In order to do research for a few stories recently, I found myself leafing through old copies of the Battlefords News-Optimist, specifically, the 1943 pages of the "Battlefords Daily News," as it was then called.
I had few expectations about what 1943 might hold. Of course, there are the technological differences - I noted that most ads concerned either food, tobacco or something related to agriculture. But, unsurprisingly, the story was told more through the subtle differences than anything overt.
There were, for example, far fewer photos, with most ads using illustrations instead. And women, unsurprisingly, occupied subordinate roles in society, roles that were often clearly circumscribed, even with the war raging in Europe. Thus one ad declared that "destiny has designated to [women] a quieter role." This role was more clearly described by another ad that invited women to "be the girl behind the man behind the gun."
It would be impossible to mention the papers of the 1940s without some mention of the war. The war was everywhere, and its influence was similarly infinite - one ad for Gilbey's Gin proclaimed that even Gilbey's, "in peacetime a symbol of friendship and goodwill" had "now [switched] to the offensive," explaining that all their manufacturing facilities were being used to help the war effort. Ads and editorials touting victory loans appeared in every issue, as did pictures depicting the many initiatives people had undertaken to help soldiers, from sending magazines to the troops, to working in factories, to saving fat from roasts for military use.
People fascinated by the war had plenty to read, with articles devoted to the latest war technology written in surprisingly geeky terms. Thus an enthusiast could learn the exact length (50'9") and type of airscrews (DeHavilland three-bladed hydromatic type) used on the new Dehavilland Mosquito. Those with more practical concerns also had plenty of reading material, from the rumours of a wood shortage to the latest address from a head of state.
But most surprising to me was the level of government organization undertaken to co-ordinate for the war. The government regulated everything from sugar to butter to gasoline. A massive nutrition program also received unceasing promotion, as Canadians were told to "make every kitchen work for victory," and children were taught what made a balanced diet. Even more dramatic was a Sept. 2 announcement that many restaurants were revamping menus to incorporate two meatless days.
But, for all its ubiquity, the war was still far away geographically, and the newspaper spent most of its column inches on day-to-day life. In this sphere, the newspaper seems to have played the role that Facebook plays today; an entire page in the 1943 papers was devoted to banal announcements and invitations of the sort we've gotten used to on Facebook news feeds. Hence we hear about how "Mrs. J.B. Boyd left on Wednesday morning for Saskatoon and Regina on a business trip" (the full message as it was printed) or how "Corporal Clarence Christofferson spent a few days holiday leave with his parents last week, returning to military camp at Kingston, Ontario."
Other announcements went into what might seem like bizarre amounts of detail. One, written about a "dinner-bridge party" organized by a Mrs. W.G. Richardson, described how "the table was centred with a silver bowl of yellow cluster 'mums, flanked by a yellow lighted tapers in silver candle holders."
And no trip to the past would be complete without remarking on the medical quackery. We can forget that many of the strict requirements on drug companies do have some benefit in that they keep companies from making outrageous, unverified claims about the efficacy of their products.
In 1943, ads about "Vigorine, for men with lowered vitality, nervous debility, mental and physical exhaustion," were spread across many papers, claiming to restore "energy and pep." If, however, you needed help building stamina, improving digestion, fortifying the system against colds (or other "common winter ills"), or developing strong bones or "sound teeth," another ad encouraged one to just drink Scott's Emulsion, whose seventh and final promise was to be "4 times easier to digest than plain cod liver oil."
It's tricky business to make assumptions about a society based on a single source, especially when the source in this case is one that was produced by and for a single demographic - Caucasian Canadians. Most of the women in the North Battleford News wore smiles and kneaded dough. Occasionally, they shopped. Advertisements in the paper were very clear about their target audience - anything related to cooking was aimed squarely at housewives. Almost everything else was for men.
And much else was conspicuous in its absence. Canada's multicultural society was nowhere to be seen, as were non-Caucasian Canadians - the only non-Caucausians shown in the paper were in foreign countries. With the exception of the issue filled with ads about giving aid for China, the country (or its Canadian immigrants) was invisible. First Nations affairs, similarly, got nary a mention.
Since then, aboriginal issues have become some of the most important in Canada in a wide variety of fields, as has the immigrant experience. But in the newspapers of the 1940s, they both existed in the shadows.
The most encouraging thing about looking back is to see the progress that has been made. For one thing, it is common knowledge that cigarettes are unhealthy. For another, many groups have come out of the shadows since then - we can, and do, speak openly about homosexuals and minorities, and women occupy roles outside of the kitchen. As our recent observance of Remembrance Day showed, Canadian society has also remembered the sacrifices of those who fought in the two world wars, even decades later. And, most notably, the world has been able to keep a global war from consuming much of the world for over 60 years.
It's hard for someone like me, who studied philosophy, to speak about progress - it's an incredibly loaded term. Too often, calling something progress is tautological, because just what constitutes progress must be defined before the term can be applied. Is it better to report social events on Facebook rather than in the newspaper? Philosophical quibbles aside though, it's hard not to see the progress made since the 1940s, in the status of minorities, health issues and even war.
