Blog #168 – Looking at the Spanish American War through a gender lens
Throughout the year, we use different lens with which to analyze certain events – we can analyze events or people’s actions through an economic lens or a political lens or a social / cultural lens. During our Reconstruction unit, we used a racial lens to look at how Reconstruction policies affected free Blacks. Now, we turn to American imperialism and instead of analyzing American foreign policy, or our relationship with other nations, through a diplomatic lens or a commercial lens, I am asking you to use the lens of gender to explore the Spanish American War. This angle was originally presented by historian Kristin Hoganson in 1998. To help you answer the questions raised by this blog, you’ll need to have read the article, “En-Gendering the Spanish American War”.
The question that this gender lens attempts to ask is, is there another way of looking at the causes of the Spanish-American War?
First, some context for Teddy Roosevelt’s charge up San Juan Hill in Cuba during the war. He was part of a generation of Americans who were raised on glorious tales of Civil War gallantry told by the veterans of the war. TR’s generation of men aspired to have their own fight where they could test their courage and honor, and the Spanish American War provided such a chance hopefully without the grizzly slaughter of four years of a civil war. Also, TR’s father had not fought in the Civil War being too busy making money (and also paid a substitute to take his place). Furthermore, TR grew up as a very sickly, asthmatic child who was very fragile until he reinvented himself in his 20s out on the Great Plains in North Dakota raising cattle in the summers. It’s likely he never thought that when he was a boy listening to stories of valor at Gettysburg would he get a chance to do the same thing and face an enemy with bullets flying at him. Lastly, when the war started, TR resigned his post in the McKinley administration as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to form his own militia unit for the war which was dubbed by the press, “the Rough Riders” but he called this militia unit the Children of the Dragon’s Blood. TR would also later go on to defend what he would call “the strenuous life” which included playing manly sports, continual exertion, challenging nature through hunting and exploration, cleaning up corruption, busting trusts, and waving around the ultimate symbol of his manhood, his “big stick” in the international arena.
So why did America come to the defense of the Cubans in 1898? The article lists the following possible reasons:
- commercial rewards of empire
- an extension of a global Manifest Destiny
- a quest for naval bases
- humanitarian concerns for the Cubans
- a chance to enact some Christian “uplift” for the people who are “freed”
- glory
- revenge for the destruction of the U.S.S. Maine
- motivated / inspired / enraged by yellow journalism in the newspapers of Hearst and Pulitzer
But the article proposed another cause – a crisis of upper and middle class white manhood. There seemed to be threats to traditional notions of manhood all around – the creature comforts of an industrial America were making men “soft” and “sluggish”; making money by bending or breaking ethical norms seemed to corrode the traditional manly sense of honor and integrity; some men lost their jobs, their self-respect, and their independence and vitality because of the Depression of 1893; but possibly most shocking was the rise of the “New Woman” who wanted the right to vote and participate in politics (traditionally the man’s responsibility). In this new era, women’s virtue was considered by many to be superior to men’s because of all the economic, social, and political problems that men’s “virtue” had caused from 1865-1898 that the Progressive Era would try to solve was trying to solve. I mean, let’s remember that many middle and upper class white women were leading the reformist charge during that era.
Let’s take a look at another cartoon from this time period. Here’s a cartoon from Puck (which is normally anti-imperialist compared to its counterpart, Judge).
Done by artist Louis Dalrymple, published in May, 1898. The caption reads, “The duty of the hour – to save her not only from Spain but from a worse fate.” After reading this article, I’d like you to interpret this cartoon through the gendered lens mentioned in the article.
Your job – answer the following questions:
- Do you agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish American War? Why or why not?
- What is a strength of using this lens? What is a weakness? Explain.
- Interpret the cartoon above of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (or the one below of the Rough Riders) using the gender lens. Describe in detail how you can use gender to interpret different aspects of the cartoon.
A minimum of 400 words total for all three answers. Due by class on March 21.
