world war 1 propaganda poster assignment

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• English 105 Online Curriculum Module: Rhetoric of American World War I Posters

English 105 Online Curriculum Module: Rhetoric of American World War I Posters: Home

Unit project, lesson context.

The Rhetoric of American World War I Propaganda Posters unit sequence uses primary sources to introduce students to the basics of rhetorical and visual analysis, multimodal composition, and scholarly research and writing. The unit begins with students exploring “ North Carolinians and the Great War ,” the library’s digital collection of World War I posters. In the first feeder assignment, students complete a visual analysis worksheet and analyze the rhetoric and imagery of two posters from the collection. Students can also watch "Analyzing World War I Posters,"  a short video introduction to visual analysis and the history of World War I posters. In the second feeder assignment, students expand their rhetorical analysis by conducting additional secondary source research about one of the posters. Finally, in the unit project, students write an analysis of their poster and share their findings with the class in a five-minute conference presentation.

• Unit Summary - Printable PDF

Unit Summary

​ assignments.

You have been selected to present at a World War I conference. Your research begins with the library’s online collection of the many American propaganda posters created during World War I to recruit soldiers and build national pride. This digital collection, “North Carolinians and the Great War,” focuses specifically on posters that would have been widely distributed in North Carolina to help bolster war efforts in the state. In this unit, you will select one poster to study, analyze, research, and write about. You deliverables include a brief visual presentation about your poster and an essay. As a rhetorician, your goal is to analyze the rhetorical strategies the artist used to create an effective propaganda poster. You should consider include how the artist used images, color, text, and design elements to convey messages related to World War I. Additionally, you should explore the historical context of your poster and how it might have influenced North Carolinians who participated in the war efforts.

Learning Objectives

By working on the feeder assignments and unit project, you will develop the following skills:

identify how rhetorical strategies are deployed in both visual and textual formats;

conduct secondary source research;

place propaganda rhetoric in its historical context; and

synthesize complex research findings in a compelling oral presentation and written assignment.

North Carolinians and the Great War​

World War I propaganda posters are available from Documenting the American South (DocSouth). The goal of the poster collection is to “[examine] how World War I shaped the lives of different North Carolinians on the battlefield and on the home front as well how the state and federal government responded to war-time demands."

• Video: Analyzing World War I Posters This video provides a guide to visual analysis an examples of how to apply analytical questions to WWI posters within their historical context.
• World War I Posters Worksheet This worksheet accompanies the video "Analyzing World War I Posters."
• An introduction to the collection This introduction to the poster collection places the posters in historical context and describes the collection.
• Propaganda posters organized by theme All of the posters are accessible here and organized by topic.

In Feeder One, students will begin by exploring the online collection of American World War I propaganda posters to get a sense of the range and types of posters that were made. Either as an in-class activity or as a homework assignment, students should select a poster they find interesting and analyze it more closely by completing the Visual Analysis Worksheet . 

Once students have practiced their visual analysis skills, they can move on to the second part of the feeder assignment. First, they should select and download two posters they are interested in writing about for their final projects. Next, they should write a short paragraph about each poster that includes the following information:

• their reasons for selecting the poster, such as its color, shape, subject matter, artistic appeal, etc.;
• the message (or messages) they believe the poster was expressing; and
• the historical audience (or audiences) they believe the poster and message were trying to reach. 

Instructional Materials

• Visual Analysis Worksheet - Printable PDF

For Feeder Two, Background Research and Preliminary Analysis , students will choose one poster and examine it from multiple critical vantage points. First, in the research phase of the assignment, students will search for secondary and primary sources that answer key questions about their posters. Their driving goal as researchers in this assignment will be to learn more about the historical and cultural context in which their posters were created and disseminated.

Next, in the rhetorical analysis phase of the assignment, students will use the information they have gained and their own visual and textual analysis skills to draw conclusions about their posters. They will consider questions about the intended audience and purpose of their posters, as well as considering how persuasive techniques are deployed to connect with that audience and achieve that particular purpose.

