A sailor doesn't have to prove he's a man! Remember: there's no medicine for regret
Navy health poster: two sailors in whites grapple under a streetlamp at night while a woman in a red dress stands apart behind them; one says 'A sailor doesn't have to prove he's a man!' and the foot line reads 'remember: There's no medicine for regret.' The fear-appeal is mild and indirect, a warning of consequences left unnamed on the sheet.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1945
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- U.S. Navy (issuer inferred; artist signature 'Bode')
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- Military
- Regime
- Roosevelt Administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Audience
- Own forces
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- Health, War and the military
- Event
- World War II
- Regime
- Roosevelt administration
- Leader
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Posters, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work)
U.S. Navy (inferred). National Archives and Records Administration, RG 44, 44-PA-293 (NAID 513740).
Text on the object
"A sailor doesn't have to prove he's a man!" remember: THERE'S NO MEDICINE FOR REGRET [signature: Bode] [imprint: U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1945 [or 1946, digits blurred]--O--695696]
