlie and His Orchestra,” a swing and jazz band whose lyrics glorified the German war effort and lampooned Allied leaders like Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt. The band recorded more than 250 tracks, many of which were broadcast to Allied servicemen in the hopes of lowering morale.
2. American Propaganda
-The Office of War Information (O.W.I.) was the source of such propaganda in the U.S. In 1941 most Americans, especially those who remembered World War I, were still isolationist, believing that their country should rebuild following the Great Depression, not fight a distant war. After the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor, most were convinced to support the war, but Roosevelt created the O.W.I. in 1942 to boost wartime production at home and undermine enemy morale in Europe, Asia, and Africa. OWI photographers documented aspects of home front life and culture such as women in the workforce, and dealt with a wide array of morale issues such as the question of using Japanese Americans as soldiers, and "subversive activities" like the Los Angeles zoot suit riots.
3. Highly Visible Messages
-Other propaganda came in the form of posters, movies, and even cartoons. Inexpensive, accessible, and ever-present in schools, factories, and store windows, posters helped to mobilize Americans to war. A representative poster encouraged Americans to "Stop this Monster that Stops at Nothing. PRODUCE to the Limit!" It depicted a monster with two heads, one Nazi, one Japanese, clutching the Statue of Liberty in one hand and fending off American advances with the other. Nearby a hand holds a wrench with the inscription "production" -- the key to winning the war.
4. Movies and Cartoons
-While most propaganda aimed to boost patriotism, some took on racist overtones. Director Frank Capra produced seven films called Why We Fight, which portrayed Germany, Italy and Japan as nations of inhuman murderers. As World War II progressed, the O.W.I. had a hand in Hollywood, which churned out patriotic films such as Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) with James Cagney, Pin-Up Girl (1944) with Betty Grable as a USO entertainer, and Anchors Aweigh (1945) with Gene Kelly as a dancing sailor. Even cartoon characters got into the act. Warner Brothers sent Popeye and Bugs Bunny to fight the Japanese, while Disney released a short showing Donald Duck incapacitating Hitler with a ripe tomato. The war, movies and cartoons did their part to keep Americans focused on the war effort, even as they were being entertained. The Allied forces fought long and hard against the Nazis in the air and on the ground, but also with the powerful tool of propaganda.
Voodoo
1. FACTS
-Started in Haiti and is the official religion.
-In 1996 Voodoo became an official national religion in Benin
2. THE MISUNDERSTOOD RELIGION
-Many people associate it with the occult, black magic and Satanism
-Voodoo teaches belief in a supreme being called Bondye, an unknowable and uninvolved creator god.
-Voodoo believers worship many spirits, each one of whom is responsible for a specific domain or part of life.
-Followers of Voodoo also believe in a universal energy and a soul that can leave the body during dreams and spirit possession.
3. VOODOO GODS
-There are many Gods but Loa Rada and Loa Petro, Loco, Agwe, Erzulia, and Legba.
-Loa Rada created the world, made the rules and was in charge of life keeping.
-Loco was the God of the woods.
-Agwe was the God of the sea.
-Erzulia was the Goddess of beauty.
-Legba was the God of the crossroads.
4. VOODOO SOUL
-Ancestor worship-- If a family member dies but the family still has their body, then there is no reason to not talk, ask for help, and get advice. But as a payment for their help, sacrifices must be made.
-Soul in Voodoo-- which means the sould splits into two major parts.
1930's Popular Culture-- Womans fashion
1. CLOTHES
-Women needed to save money so they had to remake clothes with what they already had.
-Before the 30’s women used to change clothes multiple times.
-The influence of clothes worn by famous actresses in Hollywood films became a stronger influence than Paris fashion.
-The fashion was characteristically long and sleek. The flapper look of the '20s was out, and a more sophisticated look.
-More muted colors were popular, as were deep colors. Fabrics with prints in abstract or geometric patterns were also widely used.
-Women's skirts often had their hemlines at mid-calf for daytime wear. Sleeves would be puffed. For work, well tailored suits was a must. If women were just at home, they would wear a simple house dress.
-Evening wear for women was backless and the hemline for dresses would be down to the ankle. In the later 1930’s silk became more popular.
-Women had one piece undergarments. Though bras were introduced, and was starting to be worn.
2. FASHION ACCESSORIES
-Women wore brimmed hats along with pill box hats and turbans.
-Women usually wore gloves outside the house. The gloves would be worn to match their shoes and handbags.
-Towards the night time, longer gloves would be worn that would go to the elbow.
-Shoes with rounded toes would have wide, thick heels. Ankle strap shoes would have a moderate heel. Other popular shoe styles included flats, pumps, and buckle shoes.
3. HAIR AND MAKEUP
-Because suntans were still somewhat considered to be lower class, most women in the 1930s had fairly pale skin.
-Makeup, such as rouge and lipstick, was frequently used to brighten pale faces.
-Fake eyelashes were popular, but they would take hours to put on and they would have to be professionally done.
- Women tended to keep their hair fairly short, about shoulder length. Finger-waves or soft curls with very little body were common.
4. MATERIAL
-Wool, silk, cotton, and rayon were the most popular fabrics for women's fashion in the 1930s.
-Many coats, capes, and stoles were made from fur, as was the trimming on many evening dresses. Popular furs included sable, mink, Persian lamb, and silver fox.
-For swimwear, Lastex was often used. Lastex consisted of a thread of rubber wrapped with a fiber such as cotton or rayon.