Stasis Theory of Soviet Propaganda

While the Consequence stasis and Action stasis are important in the overall evaluation of the Soviet propaganda's purpose, it seems as though the Evaluation stasis plays the most integral role in the message of the propaganda. Firstly, in the Consequence stasis we draw upon the importance of the  youth's interest and innovation in scientific fields, which catalyzed the success of the Soviet nation in the majority of the Space Race. From the Action stasis, we deduce that the Soviets should continue to encourage the youth to reach for the stars, in order to see what other frontiers they can conquer.

In the Evaluation stasis, we draw upon the caption and composition of the propaganda which clarify its overarching message: the Space Race has encouraged the Soviet youth to pursue their interests in scientific fields, thus guaranteeing the future success of the Soviet nation. The caption, which reads "From student's models to spaceships!", is clearly self-congratulatory and used to emphasize the advances that the nation has made over time. The comparison between a simple student model and a complex, fully functional spaceship highlights the progress in these fields, while also recognizing the talent and potential of the future generation. The poster itself is centered on a boy with a model spaceship, dividing the poster at a diagonal between the possibilities space offers and the calculations and preparations he must complete on Earth. This further highlights the possibilities of the future which are provided by the innovative Soviet youth. Therefore, the propaganda was created so that the Soviets could bask in their communal achievements and instill a sense of unity, through pride in their future generations.

American's Appeal to Ethos

The American poster appeals to ethos of the intended audience: American citizens. The poster portrays dominant Americans with guns, stepping on a communist flag, while raising an enormous flag of the United States. In addition, in the background, Earth is drawn only on the Americas, to further establish the dominance of the United States in international affairs. By establishing a prideful sense of patriotism, the artist of this poster suddenly connects to fellow Americans and becomes credible to the viewer. In addition, in the United States during the 1960s, the red scare was big. Everyone was against communism and people united over the fact that they were anti-communist. By releasing a poster stating, "clean the communist filth," the author automatically builds a bridge by being anti-communist to the audience. To non-American viewers, especially the Russians, this poster is offensive and certainly does not appeal to ethos. How would you feel if another country released a poster with your flag penetrated by bullets and stepped on? But, because Americans are the intended audience for this poster, the artist conveys its message of anti-communism and American patriotism well by appealing to ethos.

Stasis Theory of American Propoganda

While the Action stasis seems most prevalent in this particular propaganda, insight may also be offered on the Fact, Consequence, Evaluation, and Jurisdiction stases.  Overall, this poster isn't necessarily factual.  In reality, there are no "Space Marines" for one to join and they weren't literally cleaning "the Communist Filth" off the moon, but the purpose behind this poster was very real.  It's job was to spur forth action in America to get people interested in science and technology, specifically in regards to space, so that America could claim the title of "top dog" in the space race.  While the scientific implications may seem important now, our main goal in the 60's was simply to be better than the Soviets and "prove" that our way of life was far superior to that of the communists.

Upon seeing this poster, some people might immediately jump into action and yell at the top of their lungs "DOWN WITH THE COMMUNISTS!!" and the go and build a rocket ship for the moon.  However, the average person would be far more likely to take a moment to ponder the idea.  What would they benefit from joining this?  They could help beat the communists and put America on top of the technological tree.  Is it worth it?  Well yeah cause we're beating communists.  These questions, and obviously a few more, are also what the creators of this poster had to consider.  They had to weigh what the positives and negatives of creating such a powerful piece of propaganda would be.  Could there be possible consequences for creating a piece that was so aggressive?  It could be seen as offensive and rude and too demanding.  The mindset back then, however, was far different to that of today.  If you didn't hate the communists, then you were a traitor.  You weren't a true American if that was the case.  The creators of this knew that, and used it to their advantage as best they could, to ensure that the American people would take action against their communist enemies.  In the though, it was the people of this nation that decided what our future would hold. 

