During World War II, millions of American women entered the industrial workforce, taking on jobs in factories and shipyards while men were overseas. Many wore denim trousers and overalls as practical workwear, adopting a garment previously associated with men. This mass adoption of denim by women, symbolized by 'Rosie the Riveter,' fundamentally changed the cultural perception of jeans and accelerated their acceptance as everyday wear for both genders.

The image of women in denim workwear during World War II became an enduring symbol of female empowerment and sacrifice, inspiring poets from Muriel Rukeyser to Denise Levertov. The 'Rosie the Riveter' icon, often depicted in denim, would be invoked in later feminist poetry as a symbol of women's capabilities and the erasure of their contributions after the war. The wartime adoption of denim by women also reflected the broader social upheavals that poets of the mid-century chronicled, from the Beat poets to the confessionalists.