Rob Skogen
In last week’s assigned readings, we explored the connections between the cultures of art (specifically film) and politics. This week, we looked at those concepts in the context of 1940s America and its involvement in World War II. The movie Sahara served as a good example of how the government used the medium of film during this time to reinforce key messages to the general populace.
Most of the standard themes that the Office of War Information (OWI) had set forth as guidelines for Hollywood productions are obviously present in every scene of this movie, many of which were simply evoking patriotic idealism and civic duty to the war effort. However, upon further reflection a couple of other really stood out to me from the rest.
Many of you have discussed how the German and Italian enemies were depicted in the movie. Higashi’s article from this week’s readings offers a further look into how the Japanese enemies were depicted in newsreels and films of the same time. Although there are similarities between construction of the “other� on both fronts, it is necessary for us to confront the complex race played between them.
The same is true when addressing the concept of illustrating the makeup of our armed forces. This movie followed a small multi-national unit of individuals that came together under a common purpose. Although it offered a glimpse into how America regarded its allies, it also served as a metaphor for how American combat forces were organized during WWII. Gerstle’s article from this week’s readings actually dives deep into this idea. He examines the fraternal bonds create among those serving together and how the war gave those of different cultural backgrounds to meld together in an accelerated nature, just as Joe Gunn’s group did in the movie.
There is a very important difference between the movie and reality of course, that exposed a blatant hypocrisy in the messaging marketed to the masses of the time. The American propaganda machine called on everyone alike to sacrifice and do their part, but in practice most African Americans were denied combat service and those that were not served in racially segregated units.
These two themes are very intriguing, because the generation that was denied access to opportunities during the war are the same people that would shape the socio-political events of the turbulent decades to come.