Woman as Machine: Representation of Secretaries in Interwar Magazines

Abstract

Magazine representation of secretaries and telephone operators during the 1920s and 1930s depicted expectations about technology, sexuality, and domesticity. Using semiotic analysis, this article examines editorial copy and advertisements in Forbes, Ladies' Home Journal, and The American Magazine. In the dominant media image, the secretary was a sexualized machine whose individuality was nullified and whose domestic role was emphasized. Operators were subjected to sexism as well, but had more autonomy.