Introduction
The Cold War era saw the sexual portrayal of American politics on a massive scale. Politicians and their followers used gender differences to describe opponents and their policies. The first issue that derived sexual description was domestic communism. Those who supported or undertook actions seem to advance this ideology were labeled to be soft players who lacked political masculinity. According to the ideology’s critics, there was no difference between communism practiced in the international scene and the one found inside the United States. Sexual imagery was also used to describe the political ideology one holds 1 . The radical right blamed the liberal democratic members for being soft towards communism and having feminist characteristics towards issues of national importance.
Polarization of image is the main argument on the political environment during the Cold War era. People use various images to describe ideologies and how they affect the American political environment. The first ideology that significantly uses imagery is communism. As a capitalist country, American citizens have opposed the use of communism as a mode of governance, and thus a person who practices this ideology is viewed as an enemy. Many view supporters of this ideology as lacking political masculinity and showing a weak stand on a matter of national importance 2 . Politicians from both the Democratic and the Republican parties agree on the need to discourage communism as it infringes on the fundamental rights of the people by giving the government excessive powers. However, the two parties disagree on which side encourages this ideology within the country. For instance, the radical right which associates with the Republican Party blames liberals and Democrats for being soft on communism. On the other hand, liberals view Republican conservatives as dwelling much on personal development and giving little attention to the growing influence of communism in American politics 3 . The second source of a major debate in the American culture is sexual orientation. During the Cold War era, many Americans advocated heterosexual relationships and anybody who supported homosexuals was viewed with a lot of contempt. Politicians like Senator Joe McCarthy used this issue to mobilize support and win elections. The senator becomes a major critic of homosexuality in the American culture. Republicans blamed liberals from the Democratic side for showing open support to this sexual orientation and thus compromising the cultural fabric that held Americans together 4 . McCarthy was also one of the politicians who spread rumors on leaders who either supported or were homosexuals on both divides. However, it was the same issue that led to the downfall of Senator McCarthy. In 1954, a rumor started spreading about the senator being in a same-sex relationship, and thus his supporters losing faith in him. A picture that showed the senator’s aide whispering in his ear fueled this allegation.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The readings helped me to understand the perceptions the American people had on different genders during the Cold War era. People expected their leaders to display masculinity when tackling matters of national importance. Therefore, a person displaying weakness was deemed to have feminist features and thus unable to make a strong stand on various issues. However, the issues the two texts present have little relevance today. First, there is little relationship between masculinity and the stand a person takes. Therefore, a person supports or opposes an idea depending on personal beliefs. Secondly, unlike during the Cold War era, the current society is openly identifying with different sexual orientations and political beliefs without fear of backlash. Lastly, I would use those readings and examples while tackling national issues to demonstrate how the polarization of image influences people’s perception.
Bibliography
Cuordileone, K. A. 2000. "Politics in an age of anxiety": Cold War political culture and the crisis in American masculinity, 1949-1960". The Journal of American History 87 (2): 515. doi:10.2307/2568762.
Friedman, Andrea. 2005. "The smearing of Joe Mccarthy: The lavender scare, gossip, and Cold War politics". American Quarterly 57 (4): 1105-1129. doi:10.1353/aq.2006.0005.
1 Cuordileone, K. A. 2000. ""Politics in An Age of Anxiety": Cold War Political Culture and The Crisis in American Masculinity, 1949-1960". The Journal of American History 87 (2): 515. doi:10.2307/2568762, 2-29.
2 Friedman, Andrea. 2005. "The Smearing of Joe Mccarthy: The Lavender Scare, Gossip, And Cold War Politics". American Quarterly 57 (4): 1105-1129. doi:10.1353/aq.2006.0005, 14.
3 Friedman , 16.
4 Cuordileone , 30.