Soviet's Appeal to Ethos

The Soviet propaganda poster appeals to ethos, the author’s credibility in relation to the audience. The positive tone in the poster creates a sense of hope for the audience, making the viewers of the poster trust the author. The audience of this picture sees the boy enjoying time with his model space ship, and therefore can assume the boy, representing Russian youth, will successfully contribute to the space race for his country. The rocket, dividing the present from the future, establishes the notion that the present yields little space race progress, but, as the space race progresses and the red rocket flies across the poster, the true success of the space race will be revealed. The future will consist of rockets and spaceships flying in the galaxy’s vast abyss. The artist of this poster does not claim immediate success in the space race, but rather success in the future. By not promising immediate results, the artist appeals to ethos. The audience believes the artist to be honest because immediate results are unlikely. With time and motivated teens, the space race in Russia will continue to thrive. This poster does not address foreign, non-Russian audiences. Unlike the American propaganda poster, it treats all views fairly by not including any degrading propaganda about other nations. Although the intended audience for this poster is Russians, if a foreigner viewed this poster, he/she would think the artist is fair and unbiased.  

Kairos of American Propaganda

As this American propaganda was released in the 1960s, during the Cold War between the Soviets and the Americans, it clearly met its kairotic moment. During the 1960s, the US was completely focused on demonstrating their superiority to the Soviets, as the Space Race took place during the Cold War. The Cold War, which took place from 1945 to 1987, was an ongoing, non-violent conflict between the Soviet Union and United States, caused by each nation's fear that they would become subordinate to the other. In the poster, it is interesting that the astronauts are depicted as space marines, holding machine guns, as the Cold War was a conflict characterized by a lack of actual fighting or military weapons. Additionally, the disproportionally large American flag and the globe in the background centered on North America are further depictions of America's yearning for superiority, which was present throughout the Cold War. Perhaps the propaganda is depicting such an aggressive campaign to rally patriotism, due to the common fear during the 1960s that communism would take over the United States. However, as the Cold War has been resolved, the Americans have been less driven to further explore space, as we have just this past month received confirmation that our satellite entered Mars' orbit. Perhaps these delayed advancements are due to the lack of political international competition present currently, but it could also be due to the fact that international issues with nations in the Middle East are of more current importance to the federal government.

Style of American Propaganda

In a very contrasting poster to the Soviet one, the American propaganda picture shows "space marines" who appear to be taking over the moon.  They are claiming the moon for the United States and removing the Soviets from the picture.  This poster is more of a motive for men in America to race to the moon for the sole reason of beating the "Communist Filth."

In a similar manner to the Soviet one, the American poster depicts a realistic scene with average looking men standing on the moon.  This stylistic choice was made to express that fact that anybody could partake in the cause, not just the extraordinary few.  Also, the color scheme in this picture was bold.  Unlike the Soviet propaganda, which seemed almost relaxing and mellow, the American version jumps out at you, almost as if to say, "Hey!! Over here!! Look at me!"  I wasn't there when this poster was in use, but i imagine it certainly caught a few people's eyes.

Overall, all these elements combine to create a seemingly forceful, yet honorable tone.  It appears as if the men are relentlessly trying to make you join their cause but the fact that they're drawn standing tall with the American flag and machine guns, makes one believe that it's a cause worth joining.

Style of Soviet Propaganda

The Soviet propaganda picture shows a young, gentle boy who is seemingly looking towards the future, compared to the aggressiveness of the U.S marines.  With the caption of "From Student's Models to Spaceships!", this poster really captures a young audience.  The goal of this poster, was to get kids interested in space and their space program, so that they could spur forward a new generation of astronauts in the highly competitive, international race.  

The art style in this is rather simplistic, using bright and warm colors, showing a contrast between the children's present and their possible future.  The children are drawn as care free individuals who are playing with their model rockets while space is depicted as futuristic and mystical.  The two scenes are separated by a simple rocket blasting off.  This simplistic style represents how easy it would be for one to contribute to the Soviet space industry.  The artistic style is also drawn to be extremely realistic, showing that it's a real possibility for all who wish to pursue this field of work, male or female.  

Along with the drawing style itself, the picture has an optimistic and almost happy tone.  The boy in the pictures looks enthralled with the opportunities he's been given.  It carries a tremendously positive atmosphere, in which the viewers want to be a part of.  It's appealing on all levels, from the colors used to the objects in the picture itself.  If I was in Russia at this time, I would certainly want to be apart of this mission.