An article on how the Span-Am War led to American empire – https://www.bunkhistory.org/resources/1785
An analysis of the American / British alliance that grew out of the Span-Am War as shown in cartoons – https://visualizingcultures.mit.edu/civilization_and_barbarism/cb_essay02.html
I believe that gender roles played a large part in the Spanish-American War. With the Progressive Era came a new era of “new women,” who wanted to prove that they had a place in society. These women advocated for voting rights and equal rights to men. The Progressive Era also brought a new stereotype of “lazy men.” The growth of industrialization caused the belief that Americans were creating “soft” men who grew too used to the comforts of industrialization. With their masculinity threatened, and the “threat” of women outshining men, many men sprang into action at the first mention of war. They wanted to prove more than ever how manly they were. With the increase in men going off to fight, more women were forced back into the stereotypical housewife role and had to take a step back from fighting for their rights.
There are many benefits that come with analyzing historical events from different perspectives such as gender. For one thing, it allows the reader to see how the roles of women changed in this time period. They were able to make their voices heard, however, were sent back to their original housewife status when the war began due to the fragile egos of their husbands. This is where this lens comes with a weakness, however. When reading things from different perspectives, people are often quick to cast blame onto someone or something without hearing both sides of the story. In this case, men are being portrayed as the root cause of the Spanish-American War. While their need for masculinity is a reason, the Spanish-American War is a lot more complex than some men with fragile egos. This also places sort-of a “victim” role onto women. Yes, they were impacted negatively by the war, however, women did not stop fighting for their rights and continued to make progress in their journey for equal rights even while the war was going on.
Observing the cartoon, it is clear that the cartoon represents the Spanish mistreatment of Cubans. The woman is sitting in a frying pan labeled “Spanish Misrule” hovering over flames that say “anarchy.” She is in the middle of two camps. The woman in the pan represents the many Cubans who were forced to assimilate into “civilized” culture and being fed to the “flames” of “anarchy.” Looking at this through a gender lens, Cuba is portrayed as a woman to make it appear “weak” and “helpless” against Spanish rule. The dominant figure in the cartoon (Spain) is portrayed as a large, masculine hand holding the frying pan.
Do you agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish American War? Why or why not?
I agree that gender roles played a big part in the causes of the Spanish-American War. The rise of the “New Woman” challenged traditional gender roles at the time and threatened the established masculinity. With women having suffrage and stepping into the political scene this intimidated many men. This crisis that many men faced of identity and masculinity could have driven some men to seek validation and reaffirmation of their manhood through acts of courage and tasks that seemed “manly”. An example of this is figures like Teddy Roosevelt charging up San Juan Hill. This need to prove their masculinity led many men to jump at the opportunity to go to war as this had been ingrained in our society as a man’s job, while the women would be forced to stay home and take care of the house.
What is a strength of using this lens? What is a weakness? Explain.
One of the strengths is that looking at history through a gendered lens helps us find stories that were often ignored. By focusing on how men and women experienced events differently, we can see a richer picture of what really happened. For example, in the Spanish-American War, understanding how ideas of manliness and womanliness influenced why people fought or supported the war gives us a better understanding of what drove the conflict. Another reason is that gender is closely connected to who has power in society. Seeing history from a gender perspective helps us understand how power worked in the past. It shows us how the ideas of being a man or a woman affected who had power and how they used it. However a negative is that sometimes, focusing only on gender can make history seem too simple. Many other things come into play when looking at history like race, ethnicity, religion. It also leaves out stories and perspectives and opinions from other people. Which means just looking at gender might miss out on other important parts of what happened. It’s also important to remember that the war wasn’t just fueled by men’s need to prove their masculinity, this can overshadow the actual political issues at the time.
Interpret the cartoon above of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (or the one below of the Rough Riders) using the gender lens. Describe in detail how you can use gender to interpret different aspects of the cartoon.
This cartoon symbolizes the vulnerability of Cuba under Spanish rule, appealing to the ideas of chivalry and bravery to rally support for war against Spain. By portraying Cuba as a helpless damsel in need of rescue, the cartoon reinforces traditional gender roles and appeals to the male desire to protect the weak. This perspective shows insight into the societal norms and gender roles of the time, displaying how gender played a role in shaping public opinion. Feminine characters were typically depicted as helpless and in need of saving. The cartoon taps into societal norms by appealing to men’s desire to appear chivalrous and brave which many men were longing for at this time.