• Background Research and Preliminary Analysis - Printable PDF

Possible Expansion: Visit the Undergraduate Library

Request an information literacy instruction session taught by librarians at the Robert B. House Undergraduate Library (UL). In this session, librarians can help connect students with library resources and search strategies to support their background research on their posters. Potential topics may include formulating keywords, searching in databases, evaluating print and online sources, citation, and other information literacy concepts.

For the Unit Project, an Essay and Conference Presentation , students will build on their prior research and thinking from Feeders One and Two by connecting their historical research with their rhetorical analysis. They will consider how the historical events and cultural norms of the time contributed to the visual and textual rhetorical strategies being used in the poster.

Playing the role of participants in a special session at the World War I conference, students will deliver a brief in-class presentation about the propaganda strategies used in their posters. They will also contribute an accompanying essay about their poster to the special issue of a journal published in conjunction with the conference. 

• Essay and Conference Presentation - Printable PDF

Additional Resources

These resources may supplement the instructional materials provided above:

Presentations

• Design Guide: Presentation Slides (UL)
• Presentation Planning Worksheet (UL Design Guide)
• Powerpoint and Google Slides Templates (Slides Carnival)

Public Speaking

• Tips and Tools Handout: Speeches (UNC Writing Center)
• Public Speaking Foundations (Lynda.com Tutorial)

Michael Keenan Gutierrez

Teaching Assistant Professor, Department of English and Comparative Literature

Emily Kader

Rare Book Research Librarian, Wilson Special Collections Library

Cait Kennedy

Carolina Academic Library Associate

Ashley Werlinich

Graduate Research Assistant, Wilson Special Collections Library; Ph.D. Student and Teaching Fellow, Department of English and Comparative Literature​

Discipline Areas

This online curriculum module is designed for use in the humanities unit of English 105; however, it could also be adapted for English 105i: Writing in the Humanities or Writing in the Digital Humanities. 

English 105 Requirements

This unit sequence meets the following English 105 requirements:

• Digital Literacy;
• Information Literacy;
• Multimodal Composition; 
• Oral Presentation;
• Primary Source Literacy; and
• Visual Literacy.

Possible Adaptations

This unit sequence could be adapted to use a variety of other special collections materials, depending on your research interests, desired learning outcomes, and other instructional goals.  Contact the Special Collections to discuss other possible adaptations.

Instruction

Schedule an instruction session.

If you would like your class to visit Wilson Special Collections Library,  request a special collections instruction session .

Teach with the Rare Book Collection

If you have questions about teaching with primary sources, contact Emily Kader .

Visit the Special Collections Research Room  or contact the special collections .

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Student Survey

Ask your students to share their experiences with the Rhetoric of American World War I Posters online curriculum module by completing this survey .

Start a Conversation

To start a conversation about how future online curriculum modules can support your English 105 instruction, contact Jason Tomberlin , Head of Research and Instructional Services.

• Last Updated: May 6, 2022 1:53 PM
• URL: https://guides.lib.unc.edu/world-war-one-posters

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Canada and the First World War

• Introduction
• Objects and Photos
• Teacher Resources

01 Lesson Plans

Propaganda posters, all provinces and territories except quebec: grades 7 to 12, quebec: secondary 1 to 5.

In this lesson, students discuss and develop an understanding of the techniques used to create propaganda. Using this knowledge, students analyze posters from the First World War.  Download the full package (pdf).  [PDF 1543k] Includes two lesson plans, one worksheet, one handout and high quality poster images.

Lesson Plans – Propaganda Posters

• Grades 7 to 9/Secondary 1 to 3, Lesson Plan, Propaganda Posters (pdf)  [PDF 47k]
• Grades 10 to 12/Secondary 4 to 5, Lesson Plan, Propaganda Posters (pdf)  [PDF 49k]
• Grades 10 to 12/Secondary 4 to 5, Propaganda Worksheet (pdf)  [PDF 33k]

Resources: Propaganda Posters (List of Images)

• Resources: Propaganda Posters (pdf)  [PDF 1534k]
• This Is Your Flag
• Shall we Help to Crush Tyranny?
• Heroes of St. Julien and Festubert
• Les Héros de St-Julien et de Festubert
• Canadiens-Francais, Enrolez-Vous!
• 150e Carabiniers
• The Happy Man
• Help the Boys
• Fight for Her
• Soldiers of the Soil
• Souscrivez à l’Emprunt de la Victoire
• Canadians Must Provide
• Once a German – Always a German!

