Introduction
“Honor, courage and commitment, the core values of the Marines, define how every
Marine in the Corps thinks, acts and fights. Throughout the austere battlefields of the 21st
Century, every Marine in the Corps must be confident they can rely on each other to think, act
and lead. In the chaos of battle, character matters” (Semper Fidelis – Semper Fi). This is the
code of honor and core values that is followed by every Marine. It is meant to bring them
together closer as a group, and to distinguish themselves as their own specific social discourse.
Marines also do this through their physical fitness, general toughness, and a language or a way of
speaking that is all their own.
VMI’s Marine Corps Reserve Officers Training Corps has a core goal, much like the core
values of the Marine Corps. This social discourse is in place to produce young men and women
to serve as officers in the Marine Corps. They do this through intense training, an intense pride
in Marine Corps history, and an extreme focus on teaching the skills and mindset that it takes to
produce leaders to serve on the front line. James Paul Gee suggests that you can only have one
main discourse, and that any other discourse you attempt to join, you will still carry over things
from your primary. This is what Marine Corps ROTC at VMI strives to do. They want man and
women to throw themselves whole heartedly into the discourse of being a Marine. This can only
be done when they have been broken down and built back up into a Marine.
Concepts
While reading Gee, he gives his definition of a discourse. “Discourses are ways of being
in the world; they are forms of life which integrate words, acts, values, beliefs, attitudes, and
social identities as well as gestures, glances, body positions, and clothes” (Gee 484). All of these
Mahoney 1
factors are evident in the Marine Corps ROTC program. As described in the introduction,
Marines have their values and beliefs, but they also have their own type of language. Of course
they have their own lingo such as “surface” meaning strengths, “gaps” meaning weaknesses,
“friction” meaning problems, and “force of personality” meaning, I am in charge; however, there
is a sub language that many people, who are not involved in the Marine life style, do not know
about. While it appears to the outside world to the outside world that they are proper and abide
to all of the rules, they speak with lots of profanity and in a way that would be unfamiliar to most
people.
Their gestures, body positions and appearance all play a huge role in distinguishing the
Marines as being their own social discourse. All Marines are required to represent their
organization in the best possible manner to the outside world. They are very clean and cut,
meaning that they always keep their hair trimmed, their faces shaved, and their bodies in top
physical condition, no matter if they are active duty or retired. People can tell that they are part
of a different group on the street; they may not know that they are Marines, but it is obvious that
there is a difference between normal people and Marines. This can cause there to be a
disconnect between Marines, the outside world, and other social discourses.
Gee believes that there can be a tension or conflict between our original discourse and
any secondary discourse that we may try to join. Gee says, “two discourses can interfere with
one another, like two languages; aspects of one Discourse can be transferred to another
Discourse, as one can transfer a grammatical feature from one language to another” (Gee 486).
This idea of a tension between discourses has led him to the theorem that, “you are either
in, or you’re not” (Gee 487). This theorem fits very well into the ideals of the Marine Corps and
Mahoney 2
also the goals of MCROTC here at VMI. One of the main slogans of the Marines is, “Once a
Marine, always a Marine” (MSgt Woyshner). In Marine Corps ROTC the instructors break
down to prospective officers to the point where they forget their old discourses and take on the
discourse of being a Marine. Prospective officers then maintain this main discourse of being a
Marine for the rest of their lives. This main discourse then filters into any other discourse that
the Marine may be involved with then for the rest of their lives.
Marine Corps ROTC as a Niche
ROTC is a main part of the curriculum here at the Virginia Military Institute. VMI has
ROTC for all four branches of the military: Marine Corps, Navy, Army, and Air Force. Out of
all four, the Marine Corps ROTC is the smallest group. They have distinguished themselves as a
niche of not only VMI, but also of the Marine Corps. They have become a social discourse
within the social discourse that is VMI. Through talking to various applicants coming to VMI in
the fall for matriculation, people notice that there is a difference between MCROTC and the
other groups. They seem to look at the Marine prospects as somewhat crazy, yet intensely
dedicated, motivated, and driven.
Ever since I was a young boy I knew that I wanted to serve my country in the military.
At first I started out wanting to be in the Navy, and eventually progress through the ranks,
potentially becoming a Navy SEAL. This dream changed recently in the past couple years.