1. I do agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish-American war. I think it is accurate to say men wanted to prove themselves after being sluggish and weak. The rise of the “New Woman” furthered this by increasingly questioning the virtue of men. In my view, men losing their jobs, self-respect, integrity, sense of independence, and vitality pushed them to want to prove themselves as men. For example Teddy Roosevelt and other military leaders wanted to eagerly show their masculinity in ways such as manliness to prove themselves. This is a clear example of the substantiation of the gendered perspective.
2. I think a clear, strong point of the gendered perspective is allowing the reader to understand the perspectives of men at the time. Them wanting to prove their manliness may have made them eager to go to war to defend their honor and integrity. On the other hand, I feel like this view is too narrow and does not fully encapsulate the reasons for the Spanish-American war. Understanding the perspectives of men at the time is important, and there is no doubting that. However, this perspective, at the same time, misses other key parts of the historical situation, such as the justification of Manifest Destiny to continue American expansion and the taking of territories not owned by America. The use of Manifest Destiny was not isolated and it was used prior to the Spanish-American war to justify American expansion. This can be seen through examples such as the Mexican cession. in my view, a purely gendered perspective is too narrow and misses other crucial details like Manifest Destiny, as I mentioned, and instead, you must take into account the various possible factors that caused the Spanish-American War.
3. The cartoon portrays a helpless Cuban woman in a frying pan who must be saved from Spanish anarchy. You can interpret this through a gendered expression because it shows that this helpless Cuban woman must be rescued from Spanish anarchy. This shows that the woman is unable to free herself and other Cubans and instead needs America to free them. The showcasing of the Cuban woman as helpless is a clear example of the misogyny back then. This also furthers American interests because it gives a reason as to why American intervention is necessary. Portaring Cubans as being unable to save themselves gives a perfect reason to justify continual imperialism and expansion in the Americas in the guise of “protection” and “freedom.”
I do agree with this gendered interpretation of the Spanish American War because it provides more explanation for why Americans would instigate violence where they could have stayed entirely neutral. The war was appealing, in a way, to many Americans for several reasons, like the author mentions. One reason being to shut down the “New Woman” movement and solidify the women’s place in the home and in society makes sense in the context of the time period. I think this goes hand in hand with the influence that occurred through the newspapers and cartoons. The publishers pushed the mindset that fighting a war made a man “manly”, so while the publishers and cartoonists goals might not have been to create a manly country, they used that weak spot to manipulate American men into supporting the war effort.
A strength of using this lens is that it recognises the true motives behind some leaders, such as Roosevelt, and how masculinity and pride might have been at the forefront of their minds. It’s important to not blindly follow historical figures as heroes, as well as look closer at those who are less recognized, but still had an impact and deserve credit for their ideas (such as women who participated in reform movements, but were overlooked due to the war they couldn’t or didn’t want to fight). Similarly, a weakness of this lens is that it slightly discredits the more logical reasons behind the war that many who fought in it defended. Reasons like genuine concern for Cubans, or even economic motives. It also places the blame of the war almost entirely on the Americans, and while it was instigated by the U.S., removing fault from the Spanish government can’t be justified.
The cartoon of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (Spanish misrule) above a fire labeled anarchy (Cuba) can be seen through a gendered lens because it’s portraying Cuba as a helpless woman who needs saving from not only the Spanish government, but her burning country. This cartoon’s purpose is to get American men to believe that they are Cuba’s only hope, and that by saving Cuba, they are solidifying their masculinity. The fact that Cuba is on fire in the cartoon indicates that when the woman is saved, she can’t simply return to her country, which is why Cuba (women) “needs” to be annexed by the U.S. (men).