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Ransom Center Magazine

About Elizabeth Lovero

Lovaro was a graduate student in the School of Information at The University of Texas at Austin, focusing on new media curation and digital learning. Prior to her graduate studies she was curatorial assistant at the Whitney Museum of American Art and assistant curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara.

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• Arts & Culture

The Poster: Visual Persuasion in WWI

In WWI, the poster, previously a successful medium for commercial advertising, was recognized as a means of spreading national propaganda with near unlimited possibilities. Learn more about posters, and their use during the war, with this digital exhibition.

Enter Exhibition

View more content by the Museum and Memorial on Google Arts & Culture

World War I: 100 Years Later

A Smithsonian magazine special report

The Posters That Sold World War I to the American Public

A vehemently isolationist nation needed enticement to join the European war effort. These advertisements were part of the campaign to do just that

Jia-Rui Cook

On July 28, 1914, World War I officially began when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In Europe and beyond, country after country was drawn into the war by a web of alliances. It took three years, but on April 2, 1917, the U.S. entered the fray when Congress declared war on Germany.

The government didn’t have time to waste while its citizens made up their minds about joining the fight. How could ordinary Americans be convinced to participate in the war “ Over There ,” as one of the most popular songs of the era described it?

Posters—which were so well designed and illustrated that people collected and displayed them in fine art galleries—possessed both visual appeal and ease of reproduction. They could be pasted on the sides of buildings, put in the windows of homes, tacked up in workplaces, and resized to appear above cable car windows and in magazines. And they could easily be reprinted in a variety of languages.

To merge this popular form of advertising with key messages about the war, the U.S. government’s public information committee formed a Division of Pictorial Publicity in 1917. The chairman, George Creel, asked Charles Dana Gibson, one of most famous American illustrators of the period, to be his partner in the effort. Gibson, who was president of the Society of Illustrators, reached out to the country’s best illustrators and encouraged them to volunteer their creativity to the war effort.

These illustrators produced some indelible images, including one of the most iconic American images ever made: James Montgomery Flagg’s stern image of Uncle Sam pointing to the viewer above the words, “I Want You for U.S. Army.” (Flagg’s inspiration came from an image of the British Secretary of State for War , Lord Kitchener, designed by Alfred Leete.) The illustrators used advertising strategies and graphic design to engage the casual passerby and elicit emotional responses. How could you avoid the pointing finger of Uncle Sam or Lady Liberty? How could you stand by and do nothing when you saw starving children and a (fictional) attack on New York City?

“Posters sold the war,” said David H. Mihaly, the curator of graphic arts and social history at the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, where 55 of these posters will go on view August 2. “These posters inspired you to enlist, to pick up the flag and support your country. They made you in some cases fear an enemy or created a fear you didn’t know you had. Nations needed to convince their citizens that this war was just, and we needed to participate and not sit and watch.” There were certainly propaganda posters before 1917, but the organization and mass distribution of World War I posters distinguished them from previous printings, Mihaly said.

Despite the passage of 100 years—as well as many wars and disillusionment about them—these posters retain their power to make you stare. Good and evil are clearly delineated. The suffering is hard to ignore. The posters tell you how to help, and the look in the eyes of Uncle Sam makes sure you do.

“ Your Country Calls!: Posters of the First World War ” will be on view at the Huntington from August 2 to November 3, 2014. Jia-Rui Cook wrote this for  Zocalo Public Square .

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Manipulating the masses: How propaganda was used during World War I

World War I was a conflict that not only consumed the lives of the soldiers in the trenches and battlefields, but also had a powerful impact on the hearts and minds of millions at home.

This was done through the strategic use of propaganda.  The proactive manipulation of people's attitudes through the media played a surprisingly pivotal role in shaping public opinion and mobilizing resources.

But how exactly was propaganda used during World War I?

What were the different types of propaganda employed by the warring nations?

And how did it influence society's perception of the war? 

What is 'propaganda'?

