Adventure & Pulp Fiction

With the end of World War II and, just a few years later, the Korean War, the return of soldiers to the U.S. created a market for popular literature that focused on heroism, masculinity, and adventure. A new genre of magazines appeared for male readers that exploited the lingering national anxiety about foreign enemies and the desire to defeat them. Knowing that an aesthetic reminiscent of socialist propagandist realism would resonate with war veterans, these publications often used figurative illustrations executed in an exaggerated, sensational style to depict Communist and Nazi leaders, their programs, and wars.