Why Amelia Earhart Dominates History While Others Are Forgotten

Introduction: The Selective Memory of Aviation History

Before reading Amy Bix's article "Beyond Amelia Earhart," the other female pilots she discusses were entirely unfamiliar to me. The reason history classes might overlook them could have something to do with the relationship between the Department of Education and the myths that the U.S. government likes to promote about American culture, heritage, and key events of the twentieth century — both in the pre- and post-war periods. This relationship mirrors the one that Earhart herself cultivated with various industries and government propagandists of her day. She gave lectures, endorsed automobiles, and promoted other products, essentially developing herself into a brand behind which corporations could position themselves to sell ideas and goods to the American public (Bix, 2010, p. 41). America has essentially always operated as a business, and figures like Earhart were used to cultivate within the consuming public certain tastes and aspirations likely to encourage the embrace of new and innovative ideas — including aviation itself (Corn, 1979).

Brand Earhart: Celebrity, Commerce, and Aviation

"Brand Earhart," as it might be called, was everywhere — from designing women's clothing and luggage to helping airlines promote travel to female passengers (Bix, 2010, p. 41). She functioned much like any celebrity endorser: her name and image gave products and causes credibility with a broad public audience. Because American history is so frequently taught from the perspective of the institutional victors — whether the subject is World War II or the Progressive Era of the 1920s and 1930s, in which Earhart figures prominently — what students learn in classrooms reflects what the entities that shape American culture wish to perpetuate. Without independent scholarship such as that produced by Bix, students would remain unaware of the finer details and underlying motivations behind the stories they receive and accept without question. The selling of aviation to the American public was a deliberate cultural project, and Earhart was its most recognizable face.

Conclusion: The Limits of the Earhart Myth

Earhart represents for young minds the "proof" that the "weaker" or "fairer" sex can do anything a man can do — and look good while doing it, with fashionable luggage and designer wear. Beyond that, the tragic circumstances of her disappearance and presumed death generate a powerful emotional response, so that anyone who examines American history with a more critical eye risks being dismissed as cynical, cruel, heartless, or chauvinistic. The emotional weight of her story functions as a shield against scrutiny, ensuring that the myth endures long after the more complicated truth has been set aside.

References

Bix, A. (2010). Beyond Amelia Earhart: Teaching about the history of women aviators. OAH Magazine of History, July: 39–44.

Corn, J. (1979). Making flying 'thinkable': Women pilots and the selling of aviation, 1927–1940. American Quarterly, 31(4): 556–571.