The term 'propaganda' often carries negative connotations, associated with manipulation and deceit.

However, its roots are far more neutral, derived from the Latin 'propagare', meaning 'to spread or propagate'.

In essence, propaganda is about disseminating information, ideas, or rumors for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person.

It has always been a powerful tool of persuasion, with the capability of molding public opinion and directing collective action.

Propaganda, as a concept, is as old as human civilization itself: from the ancient Egyptians who used it to glorify their pharaohs, to the Romans who utilized it to control public opinion.

However, it was during World War I that propaganda was used on an industrial scale.

It leveraged the advancements in mass communication technologies such as the printing press, radio, and cinema.

Governments quickly realized that to sustain a war on a global scale, they needed not just the physical resources but also the psychological backing of their citizens.

How countries used propaganda

Each nation involved in the war had its unique propaganda strategies; h owever, there were common themes and techniques that transcended national boundaries.

Firstly, and most obviously, propaganda was used to justify the war, usually to portray it as a noble and necessary endeavor.

At the same time, it was used to demonize the enemy. To do this, it would paint them as a threat not just to the nation but to civilization itself.

In a much more benign way, it was also used to mobilize resources by encouraging men to enlist or for civilians to buy war bonds.

The British, for example, established the War Propaganda Bureau early in the war which  enlisted famous writers and artists to create compelling propaganda materials. 

These were distributed both at home and abroad.

The Germans, on the other hand, relied heavily on propaganda to maintain morale during the British naval blockade.

These blockades had prevented shipping from reaching German ports, which caused severe food shortages in Germany.

In comparison, in the United States, which entered the war later , the Committee on Public Information, which was established by President Woodrow Wilson, launched a massive propaganda campaign to build support for the war effort.

Interestingly, this campaign was not just aimed at adults but also at children, with propaganda materials distributed in schools to instill a sense of patriotism and duty from a young age.

In Russia, propaganda was used to try and maintain support for the war amidst growing social unrest, which eventually led to the Russian Revolution .

The Russian government used propaganda to portray the war as a fight against German imperialism.

This was aimed at appealing to the nationalist sentiments of the Russian people, but it had little effect in the end.

Common types of WWI propaganda

During World War I, propaganda was employed in a variety of forms, each designed to serve a specific purpose.

The types of propaganda used can be broadly categorized into recruitment propaganda, war bond propaganda, enemy demonization propaganda, and nationalism and patriotism propaganda.

Recruitment propaganda

One of the most visible forms of propaganda during the war was recruitment propaganda.

As the war dragged on and casualty numbers rose, it became increasingly important for nations to encourage more men to enlist.

Recruitment posters often depicted the ideal soldier as brave, honorable, and patriotic, appealing to a sense of duty and masculinity.

Iconic images such as Lord Kitchener's "Your Country Needs You" poster in Britain, or Uncle Sam's "I Want You" poster in the United States, became powerful symbols of the call to arms.

War bonds propaganda

Another crucial aspect of propaganda was the promotion of war bonds. Financing the war was a massive undertaking.

So, governments turned to their citizens for help.

War bond propaganda aimed to convince the public that purchasing bonds was both a financial investment and a patriotic duty.

These campaigns often used emotional appeals. It suggested that buying bonds was a way to support the troops and contribute to the war effort.

Enemy demonisation propaganda

The demonization of the enemy was a common theme in World War I propaganda.

By portraying the enemy as monstrous, barbaric, or inhuman, governments could justify the war and stoke a sense of fear and hatred.

This type of propaganda was often based on stereotypes or outright lies, such as the infamous "Rape of Belgium" campaign by the Allies, which exaggerated German atrocities to gain international support.

Nationalisation and patriotism propaganda

Finally, propaganda was also used to foster a sense of nationalism and patriotism.

This was especially important in multi-ethnic empires like Austria-Hungary or the Ottoman Empire, where loyalty to the state was not a given.

The resultant nationalistic propaganda often used symbols, myths, and historical narratives to create a sense of shared identity and purpose.

The impact on society

One of the most significant impacts of propaganda was its role in creating a culture of sacrifice and service, where everyone was expected to do their part for the war effort.