I agree with the gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish American War. It’s obvious that since our country was created, there’s been different expectations between men and women. Men were supposed to do the heavy lifting while the women stayed home. I can understand why men who couldn’t fight in the Civil War were eager to fight in this one and prove themselves. The article mentioned that America was making men soft, and they were now being given a cause to show that they weren’t. Also, the rise of the “New Women” pushing for voting rights and political power and leading reform movements caused a threat to some men. Furthermore, President McKinley was undermined and seen as weak. Although femininity shouldn’t be associated with weakness, supporters of the Spanish American War constantly portrayed McKinley as weak.
A strength of using a gendered lens to interpret the Spanish American War is that it allows us to see events from a newer perspective. Gender dynamics, at least to me, seem like an often overlooked part in examining historical events. A weakness of this lens is that there are other factors that played a role in this war, and it could possibly oversimplify the multiple factors involved. While looking at gender roles is very important, focusing specifically on it can sometimes neglect other motivations for war. Additionally, during this time period, it seemed like the only way a man could be seen as truly masculine was to fight in a war. If a man didn’t do this or wasn’t seen as masculine, then they were weak or just simply called women. It seems like men almost had no way out of these harmful stereotypes, which is a disadvantage of using a gendered lens.
The cartoon of the woman in a frying pan is showing her getting burned alive by anarchy and Spanish rule. Interpreting this through a gendered lens, deciding to put a woman on the frying pan was very purposeful. She is scared and vulnerable. The artist chose to make her a woman because at the time, women were seen as weak and in need of a man to save them. This reflects the obligation men felt to save women. The cartoon is showing that America could try and help Cuba. The woman, who is Cuba personified, shows how this artist believes Cuba needed to be taken over to be saved.
I agree with this lens because the gendered interpretation focuses on the ideals of heroism, nationalism, and imperialism that influenced the decision to go to war from a man’s perspective . It highlights how traditional notions of masculinity, such as strength, and dominance, played a huge role in shaping the public sentiment and policy decisions of the time.
A strength of this lens is its ability to uncover hidden power dynamics and societal norms that may have been overlooked in a lot of historical analyses. By looking at how the gender roles and expectations intersected with political and social issues, readers can gain a better understanding of historical events in this time period. A weakness of this lens could be its potential to oversimplify complex historical facts by reducing them very vaguely and simply to gender dynamics. While gender is an important part of the history to look at, it’s more important not to overlook other factors such as economic interests, political tensions, and ideologies and their motivations/influence, as I talked about in the first response.
Interpreting the cartoon of the Cuban woman in a frying pan using the gender lens reveals, in my opinion, several layers of meaning. The woman is depicted as helpless and weak or fragile , symbolizing Cuba’s powerlessness under Spanish rule. The frying pan could represent the oppressive conditions faced by Cuban women,forced upon them by Spanish tyrants. They were subjected to violence and exploitation during the war.. The cartoon can be interpreted as a commentary on the gendered nature of imperialism, with Cuba being depicted as a passive or fragile female victims of American aggression. The presence of Uncle Sam, standing over the woman, symbolizes the dominance of the United States of America and its greedy and wanting attitude toward Cuba. (I ran out of things to say so I’m analyzing both images) Similarly, the cartoon of the Rough Riders can be analyzed through the same kind of gender lens by examining the hyper masculine imagery of the soldiers. The muscular bodies and aggressive poses of the soldiers and men reflect traditional ideals of masculinity at this point in time which were associated with strength, courage, and militarism. This portrayal reinforces the gendered nature of war, where men are often glorified as heroes while women are relegated to passive roles on the sidelines because they were too fragile and should be kept safe at all costs, tying back into why women were used in the Cuban frying pan cartoon.
1. Do you agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish-American War? Why or why not?
I do agree with a part of this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish-American War. During this time as mentioned in the article provided in the paper, Teddy Roosevelt was part of and encouraged the idea of being more masculine, “the strenuous life” as he would describe it playing more sports, continuous exertion, challenging nature through hunting and exploration, cleaning up corruption, busting trusts. All of these things especially the part about exploration may have influenced people to fight in the war. Something similar to this also mentioned in the article is the issue with dwindling white manhood in the upper and middle classes. There was an idea that the industrial benefits and comforts were making men soft. With this would also be the rise of the “New Women” where women started to take control over their lives and started wanting to participate in politics and wanted the right to vote. In that time all of these factors would have made the men feel belittled and weak, they would have to do something to prove themselves to other people and themselves that they are true men, and what better way to do that than go to war? So yes, gender did have an impact on the causes of the Spanish-American War.
