Date of Award

Spring 4-24-2009

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Honors Thesis

Department

History

Abstract

The Women's Army Corps [WAC] proves to be an interesting topic for reading and analysis for students of the Army in WWII. One can see a good deal of patriotism in the examination of how WAC was formed and 'how women were recruited. Patriotism greatlyfueled all of the propaganda sun-ounding the Women's Army Corps. Patriotism was also at the root of most of the scholarship on the Women's Army Corps, thus it is at the heart of theArmy sanctioned story of the WAC. This Army sanctioned story is cemented most in Mattie E. Treadwell's The Women's Army Corps, which was the first book on the WAC, and therefore the most cited book on the WAC. Because of this reliance on Treadwell, the vast majority of schol~ship onthe Women's Army Corps shows a strong con-elation to this Army sanctioned story and a strong reliance on patriotism as the reasons for a Women's Army Corps and the reasons women chose to join the WAC. This thesis will look at the history of, the Women's Army Corps, the scholarship on the Women's Army Corps, and lastly, in attempt to show that there is more to the WAC than the propaganda of patriotism, this paper will look at some more recent scholarship on women in the Army that takes a femini~t, approach to the subj ect.

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