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In this poster, the contrast of black and yellow with only one man’s features being defined is different than a majority of propaganda posters from this time that usually included red, white, and blue colors and shows the faces of multiple men. Perhaps the creator of this piece wanted to use the contrast of the shadows of the men to show that it is a man’s one and only chance to join the rest of the his “species” with an emphasis being put on “MEN” to enhance the idea that really only men were eligible to step up and take part in this “chance.” Poets like Siegfried Sassoon touched on this idea that because only men would join the effort, women didn’t realize how much work the soldiers were doing for them and the future of the country.

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Fighting for the motherland is a very common theme strung throughout many stories and poems that came out of the World War I era. This message is coming from Sir Rider Haggard as stated at the bottom of the poster from 1914. He is claiming that if the country falls, the people of England fall with it, thus “Every Man of you must go” to save this from happening. The theme of defending one’s country is the most prominent in Rupert Brooke’s “The Soldier,” since the narrator is viewing his country as a “heaven,” and that making the ultimate sacrifice (death) for one’s country is honorable. At the beginning of the war, artists relied on this use of propaganda to recruit soldiers, promising them that England post-war would recognize their hard work and dedication to “her,” rewarding them with a sense of superiority and heroism. We have learned that this is not all true, especially since many soldiers upon returning home were treated like they were supposed to be completely normal after seeing and going through what they had experienced in the war.

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Many of these propaganda posters contain questions and exclamations that subconsciously pressure the English men into reevaluating their positions in the society in which they live. This poster is aimed at the “average” man and his choice of apparel, since the different hats shown in the painting are centered around a soldier’s hat. Since hats were such a big part of the culture at this time, this poster would be intriguing to the average citizen since it is appealing on their level. This poster glorifies the war in the sense that wearing a soldier’s cap is an honor compared to wearing a normal cap, and that being able to wear the hat in the middle puts a man at a higher rank than the rest of the men who choose not to wear it. Although some may view this poster as just a bunch of hats, the deeper meaning behind it is referring to masculinity and one’s desire to “fit in” with the honorable.

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This poster once again takes on the red and navy blue theme, though it is based off of demanding statements rather than photos of soldiers. Phrases like “required at once” and “do it now” are authoritatively intimidating and pushy, though the contrast is interesting because the top claims “our country’s urgent need” but then the bottom states that the men must be a certain height and must have a minimum chest width, leaving one to wonder how “urgent” this is if the Army is being this picky. Furthermore, another poster on this Padlet states that a man must be between the ages of 17-35, though this one says 19-45. Perhaps there are so many discrepancies on what it takes to join the war effort because of the desperation at the time. Septimus Smith in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway is a perfect example of what a “fit soldier” looked like, especially since he was so eager to go to war and protect the citizens of his country. In the end, his psychological despair leads him to regretting his time at war, and his is representative of how many soldiers were deceived on what they were getting themselves into.

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This poster, like few others, defies the red, white, and blue color scheme, and instead takes on an interestingly simple appearance with small cursive notes. While the heading reads, “can you fight?” and mirrors the footing reading, “enlist now,” the middle section is the most important part of this layout as it appeals to safety in England. Cleverly, the creator of this poster appealed to the men on a more personal level, showing that their “wives, daughters, mothers” would be “at the mercy of the barbarian,” and that if the Germans were to win, then Britain would be in danger. Appealing to this side of men is more influential than appealing to their moral duty they owe to their country since their wives and children mean more than a place where they live, or so one would hope. This poster creates a sense of urgency because allowing the Germans to win would put their families in danger, and no one would want that.

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Interestingly, this poster contains the same black and yellow contrast as another propaganda poster on the Padlet, which is different than the usual English colors. This one compares and contrasts men of England, organizing them into categories of the who is the “best” based on those who “hear the call and obey, those who delay, and the others.” The use of underlined words on this poster are important, since “those” and “the others” are underlined, again contrasting the men who fall into those classes. This reminds me of Jessie Pope’s “The Call” which refers to the enlisted men as heroes saving England versus those who stay behind being referred to as cowards. Those who don’t go to war, “the others,” are outcasts when the victorious soldiers come back from fighting. Although, as we have learned, many of these soldiers “who hear the call and obey” do not come back, and if they do, they are not the same man they were pre-war.

