The book is a bit older, so their is talk of Nintendo and video games along with Bill Clinton, but the point of transformation through the Marines bootcamp is timeless. I enjoyed learning more about how the Marines view their world in comparison to their history and continued legacy. Overall, this was a great book to read in learning more about the culture of the Marines rather than the experience of boot camp. No where is this more evident in the last chapter in which Ricks compares and contrasts the Army training base and the Marines training base. This is both a good thing (Marines are a specially-trained and unique force) and a bad thing (Marines don't like to play with other branches' ineptness so well). The Marines are a distinct culture that works to maintain that culture in direct criticism of the ordinary society and in suspicion of other Army branches. Ricks also discusses the unique situation of the Marines as a culture within the military and the larger society. He shows, for example, how recruits' language change from "I" to "this recruit" and discusses what that means. For example, Ricks explains why Marine drill instructors are so hard on their recruits and how this changes as the recruits start to internalize the beliefs of their drill instructors. The book doesn't focus a lot of time on the physical aspects (although it is covered pretty well), but on the mental and emotional changes that occur and how the Marines facilitate that change. Ricks does an excellent job of not just portraying the transformation of these young men, but how that transformation reflects the Marine way of life as a whole.
It covers the 13-week transformation of young males into Marines. "Making the Corps" is a great story of transformation. It's a bit dated since it was written in the 90s - both because the boot camp process has changed substantially (some of which was detailed in the end of the book), and because at the time the book was written, the military overall was looking for a role, wondering if it would be used again after the Cold War was over - then Iraq (and second Afghan war) happened, briefly mentioned in the afterword written in 2007, which completely changed the US military. There are a few particularly interesting points: that the military is the best option for turning many of the bottom half of society into successes, and then that the marine boot camp method doesn't actually work any better than the more laid-back Army model, despite being far more demanding for the recruits.
#USMC BOOT CAMP MOVIE EARS OPEN EYEBALLS CLICK PLUS#
This is the best book about USMC boot camp and how Marines are made, plus a bit of information about the Marine Corps overall, the differences from other services, the role of the military in modern American society, and some problems of modern society.
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