world war 1 propaganda posters assignment

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Analyzing Propaganda’s Role in World War I

May 10, 2018

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

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This post is by Matthew Poth, 2017-18 Library of Congress Teacher in Residence. For more WWI resources, download the Teaching World War I with Primary Sources Idea Book for Educators from HISTORY.

Are you tired of the same routine, day in and day out? Sick of tilling the fields or sweating in the factories? Join the United States Marine Corps!…but expect to be shipped to France to fight in the trenches.

The use of military recruitment posters and other forms of propaganda may be nothing new to students today; they see ads and pop-ups on social media and elsewhere. At the start of World War I, however, posters offered a powerful tool to reach and influence citizens of every social, educational, and racial background. Propaganda posters sought to rally the fighting spirit on the home front, raise money for war bonds, and create a sense of togetherness across a vast and diverse nation. Artists crafted posters to reach people on multiple levels, often in subconscious ways, to compel them to action by challenging any resistance as unpatriotic and even sympathetic to the enemy.

Start a class about World War I with Fred Spear’s Enlist poster. Give students a couple of minutes to observe the image and create a list of their reactions to details in the poster. Some might be drawn to what the woman is wearing or notice that she is holding a baby close to her. Invite students to share what they think is happening in this image (or has just happened). Distribute the bibliographic information only after several students have shared their thoughts. After students learn that the poster was created in response to the sinking of the Lusitania (1915), allow them to revise their interpretation of the poster and to write a short paragraph interpreting the poster and the techniques the artist used to elicit a reaction.

Introduce Harry Hopps’ Destroy this mad brute (1917) poster and allow time for students to list their reactions. Comparing it to Enlist , students might identify that the message of each poster is the same: enlist. However, the approach and the methods of encouraging enlistment are vastly different.

As students become comfortable with evaluating propaganda posters, consider asking them to select a poster or two from the Library of Congress online collections for close analysis and to better understand the evolving public opinion of American involvement throughout the war. Students could identify the message, the target audience, any subtext, and how the artist is trying to convince the audience to accept the message. To learn more about the prevalence of posters in society at the time of WWI, and the iconic WWI poster featuring Uncle Sam created by illustrator James Montgomery Flagg, students might watch this video by Library of Congress Curator Katherine Blood , featured in the Teaching World War I with Primary Sources Idea Book for Educators  from HISTORY.

How do you support students when they analyze propaganda?

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Comments (2)

This is a lesson that is particularly important in today’s political climate.

I am beginning to develop a lesson with an eye toward gender equality and the pre-existing gender stereotypes. The portrayal of women within the war propaganda is a nice magnifying glass into the commonly accepted role men they believe they have as protectors of purity of the women.

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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!

• UNC Libraries
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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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Let us know when and how you're using materials from the Rhetoric of American World War I Posters online curriculum module by  filling out this brief survey !

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Do you have ideas for how this content could be expanded or improved? Share your feedback and ideas by filling out this survey .

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

• 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

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The Power of Persuasion: Press and Propaganda During World War I

• Newspaper and Propaganda Analysis using primary sources
• Technology-based presentations over findings

Critically analyzing media/print bias is an important skill in today’s world to avoid being manipulated by advertisers, news sources or politicians