Furthermore, propaganda influenced the way the war was understood and remembered.

It created a narrative of the war that highlighted the heroism and sacrifice of the soldiers, while downplaying the horror and destruction.

This narrative was often uncritically accepted, leading to a romanticized and distorted view of the war.

Ultimately, the use of propaganda during World War I may have had a significant impact on society by introducing new methods of mass communication and persuasion.

The techniques developed during the war, from the use of posters and films to the manipulation of news and information, became a standard part of political and commercial communication in the decades that followed.

The crucial role of artists and designers

Artists and designers' skills were harnessed to create powerful images and messages.

They were, in essence, visual storytellers, crafting narratives of heroism, sacrifice, and patriotism that resonated with the masses.

A well-designed poster or illustration could convey a message instantly and emotionally.

As a result, artists and designers used a variety of techniques to maximize the impact of their work: from the use of bold colors and simple, striking designs to the manipulation of symbols and stereotypes.

There are a number of very famous examples form various countries. In Britain, o ne of the most famous examples is the "Your Country Needs You" poster, featuring Lord Kitchener.

The poster, designed by Alfred Leete, became an iconic symbol of the call to arms.

Its simple yet powerful design resonating with the British public.

In Germany, artists like Ludwig Hohlwein and Lucian Bernhard created striking posters that promoted war bonds and recruitment.

Their work, characterized by bold typography and dramatic imagery, was instrumental in maintaining morale and unity during the war.

Then, in the United States, artists like James Montgomery Flagg and Howard Chandler Christy created memorable propaganda posters.

Flagg's "I Want You" poster, featuring Uncle Sam, became one of the most iconic images of the war, while Christy's posters, featuring idealized images of women, appealed to a sense of chivalry and duty.

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WWI Primary and Secondary Sources: Print and Online: Primary Sources

• Primary Sources
• Primary Sources continued
• Personal Narratives, Speeches, Papers
• Databases and Secondary Sources
• Research terms for Searching in Franklin Catalog and other Databases

Penn's World War I Digital Collections

• Penn's World War I Pamphlet Collection Penn has digitized over 400 pamphlets from its print collections dating from and relating to World War I. These pamphlets are now findable in Franklin via the series title: World War I Pamphlet Collection with live links to the facsimiles available through Hathi Trust and to Penn's Print at Penn. Access all pamphlets via the libraries Franklin catalog whether from Print at Penn or the Hathi Trust.

Connect to pamphlets via the Hathi Trust Digital Library

Connect to pamphlets via Print at Penn .

• Penn Libraries World War I Printed Media and Art Collection This collections contains over one thousand prints, propaganda posters, postcards, trench newspapers, maps, broadsides and original artworks dating from 1914 to 1931 and offers an enormous range of perspectives on the First World War.

First World War Primary Source Databases

Map From " The First World War " database collections

• The First World War This First World War portal includes primary source materials for the study of the Great War, complemented by a range of secondary features. The collection is divided into three modules: Personal Experiences, Propaganda and Recruitment, and Visual Perspectives and Narratives.
• Women, War and Society, 1914-1918 The First World War had a revolutionary and permanent impact on the personal, social and professional lives of all women. Their essential contribution to the war in Europe is fully documented in this definitive collection of primary source materials from the Imperial War Museum, London. Documents include charity and international relief reports, pamphlets, photographs, press cuttings, magazines, posters, correspondence, minutes, records, diaries, memoranda, statistics, circulars, regulations and invitation, all fully-searchable with interpretative essays from leading scholars.
• World War I and Revolution in Russia This collection documents the Russian entrance into World War I and culminates in reporting on the Revolution in Russia in 1917 and 1918. The documents consist primarily of correspondence between the British Foreign Office, various British missions and consulates in the Russian Empire and the Tsarist government and later the Provisional Government.
• Archives Unbound Browse "categories" or conduct keyword searches to find other primary source collections relevant to WW I. Interface can be very slow and might not work if you are using Firefox off campus.
• Prisoners of the First World War: ICRC Historical Archives 5 Million index cards with prisoner of war data provided by the countries at war. As of September 2014, 90% of the card have been loaded. Arrangement is by nationality rather than alphabetical by prisoner.
• World War I Document Archive This archive of primary documents from World War One has been assembled by volunteers of the World War I Military History List (WWI-L). International in focus, the archive intends to present in one location primary documents concerning the Great War.
• Times Digital Archive The Times of London 1785-2008. See a separate link for the Sunday Times
• Sunday Times Digital Archive The Sunday Times of London, 1855-2006
• New York Times Historical 1851-2010 A different perspective on world events
• German History in Documents and Images A comprehensive collection of primary source materials each of which documents Germany's political, social, and cultural history from 1500 to the present. It comprises original German texts, all of which are accompanied by new English translations, and a wide range of visual imagery. Use the timeline to select the time period 1890-1918.
• HathiTrust Digital Library Hathitrust.org brings together digitized public domain resources from libraries across the country. This is a good source for finding pamphlets, journals, magazines, and publications from the time before, during, and after the war.

