Quaker Oats as a Symbol and Icon of American Colonialism

Quaker Oats as a Symbol and Icon of American Colonialism

Identity is important to everyone and everything; it is how we connect with an element in our mind. It is the identity that inspires the first impression of any object or even a person. For that matter; it is through identity that a connection is formed between the object and the subject and a strong connection in this regard can play an instrumental role in determining the future of such a connection.

Therefore, it is not surprising that Product Branding and Imagery have always been a vital part of any product development and launch. The image of the product is highly significant in creating the much that will be used to recognize the new product. It is this image that would play a part in creating a strong brand identity -- an image that would come to be associated with the product (Business Glossary, n.d.). A strong product image is one of the most important considerations from a marketing point-of-view, since it automatically connects itself in the mind of the consumer with that product and what it would stand for.

Quaker Oats as a product has a history that can be traced back to almost 130 years. It was in 1877, that Quaker Oats was registered as the "first trademark for a breakfast cereal," and used the image of "a figure of a man in 'Quaker garb." However, the original owners of the brand, Henry Seymour and William Heston, have constantly insisted that the major reason for selecting such a product image were associated to the symbolism of the word "Quaker," which reflects "good quality and honest value" (Quaker Oats Company, n.d.).

Quakers are an important element of the American Past, and needs an elaborate understanding to know the role that their history has played in not only the Quaker image being selected, but also the connection that people have made in their mind between the product and its image.

Quakers were quite simply the people that ran away from England to avoid religious persecutions by the hand of the Church of England. They also had a more important role to take into consideration, that being of paving the path for a religion that was free from the religious ceremonies and was able to connect with the people on a much more personal level, so that a person may be able to obtain inner peace. The resultant was that in 1647, the Friends of Society or the Quakers were formed who preached that Christ is a living presence, a reality that could be reached without the Minister (Vancover First Friends Church Home Page, n.d.).

The reason that the name "Quaker" stuck with them was due to the fervor which became apparent when these people were preaching the world of the Lord, and that fervor and enthusiasm caused them to tremble. However, the name was taken as a compliment by these preachers, and was even used by them, to describe themselves as "Quakers" (Vancover First Friends Church Home Page, n.d.).

These Quakers arrived in 1656 in Boston, and faced the extreme atrocities in the hands of the Purists, who wanted their version of the religion to propagate. It was this moving of the Quaker movement to America, which also ended up inspiring William Penn. William Penn played a prominent role in the Quaker movement, when in 1681, King Charles II of England as part of the loan settlement granted Penn a considerably large estate. Penn named this area as Sylvania -- which basically means woods in Latin, however King Charles added the Penn as a prefix to the name, thus making it Pennsylvania, in honor of the elder Penn (Brief History of William Penn, n.d.).

Because of this association with the Quaker movement and faith, the man on the logo of Quaker Oat is often considered to be William Penn himself -- a devout Quaker believer. But that is not the case; the logo represents no one in particular, however, it can't be denied either that it does represent "Quakers" in general (Quaker Oats Company, n.d.)!

It also needs to be considered that Quaker Oats belongs to the period of Colonial Revival Movement. The movement was at its peak during the time of 1880-1940, the same time frame in which we see the Quaker Oats emerge! It was time when the elements of Colonial Art and architecture could be seen in every aspect of the American society, from their Arts and Architecture, to even their brands, as is clear enough! These reasons can be attributed to a number of reason, these varying from Patriotism or nationalism, to the simplicity of the design in furniture and houses and its "adherence to classical principles." The entire era was marked with mass produced colonial furniture and houses, thus giving people a pride in the nation and its history that they had achieved after a tiresome struggle. Plus, the affordability of the Colonial pieces also must have played a defining role in connecting the image of colonialism to being economic friendly, much clear by the fact that there was a popular acceptance of such entities in the "domestic sphere" (Colonial Revival in America: Annoted Bibliography, n.d.).

Therefore there is little doubt that the decision to have Quaker as the brand image had a lot to do with the Colonial Revivalism. Considering the political scenario and the social atmosphere at that time, it is very much possible that that Quakers still held a very significant place in the combined memory of the people of the newly independent America.