Eleanor Roosevelt: A Study in Shifting Cultural Prisms

Abstract

Every culture needs heroes and heroines to ensure social cohesion, but portrayals do not remain static. They change as social values tilt from one direction to another. The image of Eleanor Roosevelt in popular culture offers a vibrant illustration. Niece of one United States president, Theodore Roosevelt, and the wife of another, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eleanor, the longest-serving First Lady in U.S. history, ranks as arguably the most important U.S. woman of the twentieth century and one of the world's best-known figures. To the public, Eleanor represents multiple roles - wife, mother, political leader, activist, diplomat, journalist, and media celebrity. She died in 1962 but remains a persona that functions as a prism through which to view attitudes toward women's roles. Her portrayals, including her own self-depiction from her birth in 1884 until her fatal illness, illustrate acceptable perimeters for women at different periods. When hidden details of her life emerged, she became a focal point for arguments over women's conduct.