Correspondence from the British Foreign Office

From World War I and the Revolution in Russia, 1914-1918"

World War I Posters

• Summons to Comradeship: World War I and World War II Posters This link takes you to Artstor and nearly 6,000 images for posters at the University of Minnesota. May require Pennkey sign in.
• World War I Posters from the University of Illinois This collection of 66 images is made available through the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA).

Journals and Newspapers

Search various newspaper archives, including the Illustrated London News,Economist, The Sunday Times, The Times, The Telegraph,  and the International Herald Tribune  Historical Archives.

Limit by "Source Type" to search historical newspapers and periodicals. Proquest Historical Newspapers includes the New York Times Historical Archive

• Times of London Digital Archive   (See Gale Primary Sources above--for a combined search with some options for visualizations)
• Economist Historical Archive   (See Gale Primary Sources above--for a combined search with some options for visualizations)
• The Times History of the War  Print volumes. Libra 940.3 T483. Coverage of the war issued in weekly installments from 1914 to 1918. 22 volumes. Volumes at Libra and available through HathiTrust
• The Times Documentary History of the War .  Print volumes. Library 940.92 T483.6. Divided into the diplomatic, naval, miltary and overseas histories.11 volumes. All 11 volumes are available through HathiTrust. 
• Belgium under German rule : the deportations . Print volume. Kislak Center Folio D615 .B48 1917 -. From the London Times , 1917.

Foreign Relations Papers

The following are resources available in Van Pelt Library.  Clicking on the links will take you to the item's catalog record in Franklin.

U.S. Foreign Relations

• Foreign Relations of the United States : Official documentary history of foreign policy decisions from the U.S. State Department's Office of the Historian.

British Foreign Relations

• British Documents on the Origins of the War, 1898-1914 : 11 volumes. Available through Hein Online, Hathitrust and Libra
• British and Foreign State Papers , 1812-1968 : 170 volumes all available through HeinOnline
• British Documents on Foreign Affairs: Reports and Papers from the Foreign Office Confidential Print. Series H, The First World War, 1914-1918 : 12 volumes. Available through a variety of print and online editions.

Russian Foreign Relations

• Russia in War and Revolution, 1914-1922: A Documentary History

French Foreign Relations

• Les Origines de la Guerre et la Politique Extérieure de l'Allemagne au Début du XXe Siècle d'Après les Documents Diplomatiques
• Documents Diplomatiques français (1871-1914)  41 volumes. Most volumes available through Hathitrust

German Foreign Relations

• German War Planning, 1891-1914: Sources and Interpretations

WWI Histories

French WWI poster courtesy of the Library of Congress.

War Records

• War Trade Board journal

Official rulings and announcements of the War Trade Board and its Bureaus, from 1917-1919.

23 volumes.

• History of the Great War, based on official documents, by direction of the Historical section of the Committee of Imperial defence : medical services 

Covers such topics as casualties and statistics, surgery, diseases and pathology.

• The medical department of the United States Army in the World War

Large, multi-volume series covering all aspects of medical services during World War I.

15 volumes.

• World War records; First Division, A.E.F., Regular

Records on military regiments, including operations, field orders and training.

25 volumes.