2. What is the strength of using this lens? What is a weakness? Explain.
A strength of using this lens is that it reveals potentially hidden perspectives of marginalized groups during that time which would have been women. Normally their thoughts and experiences were not as highlighted as the traditional man was back in those days, so using the gendered lens to look at the causes of the Spanish-American War would provide hidden information and perspectives. A weakness of using the lens is that using gender issues for the cause of the Spanish-American war could be oversimplifying the issue, when there could have been other factors that would overpower this, such as the explosion of the U.S.S.S Mane.
3. Interpret the cartoon above of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (or the one below of the Rough Riders) using the gender lens. Describe in detail how you can use gender to interpret different aspects of the cartoon.
I’ll be using the Rough Riders one. When observing the cartoon we could see that Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders are heroically and dramatically defeating the Spaniards, while the American Flag is in Roosevelt’s hands. When looking at this from a gendered lens we can interpret that the author might have been trying to convey how a true man acts and behaves. That is killing the Spaniards, going to war, fighting in the front lines, and holding a gun and an American flag in your hands. This all signifies that a true man in that time should look up to Teddy Roosevelt as a role model for how they should be, that would be more masculine.
I do agree with the gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish-American war because, as said at the end of the article that was given to us, “En-Gendering the Spanish-American War”, it talks about how the men felt that there was an attack on their manhood and how the Spanish American war would be a perfect opportunity to recover and fight back to save their manhood. The examples that were listed were that first women were coming for their manhood since they wanted to be involved in politics and the men wanted to be the ones in charge and the superior ones and they felt that if women were to be involved in politics they would no longer be the ones on top and the leaders of everything. The next thing was the Panic of 1893 which really put a toll on many men’s “manliness” because many of them were jobless, lost their self-respect, and lost their independence and vitality. They believed that the war would also help them gain all of those back. Next, they felt that if they fought in the war it would toughen them and they thought that if they saved Cuba from Spanish oppression, then they would get their heroic sense of honor which was believed to be so vital in leadership. As I said earlier they felt attacked by women trying to be a part of politics so they felt that the war would “defang” the “new women” basically saying that women would go back to their “proper ways” of taking care of the man and their kids and just staying in their lanes. Lastly, there were many newspaper articles and cartoons that showed that going to war is manly and that if you don’t want to go to war you’re like a woman or a coward so this was probably a strike to those who really didn’t want war but it still probably made an impact on many men changing their minds about war since there was another attack on their manhood.
The strength is that as shown in the many different newspaper articles, and cartoons, men who go to war and fight are seen as heroes, strong and brave but those who don’t are seen as weak, cowardly, and like women (seen as weak). Then men who made these cartoons and articles feel as though they have to fight to be seen as tough and just a man so I believe that the men wanted to go to war just to save their manhood and their egos. A weakness is that this might not even be true for most that went to war as stated in the article such as diplomacy, commerce, imperial ambition, national mission, national security, and more.
I think the frying pan cartoon, interpreted through a gender lens, shows a man, I assume a man from the US, carrying a woman in the pan which is Spanish since the pan says “Spanish misrule” and she has the Spanish flag. (also the Cuban flag) The pan is over a fire and I think that the hand (the US) is placing the pan, with the Spanish, over it. So to me, this seems as if the Man holding the pan (the US) is like a hero, and the protector of Cuba looking in a gender perspective.
Do you agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish-American War? Why or why not?