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This is one of few propaganda posters I have seen that actually shows war ruins and tugs on the heartstrings of the men in England. The two things that stand out the most in this painting are the portrayal of a ruined “No. 2 Wykeham Street, SCARBOROUGH” and a young woman holding a baby in front of the rubble. The caption below the photo describes that a family was killed, and the larger caption places individual numbers on how many women and children were killed and injured by German Raiders. This idea is similar to Auden’s in his poem “September 1, 1939,” where German culture is considered to be “evil,” as the date September 1, 1939 signifies when the German troops invaded Poland. As mentioned, any propaganda containing women and children was thought to be very influential since the men’s families mean the world to them and they couldn’t stand the thought of other men (such as the Germans) taking that away from them.

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This poster is one of the most powerful of the time as it depicts women, children, and men all in one image. The women portrayed in the painting seem to be longing for the men to go fight for them as they are clutching each other and gazing out of the window at the rolling field with four soldiers pictured. The young child is facing the same direction while tugging on one of the women’s shawls. This painting reminds me of Siegfried Sassoon’s “Glory of Women” poem as Sassoon claims that the women who stay behind are selfishly waiting for the men to go fight for them and return home, expecting the men to be completely normal and entertain them with stories from the war. Although the women are “saying – ‘GO!’” Sassoon argues that they do not understand the complexities with going to war, and his poem reflects his pro-solider, anti-women mindset. Like others displayed on here, the representation of English families sending their husbands and fathers off to war is more effective than others that focus on one’s duty or “his place in line.”

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Much of the propaganda of this time contains the phrase “your duty,” as if the men of England owed something to their King and country. This poster refers to its audience as “young man” but then lists the ages 19-35, though society may not see 35-year-old men as “young.” The biggest letters on the poster spell out “YOUR DUTY” referencing that if a man is between these ages, his duty is clear – he must fight. Like we have talked about in class, men not only felt external pressures, but also the internal pressure of going to fulfill their duty, as if joining the war and fighting was what they were born to do in their lives. This poster is particularly interesting because unlike others, there is no mention of being “fit” or “able,” only falling into a certain age range. This is similar to the other poster that claims “England expects every man to do his duty and join the Army to-day.”

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This poster is symbolic of many of the propaganda floating around England during the push to join the war, as it is similar to other photos on here like the one that claims “step into your place” or another that features a man in uniform pointing his finger and saying, “who’s absent, is it you?” These types of propaganda posters are insinuating that the military is waiting for one particular man (“you” in these photos) to “step into line” with the rest of the English men. As we have discussed, men were being pressured into joining the fight through the idea that they were missing out on the opportunity to defend their country with the rest of the men who were going off to do it. These posters framing the idea of absence and stepping into one’s destined place was another influence on men, especially since the photos show multiple men in uniform with the only difference being their faces as the rest of them are identical in appearance.

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By first glance at this poster containing only navy and red wording with no photos or art, one can infer that it is a more serious form of a call to arms. The 4 questions seem rather complicated and thought-provoking, which is most likely the artist’s intent. The first question appeals to the common theme of being a “fit man” and being satisfied with one’s life, similar to question 3 that relates to the future post-war and what the men can say they contributed. Questions 2 and 4 are more territorially-based and are being used to create a sense of jealousy of other men who have the honor of wearing the “King’s uniform”. As we have seen in multiple poems, the opportunity to serve in the war was supposed to be seen as a privilege and an honor, putting those who did fight above those who failed to. The contrast between the honorable and the average seemed to have a big impact pre-war, but post-war, those who did fight suffered from PTSD and other psychological issues, thus they ended up becoming “jealous” of those who didn’t fight because they didn’t have these problems and could fulfill their lives.

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As many of the poets we’ve read have discussed, the pressure for men to join the war was coming from families, friends, and the community around them. This photo depicts a man and his two young children who appear to be middle to high-class based on the setting and their appearances. The quote, “daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?” is inferred to be coming from the children who seemingly are looking up to their father and anxiously awaiting his stories from the war. Wartime poets like Rupert Brooke and Wilfred Owen wrote about this pressure to fight for their nation and protect the future generation of England, which would be the kids depicted in this photo.