Harvard University Press
Underdogs: The Making of the Modern Marine Corps
Key Metrics
- Aaron B O'Connell
- Harvard University Press
- Paperback
- 9780674416819
- 8.69 X 5.55 X 1.07 inches
- 0.79 pounds
- History > Military - United States
- English
Secure TransactionBook Description
The Marine Corps has always considered itself a breed apart. Since 1775, America's smallest armed service has been suspicious of outsiders and deeply loyal to its traditions. Marines believe in nothing more strongly than the Corps' uniqueness and superiority, and this undying faith in its own exceptionalism is what has made the Marines one of the sharpest, swiftest tools of American military power. Along with unapologetic self-promotion, a strong sense of identity has enabled the Corps to exert a powerful influence on American politics and culture.
Aaron O'Connell focuses on the period from World War II to Vietnam, when the Marine Corps transformed itself from America's least respected to its most elite armed force. He describes how the distinctive Marine culture played a role in this ascendancy. Venerating sacrifice and suffering, privileging the collective over the individual, Corps culture was saturated with romantic and religious overtones that had enormous marketing potential in a postwar America energized by new global responsibilities. Capitalizing on this, the Marines curried the favor of the nation's best reporters, befriended publishers, courted Hollywood and Congress, and built a public relations infrastructure that would eventually brand it as the most prestigious military service in America.
But the Corps' triumphs did not come without costs, and O'Connell writes of those, too, including a culture of violence that sometimes spread beyond the battlefield. And as he considers how the Corps' interventions in American politics have ushered in a more militarized approach to national security, O'Connell questions its sustainability.
Author Bio
Aaron O'Connell joined UT's History Department from Washington D.C., where he served in the Obama Administration as Director for Defense Policy & Strategy on the National Security Council staff. Prior to serving in government, Dr. O’Connell taught military history at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
In addition to his academic career, Dr. O’Connell is also a Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, and in that capacity, he has served as a Special Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Pentagon, to the Commander of U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, and to the ISAF Commander in Afghanistan. Dr. O’Connell holds a B.A. from Trinity College in Hartford Connecticut, an M.A. in American Literature from Indiana University, an M.A. in American Studies from Yale University, and a Ph.D. in American History from Yale University.
When not reading or writing, he spends far too much time practicing the guitar.
Research Interests
Dr. O’Connell’s scholarly interests span three inter-related fields: 20th century military history, U.S. foreign affairs, and the military's effects on contemporary U.S. culture and society. He teaches courses in military history, U.S. foreign policy, terrorism and insurgencies, and the U.S.’s role in the world.
Source: The University of Texas at Austin
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