As the author says in the text, there are multitudes of reasons why the Spanish-American War happened and the gendered interpretation is just one of the many reasons. I agree that the idea of maintaining masculinity could have been one of the reasons for the Spanish-American War, as there is much evidence backing it. As seen in the text, political cartoons portrayed those who supported the war as manly and as “men of honor” while those who were against the war or the enemies of the war were shown with feminine traits. The idea of a gendered interpretation has been a part of history for centuries. Why did men accept duels even if gave them no benefit? It was because they wouldn’t be considered honorable or “manly” if they declined. If gender has influenced decision-making since the beginning of man, then I don’t see how it can’t be applied to the Spanish-American War.
What is the strength of using this lens? What is a weakness? Explain.
The strength of this lens is being able to interpret human emotion and honor, an ability other lenses such as the economic and monetary lenses lack. By interpreting how the feelings and culture of gendering affect people, we can look further into human decision-making not bound by greed. The lens contributes a new perspective often unconsidered by many to take another step toward understanding the actions of those in the past.
A weakness of this lens is that is more niche and considered less impactful in the “big picture” compared to other lenses. This lens makes it difficult to see the full picture of the multitudes of reasons any historical event happened. It makes it seem as if protecting manhood was the true reason for going to war rather than other reasons such as access to the international market or Manifest Destiny. It is just a small piece of the puzzle.
Interpret the cartoon above of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (or the one below of the Rough Riders) using the gender lens. Describe in detail how you can use gender to interpret different aspects of the cartoon.
The cartoon of the Cuban woman works to create sympathy for the Cuban people. The cartoon represents Cuba and its people as women, using the stereotype that women are “fragile and weak”. And with this stereotype comes with another strategy towards empathy through the frying pan. By putting the Cuban women in the frying pan, the cartoon states that the hand, representing the Spanish, is abusing the weak and innocent Cuba by putting it through anarchy and suffering. The cartoon, by using the Cuban woman, makes the Spanish out as cruel people who are attacking the harmless and defenseless Cuba.
1, Do you agree with this gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish American War? Why or why not?
I agree with the gendered interpretation of the causes of the Spanish American war because of the surrounding events that took place. The Spanish American war occurred at a point in time where there was an idea that the industrial age made men “sluggish” and “soft”. Along with the idea that men were soft was the event of the Depression of 1893 which caused men to lose their jobs and lose their sense of independence which weakened their sense of masculinity even more. A popular idea of this time was the idea of the “New Women” displayed by women charging into all-men preservation of politics and wanting the right to vote. This new idea was seen by men as a way to emasculate them and worsen their sense of independence even more. These things pressured the men to want to take part in the Spanish American war as a way to take back their masculinity and feel empowered by fighting for their nation as the veterans of the civil war once did.
2, What is the strength of using this lens? What is a weakness? Explain. The strength of using this lens is the ability to see how many events led to men wanting to fight in the Spanish American war as a way to take back their masculinity as well as their pride. The weakness of using this lens is that it looks at women in politics and wanting the right to vote as a bad thing as it weakened mens masculinity instead of a positive like it really was. Women moving into mens police and supporting the women’s right to vote was a big movement in the women’s rights movement and this lens doesn’t see it as that way.
3, Interpret the cartoon above of the Cuban woman in a frying pan (or the one below of the Rough Riders) using the gender lens. Describe in detail how you can use gender to interpret different aspects of the cartoon
I will be interpreting the political cartoon of the Rough Riders. In the middle of the image is a giant Theodore Roosevelt holding a gun and pointing it at the Spanish people while holding an American flag. Using a gender lens, this represents the ideal image of masculinity with the gun, the American flag, and a look of pride on his face all important aspects of man’s masculinity. To the right of him is a man who is a bit smaller than Roosevelt holding a gun and below him is a bunch of tiny men in a valley who look to be struggling. I think this represents the idea of the masculine idea of a man crushing the “soft” and “week” men that were seen as a enemy of masculinity during the Spanish American war. I think this represents how the Spanish American war played a huge role in how men thought of themselves and after many men fought in the war their masculinity was renewed again. So overall I think this image suggests that men didn’t just fight in the Spanish American war, they fought against the idea of weak men too to bring back the idea of masculinity to all men.