• Analyze propaganda and newspaper articles from the World War I era.
• Design and give presentations summarizing findings
• SS7 1.7, 3.5, 3.6 Distinguish between fact and opinion and analyze sources to recognize bias and points of view (Missouri Social Studies CLEs)
• SS7 1.5 Interpret maps, statistics, charts, diagrams, graphs, timelines, pictures, political cartoons, audiovisual materials, continua, written resources, art and artifacts (Missouri Social Studies CLEs)
• 1. History Continuity and Change Theme 3 C. Evaluate the impact of U.S. participation in WWI and the resulting peace efforts. (DESE Missouri Grade Level Expectations)
• http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/wwipos/background.html   (purposes of propaganda posters)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t_Gwo3M-uc (Overview video of propaganda and press)
• https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/example-of-media-bias/voters-dont-trust-media-fact-checking/ (Types of Media bias)
• https://www.shmoop.com/wwi/timeline.html (Timeline of key events in World War I)
• http://www.ww1propaganda.com     (propaganda posters)
• http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?st=grid&co=wwipos (propaganda posters)
• https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ (searchable newspaper database)
• Day 1—A.) Introduce lesson by asking if any of the students or someone they know has ever been misled by a news report, advertisement, or social media post.  Let students share appropriate examples. Discuss what the words “Propaganda,” “Fake News,” and “Election Meddling” mean.  Ask students whether they believe advertisements, news stories, and social media posts are effective in influencing our attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors. Emphasize that this lesson, while focusing on news and propaganda from World War I, will help introduce skills that are needed to avoid being duped by misleading information in today’s world.  B.) Read the secondary overview of propaganda posters.  C.) Watch the video overview of propaganda and press during WWI. Discuss the purposes of propaganda during World War I.  D.) Analyze a World War I propaganda poster by discussing the following questions: 1.) For whom is the propaganda designed? (Be specific.)  2.) What is it trying to get the reader to think or do?  3.) What emotions does it appeal to?  4.) What might be the positive and/or negative consequences of this propaganda?
• Day 2—A.) Have students read the article on media bias.  Discuss the various types of media bias. B.) Remind students that when World War I broke out, President Wilson asked Americans to be "neutral in thought as well as deed."  Have students look at the timeline of WWI events.  Would any of these events make it harder for Americans to support neutrality?  Would the newspapers covering these events be likely to reflect a move towards entering the war?  C.) Find an American newspaper covering one of the key World War I events (sinking of the Lusitania, resumption of submarine warfare, Zimmerman Telegram,) etc.  **The teacher may need to give the students tips on how to search the database. Analyze the article by doing the following:

1.) Underline the facts in the article.  2.) Circle all opinions.  3.) Highlight any examples of media bias.  Is this article simply reporting the news or is it trying to persuade the reader to support a war against Germany?  On a “Fake News” scale of 1-10, where would this article rate in its journalistic integrity? (1 would be no obvious evidence of bias or misleading facts; 10 would be extreme bias or erroneous facts in reporting.)

• Day 3—Students should work in teams to examine World War I propaganda posters and newspaper stories.  Each team should pick one propaganda poster that they feel is highly persuasive, analyze the poster using the questions above, and then explain why they felt that this poster was highly effective.  They also should pick one World War I news story that they think is worthy of a “Fake News Award” and analyze it using the steps above.  Students also need to justify why they felt this news story was biased or erroneous in its reporting.
• Day 4—Students should give powerpoint or Google slide presentations which summarize their findings from Day 3.  The presentations should include the analysis questions/steps and their explanations for why the propaganda was effective and the news story was worthy of a “Fake News” award.
• Scoring Guide for Presentations will be based as follows for each expectation listed below:

4—Exemplary           3—Above average               2—Barely Adequate                        1—Lacking

Teachers should feel free to translate the scoring guide above to points or letter grades as desired.  Each expectation can be weighted according to the teacher’s preferences.

• The presentation included an analysis of a World War I poster by answering the questions modeled on Day 1. The poster should be included in the presentation.
• The presentation included an analysis of a World War I news story by following the steps modeled on Day 3. The news story should be included in the presentation.
• The presentation included an explanation with several reasons for why they felt the selected propaganda poster was highly effective.
• The presentation included an explanation with several reasons for why the selected World War I news story deserved a “Fake News” award.
• The presentation was well-organized and easy to follow.
• The presentation included effective communication techniques and proper grammar.

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

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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Free to Use and Reuse: World War I Posters

During World War I, the impact of the poster as a means of communication was greater than at any other time during history. The ability of posters to inspire, inform, and persuade combined with vibrant design trends to produce thousands of interesting visual works.

Explore this selection and view more WWI posters .

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