Semiotics and the American Marine Corps

Paper Summary:

The following paper examines the semiotic messages being delivered by the American Marine Corps' "The Few, The Proud, The Marines". The paper argues that the Corps cleverly appeals to people's inward desire to be something more than themselves - and their equally potent desire to serve a great cause. More than that, the paper argues that the phrase appeals to notions of American exceptionalism.

From the Paper:

"It is entirely possible that no government slogan is more freighted with meaning and connotation than the hallowed Marine slogan, "The Few, The Proud, The Marines". The following paper will examine what this slogan means and what it is saying about American culture by employing a semiotic analysis of the expression. Ultimately, what should emerge is an appreciation and understanding that the aforementioned expression taps into a popular deep-seated yearning to be one part of an elite unit readily distinguished from other groups in society; no less importantly, the popular slogan taps into equally popular notions of American exceptionalism. With that in mind, it is to a discussion of the American marines' inimitable slogan that this paper now turns. Simply put, semiotics is the study of signs - both individually and as they are grouped in "sign systems" - and how metaphorically-laden meaning is transmitted and understood through the use of signs."

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