Through talking to both Marine and Naval officers, I learned what each branch held to be their
core concerns and values. One of the most powerful statements that I heard in this search for my
career was that, “As you gain rank in the Navy, you get a larger platform, meaning that you get a
larger boat. Marines are different in that as we gain rank, we get more men to lead”
Mahoney 3
(Annonymous 2012). This quote struck me as very powerful, and it helped me to make up my
mind about what branch I wanted to serve for.
This want to serve has nothing but increased since my process of applying and coming to
VMI. I have spoken to the Commanding Officer and Executive Officer in charge of Marine
Corps ROTC here at VMI. I have seen through their passion, the way they carry and speak for
themselves, and the way that the command any room that they are in no matter who is there, that
the MCROTC here is a special group. There are many differences between the Marines on post
and service men and women from the other branches. It is very easy to imagine them as their
own social discourse thanks to the factors mentioned above.
Methods of Analysis
Although the Marine Corps is a premier fighting force, they are also very humble.
Marines are men of few words, but when they say something or write something, it has meaning
and is meant to serve a purpose. In doing research on Marine Corps ROTC on the VMI website
this is particularly evident.
The Marine Corps falls under the department of the Navy. On the website, the Marines
do not have a page dedicated to solely themselves. In the descriptions of each branch of ROTC,
the Marines only have a few short sentences to themselves within the description of the Navy’s
program. This is the same in the ROTC section of the 2013-2014 section of the Academic
Catalogue. It has been this way, so far back as I can see, since the publication of the 2005-2006
catalogue.
The Marines do, however, have a link to the official website of the Marine Corps. This
link takes people straight to the Marine Officer page. This shows that the main goal of
Mahoney 4
MCROTC here at VMI is to produce officers to lead Marines on the front line. This goal is the
same for all ROTC branches, but it is most evident in that of the Marine Corps.
The Marine Officer’s page consists of a lot of pictures of Marines training to be officers,
and, again, few words that are powerful, but get across the main points that people need to know
about it. The first quote on the page is as follows, “From meeting with an Officer Selection
Officer (OSO) to choosing which Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is right for you,
discover the rigorous requirements to lead the few” (Marine Officer). The most important words
to take out of this quote are “rigorous” and “few.” They are trying to emphasize that the training
will be rigorous, but once it is completed, you will be a part of a select few. We always hear in
commercials on the TV, “The few. The proud. The Marines.” This motto is also represented in
Marine Corps ROTC here at VMI. The men and women involved in the training are proud, and
want to become a part of the storied history of the few strong enough to be considered Marines.
In an interview with Major Paul Beeman, the Commanding Officer of Marine Corps
ROTC here at VMI, he commented that, “The Marines are the fiercest fighting organization on
the freaking planet.” It was obvious by the way that he spoke about the Marines, how passionate
he was, and how much he wanted to continue on the tradition and honor of the Marine Corps.
“Right now you are a blob of shapeless clay. It is my job to take you and mold you into a
Marine.” Through, his tone and inflection on the way he said Marine, you could sense the pride
that he had. He is trying to break down prospective officers to the point where they no longer
have a main discourse. It is all part of a procedure that has been worked out and tuned to
produce the best Marines that can possibly exist.
Mahoney 5
Conclusion
In conclusion, Marine Corps ROTC has made itself their own little niche here at VMI and
in the Marine Corps as a whole. They have created a social discourse for themselves through
their own specific language, ways of presenting themselves, and through their intense training.
Marine Corps ROTC will maintain a staple here at VMI for the foreseeable future. They will
continue producing Marine officers that live by the core values and who are able to lead on the
front lines.
Mahoney 6
Works Cited
Gee, James Paul. “Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics.” Writing about Writing: a College
Reader. Ed. Elisabeth Wardle and Doug Downs. Boston: Bedford/ St. Martins, 2011.
315-18. Print.
"Marine Officer." Marines.com. United States Marine Corps, Web. 17 July 2014.
Major Beeman, Paul G. Personal Interview. 7-15-14.
MSgt. Woyshner, Paul. "Marine Corps Quotes." Marine Corps Quotes. 3rdmarines.net, Web. 18
July 2014.
"Semper Fidelis - Semper Fi." Marines.com. United States Marine Corps, Web. 14 July 2014.
Mahoney 7