Image of Ally

Abstract

World War II was a time of increased rapprochement between the United States and Great Britain. After a long rivalry and outright hostility in the XVIII-XIX centuries, by the beginning of the 20th century, these two countries began to get closer with time, which was reflected in the gradual design of the concept of “Special Relations” between the United States and the United Kingdom. The rapprochement required strong propaganda support to explain political changes to the population. Due to its accessibility, clarity and brightness, cinema has become one of the main tools for promoting the new paradigm of US foreign policy. In this study, we examined the problem of constructing the image of Great Britain in American cinema in 1942. The purpose of this article is to identify the main features and stereotypes of perception used by American filmmakers and propagandists in building the image of an ally. Based on an analysis of 1942 films, a number of specific features were identified that were used in cinema to form the image of Great Britain as an ally.

Keywords

• wwii
• american cinema
• propaganda
• great britain
• “special relations”
• imagology
• “captains of the clouds”
• “joan of paris”
• “eagle squadron”
• “mrs. miniver”