• Diplomatic documents relating to the outbreak of the European war

Correspondences and primary sources at the outbreak of the war.

• La Paix de Versailles

Conditions of the Treaty of Versailles, in French.

12 Volumes. Online through Gallica and in print at Van Pelt

• United States Army in the World War, 1917-1919

A series on the organization, policies, training and operations. Also contains reports.

17 volumes.

Economic and Social History of the World War Series

This series published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Division of Economics and History, provides a detailed account of the expense and consequences of the war to all countries involved. Listed below are the series and their call number. volumes may be in storage at Libra or in Van Pelt. Try the following search to bring up all volumes: economic and social history of the world war and author carnegie. If you have difficulty finding the volumes you are looking for, please ask for assistance. (Print and Hathitrust)

Subsets of the series:

World War I Document Archive

An online resource to support use of primary documents, the World War I Archive is an electronic repository of primary documents from World War One, which has been assembled by volunteers of the World War I Military History List (WWI-L). International in focus, the archive intends to present in one location primary documents concerning the Great War. It includes biographical material, convention and treaty documents, links to other WW I sites, documents available through H-net, and other resources.

• Next: Primary Sources continued >>
• Last Updated: Jun 25, 2023 3:29 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.upenn.edu/WorldWarI

WWI Propaganda Posters Lesson

The Assignment: Please write a short essay in which you analyze THREE posters from the collection below. Try for 2-3 paragraphs per picture. Describe what the picture is saying both Literally (what your eye sees) and Figuratively (what it means/symbolizes). Finally, compare each picture to the reading from A People and a Nation about World War One. How do the pictures confirm what the book described? Please refer to the specific page number in the textbook. You may choose any three images to write about, but they must come from separate categories. You can find hundreds more of these images at: http://www.firstworldwar.com/posters/usa.htm Categories Children | Food | Work | Enemies | Soldiers | USA

Learning Goals

• Compare your work to this rubric as you create your presentation to make sure you include all the required components and that it is high quality.

World War I Propaganda Presentation Rubric—High School

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Resources: Discussions and Assignments

Module 10 assignment: wwii propaganda poster.

For this assignment, you will review WWII propaganda posters and create a poster of your own.

Step 1 : Review the WWII propaganda posters in the National Archives  and the FDR Presidential Library and Museum . Be sure to focus on those from World War II. Look for dates or other cues as to the time period. Look at the materials in light of our definition of propaganda from the American Historical Society as a work using words, images, music, or other forms of expression to acheive a desired result within a particular audience.

Step 2 : Revisit the sections of our reading on World War II and consider what ideas the government needed citizens to believe in or what actions it needed citizens to take in order to support the war effort.

Decide on a particular World War II-era audience to whom you will pitch an idea they should believe in or an action they should take to support the war effort.

Step 3 : Create your own propaganda poster. Locate a suitable image online that you can paste into the thread accompanied by no more than two lines of text.

You can search .gov archives and open-access Flickr, among other sources. (As always, keep anything you share in class somewhere near a PG-13 rating!). Any images used should be openly licensed or in the public domain (for example, listed as CC0, CC-BY, or CC-BY-SA). You can search for openly licensed images within Flickr or other platforms, but google also offers search tools to help you find images that allow for reuse. You can click “tools”, then the dropdown menu will come down and allow you to select “Creative Commons,” as shown in the screenshot below.

The combination of image and text should be persuasive, especially given that propaganda is often trying to get its intended audience to do something difficult or unconventional. Your image can be very simple—just copy/pasted, or, if you want to show off your photoshopping or meme-building skills, that works too. You can use a program of your choosing, such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Photoshop, or programs such as  Canva , Visme , Picktochart ,  Infogram ,  Easel.ly , Genially , Adobe Spark.

Step 4 : In a separate statement (200-250 words) that accompanies your poster (but isn’t framed within the image), explain in direct terms what result you were aiming for and at whom. What makes it propaganda? Where did you find a wartime need described in our reading that you could feature in your poster? Why did you think it was important for this need to be met?

• Module 10 Assignment: WWII Propaganda Poster. Authored by : Scott Barr for Lumen Learning. Provided by : Lumen Learning. License : CC BY: Attribution