Parris Island by Eugene Alvarez & Leo Daugherty

Author:Eugene Alvarez & Leo Daugherty [Alvarez, Eugene & Daugherty, Leo]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781514455333
Publisher: Xlibris US
Published: 2016-05-21T04:00:00+00:00

The Drill Instructor–or D. I., as he is known–has long been one of the proudest and most controversial Marine Institutions. He was not created. He has evolved, rather, from the drill sergeant of the days before World War I. But the D. I. is a more lordly figure; he is surrounded by an aura of divine right that the boot is not allowed to forget. It is his job to make a Marine out of a civilian in three months, and he is as dedicated as the chaplain. (21)

Former Marine and journalist Ben Price offered one interesting opinion in 1957. He states the evolution of Drill Instructors stemmed from a strong “Prussian tinge” that entered the ranks of the DIs in the 1920s when the Corps received a “heavy influx of former officers and noncommissioned officers from the German and Russian armies of World War I.” (22) Many of these men remained in the ranks until World War II, and passed on, according to Price, their “Prussian” ways of training recruits to the younger Marines.

Along with their tailored military bearing, their chief weapon was the voice. A Drill Instructor could scream, plead, bewilder, stimulate, ridicule, and frighten in a fashion that was unmatched. His histrionics and seemingly ludicrous hazing methods were other tools. Yet some DIs were reluctant to use physical force because of their pride and the likely possibility that some retribution might ensue. (23)

Until mid-1956, Drill Instructors continued living with their platoon in reserved barracks rooms. Similar arrangements existed for platoons billeted in huts or in tents. Married DIs were more fortunate in this respect; however, the demands of being a Drill Instructor kept them apart from their families every two or three nights and usually every other weekend while they were training a platoon. Therefore, divorces and financial problems were not uncommon among married DIs. (24)

Most of the men handled the pressures, but others could not. Consequently, a drill instructor returning from a night at the club, or one who was having difficulties at home, often compromised his trusted position and maltreated (“thumped”) recruits. Yet court-martial proceedings and psychological interviews also revealed that some DIs maltreated for no apparent reason at all. Most thought it was simply part of training recruits.

Although it was not officially condoned, a good explanation for the illegal “thumping” was the system of recruit training itself. A DI’s reputation was at stake with each and every platoon, and his fitness report could be marked accordingly. Like the demands placed on some athletic coaches, he was expected to produce a winning team even though the means were not always sanctioned by the rules. Even after post Ribbon Creek reforms, platoons were awarded “streamers” for outstanding scores, so the pressure remained. Therefore, many Drill Instructors reasoned that in order to excel, the old time-tested and literal “bucket-over-the-head” methods were necessary to produce outstanding platoons. And they did.

Others believed they should train recruits in the same manner in which they had been trained with, if necessary, an iron fist.

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