epare them for the task ahead. To wage a sustained war for almost four years, the entire population would have to be mobilized. Prevailing attitudes toward women, blacks, and people of other racial and ethnic groups would have to be set aside, if not changed (Gluck 3).
Gluck notes that on the eve of the war, "the lives of most women closely resembled those of their mothers" (Gluck 4). However, Gluck also finds that American popular culture at least reflected a different view of women, not as weak and dependent, but as strong and largely competent, an image Gluck finds in radio soap operas:
This was the time of day when a woman could define--or redefine--her world. Women were in the forefront and men, at best, were deemphasized. At worst, they were depicted as troublemakers. Women could be in charge--as long as they didn't stray too far from their prescribed roles. This same double message was subtly buried in the evening programs (Gluck 5).
However, as Gluck notes, the choices for most women
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