“That’s Not You”: Reclaiming the “Real” in Rosie the Riveter Re-appropriations

Abstract

The “ We Can Do It!” of a female World War II war worker poster is considered an image of feminist empowerment. But its association with feminism is a largely late-20 th and 21 st -century development. This paper examines the image, and its modern re-appropriations, through the lens of Baudrillard ’ s concept of the simulacra and hyperreality. The image itself is part of the simulacra, developing meaning detached from historical facts about its origins and use during World War II. The paper specifically looks at the so-called inspiration for the original poster and a contemporary recreation of it that was later apparently adopted for use in a get-out-the-vote campaign. In both cases, the women represented pushed back at their image absorption, and the erasure of their identities within the simulacra. The paper demonstrates how the individual represented in the image struggles to maintain her own identity within the simulacra, often to mixed success.