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Freedom from Fear (painting)
Encyclopedia
Four Freedoms (Norman Rockwell)
The Four Freedoms or Four Essential Human Freedoms is a series of oil paintings produced in 1943 by the American artist Norman Rockwell. The paintings are approximately equal in dimension with measurements of ×...
by Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of American culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening...
that were inspired by United States President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
in the State of the Union Address
State of the Union Address
The State of the Union is an annual address presented by the President of the United States to the United States Congress. The address not only reports on the condition of the nation but also allows the president to outline his legislative agenda and his national priorities.The practice arises...
he delivered to the 77th United States Congress
77th United States Congress
-Major events:* December 7, 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor* December 8, 1941: Joint Session of Congress met to hear President Roosevelt deliver his "Day of Infamy" speech...
on January 6, 1941. His other three paintings were,
- Freedom of SpeechFreedom of Speech (painting)Freedom of Speech is one of Four Freedoms paintings by Norman Rockwell that were inspired by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address, known as Four Freedoms, he delivered to the 77th United States Congress on January 6, 1941...
- Freedom to WorshipFreedom to Worship (painting)Freedom to Worship or Freedom of Worship is one of Four Freedoms paintings by Norman Rockwell that were inspired by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address, known as Four Freedoms, he delivered to the 77th United States Congress on January 6, 1941...
- Freedom from WantFreedom from Want (painting)Freedom from Want or The Thanksgiving Picture is one of Four Freedoms paintings by Norman Rockwell that were inspired by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address, known as Four Freedoms, he delivered to the 77th United States Congress on January 6, 1941...
Freedom from Fear was published in the March 13, 1943 Issue of The Saturday Evening Post with a matching essay
Essay
An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition...
by Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét was an American author, poet, short story writer, and novelist. Benét is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, John Brown's Body , for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1929, and for two short stories, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" and "By...
as part of the Four Freedoms series.
The United States Government shortly later asked for, and received, permission from Norman Rockwell to allow his Four Freedoms paintings to be used in four different war-time posters during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to help motivate the civilian workforce. The United States Government Printing Office
United States Government Printing Office
The United States Government Printing Office is an agency of the legislative branch of the United States federal government. The office prints documents produced by and for the federal government, including the Supreme Court, the Congress, the Executive Office of the President, executive...
printed the posters in at least three sizes: , , and inches.
The United States Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
toured Rockwell's Four Freedoms paintings around the country after their publication in 1943. The Four Freedoms Tour raised over $130,000,000 in war bond
War bond
War bonds are debt securities issued by a government for the purpose of financing military operations during times of war. War bonds generate capital for the government and make civilians feel involved in their national militaries...
sales.
Rockwell's Four Freedoms paintings were also reproduced as postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s by the United States Post Office.
This painting is the only one of the Four Freedoms that was not newly created. It had actually been created to depict the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
and had gone unpublished by The Saturday Evening Post. Note the newspaper caption begins "Bombings Kill. . .Horrors Hit. . ." Rockwell had a certain distaste toward this image because he felt the idea that American children were resting safely in their beds as Europe burned was a smug theme.
Content
The painting shows children resting safely in their beds, not knowing about the perils of this world, as their parents look on. The mother is tucking them in while the father holds a newspaper describing the horrors of war, but his attention is fully on his children and not the alarming stories.Critical review
The scene has been described as overly intimate. Both the arrangement of the furniture and the lighting contribute to this intimacy.Four Freedoms Monument
Roosevelt commissioned sculptor Walter RussellWalter Russell
Walter Bowman Russell was an American artist and mystic known for his achievements as a painter, sculptor, author and builder and less well known as a natural philosopher and for his unified theory in physics and cosmogony. He posited that the universe was founded on a unifying principle of...
to design a monument to be dedicated to the first hero of the war. The Four Freedoms Monument
Four Freedoms Monument
The Four Freedoms Monument was commissioned by President Franklin D. Roosevelt following his articulation of the "Four Freedoms" in his 1941 State of the Union Address...
was created in 1941, and was dedicated at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
in New York in 1943.
External links
- Full text and audio of the Four Freedoms speech. An excerpt of the Four Freedoms section is also available.
- Full text of the Four Freedoms speech.