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Comparative analysis of the military oath texts (The case of US Rangers and Scouts of special Operations Forces of the Republic of Belarus)
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Currently, the problem of international military cooperation is becoming increasingly important, as geopolitical tensions advance, and, as a result, militarization of the society is growing. Therefore, the state pays special attention to improving the combat readiness and defense potential of the army.
To carry out effective cooperation in the military sphere, it is necessary to study not only the characteristics of weapons, strategy and tactics of certain units of the armed forces of a certain state, but also adequately understand the ideology that underlies their work.
Military oath is the cornerstone of the ideology of military service in any country. According to the accepted definition, the military oath is a ceremonial solemn oath given by each citizen when called for military service in the armed forces of the state. Military oath existed since ancient times in the armed forces of most countries in the world. In various countries it has its specific content, traditions and ceremonies for its adoption, depending on the historical traditions and customs of people, armed forces and the essence of the state system (Wikipedia).
The relevance and novelty of this study lies in the fact that we offer to make a comparative analysis of the text of the military oath in similar units of US Army and Armed Forces the Republic of Belarus.
We propose to compare the text of the oath of the 75th Parachute Regiment, Special Purpose Intelligence of US Army, also known as Rangers, and the text of Scouts of special Operations Forces of the Republic of Belarus.
In the attached table we propose for consideration the original and translated versions of both texts.
| Russian/English variant | Translation into English/Russian | |
| Scouts of Special Operations Forces, Republic of Belarus | 1.КЛЯНЕМСЯ ОТНЫНЕ И НАВСЕГДА: Быть верным своему Отечеству, воинскому долгу, Военной присяге и священному братству армейского спецназа. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 2.Чтить и уважать своих командиров и товарищей, всегда и словом, и делом поддерживать их, заботиться о них, как о самом себе, никогда не бросать их в беде и на поле боя. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 3. Приложить все свои силы и старания, чтобы овладеть знаниями и умениями, необходимыми разведчику спецназа, стремиться достигнуть высшей славы спецназовца — Доблести и Мастерства. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 4.Прислушиваться к советам старших — офицеров и ветеранов спецназа, хранителей спецназовской чести. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 5.Выполнять приказы и поручения любой ценой, проявляя при этом смекалку, смелость и решительность. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 6.Дорожить своей честью и честью своих товарищей, не допускать ее попрания кем бы то ни было. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 7.Свято чтить традиции, кодекс чести и девиз спецназа «В любом месте, в любое время, любые задачи!», где бы ни находился — до своего последнего вздоха помнить о них. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! 8.Если же я нарушу эту клятву, пусть неизгладимый позор и презрение ляжет на мою голову и стану я достоин всеобщего презрения. КЛЯНЕМСЯ! КЛЯНЕМСЯ! КЛЯНЕМСЯ! | WE SWEAR NOW AND FOREVER: To be faithful to our homeland, military duty, military oath and sacred brotherhood of the Army Special Forces. WE SWEAR! To honor and respect our commanders and comrades, and always in word and deed support them, care about them as about ourselves, never let them down, and on the battlefield. WE SWEAR! To apply all our strength and effort to master the knowledge and skills necessary for a scout of special forces, strive to achieve the highest glory for a scout - Heroism and Excellence Badge WE SWEAR! To follow the advice of the senior - officers and special forces veterans, custodians of Special Forces honor. WE SWEAR! To carry out the orders and instructions at all costs, while exercising ingenuity, courage and determination. WE SWEAR! To value our honor and that of our comrades, to prevent its violation by anyone else. WE SWEAR! To hallow traditions, honor code and the Special Forces motto “In any place, at any time, any tasks!” wherever should we happen to be and remember them till the last breath. WE SWEAR! If I violate this oath, let an indelible shame and contempt fall on my head and let I be punished with ignominy. WE SWEAR! WE SWEAR! WE SWEAR! |
| US Rangers | 1.Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of my Ranger Regiment. 2. Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster, and fight harder than any other soldier. 3. Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong, and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one hundred percent and then some. 4. Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress, and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow. 5. Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country. 6. Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission, though I be the lone survivor. Rangers, lead the way. | Зная, что я рейнджер, полностью понимая опасности выбранной профессии, я буду всегда стремиться поддержать престиж, честь и высокий боевой дух рейнджеров. Понимая тот факт, что рейнджер — это элитный солдат, который прибывает в решающий момент сражения по земле, морю или воздуху, я знаю, что моя страна требует от меня, как от рейнджера, идти дальше, быстрее и сражаться более упорно, чем остальные солдаты. Я никогда не брошу своих товарищей, всегда буду бдительным, физически сильным и морально стойким, и буду выполнять не только свою часть боевой задачи, где бы она ни возникла, но и всю её и даже больше. Я продемонстрирую всему миру, что я специально отобранный и хорошо подготовленный солдат. Моя вежливость к старшим офицерам, аккуратность в одежде, исправность оружия будут служить другим примером для подражания. Если я встречу врагов моей страны, я уничтожу их на поле боя, потому что я лучше подготовлен и буду сражаться со всей возможностью. Сдача в плен — это слово не для рейнджеров. Я никогда не позволю своим павшим товарищам попасть в руки врага, и ни при каких обстоятельствах никогда не опозорю свою страну. Я с готовностью продемонстрирую подлинное мужество в бою и выполню задачу, даже если я буду единственным, кто остался в живых. Рейнджеры всегда впереди. |
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The structure of the texts differs. The oath of Rangers is an acrostic, where each part starts from a different letter, in common forming the word “RANGER”. Determination is expressed with the help of the modal verbs shall and will and the inverted word order in parts 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the text. The sentences are mainly complex or compound.
The oath of Belarusian Scouts also consists of a number of integral parts which are separated from each other by the words “WE SWEAR”. Every part starts with the Indefinite Infinitive in the Object function to show determination. The sentences are mainly simple, some contain homogeneous parts.
In our point of view, such structural and syntactic peculiarities make evident the rational, highly descriptive character of the US Rangers oath. The oath of Belarusian Scouts is more emotionally colored (exclamations after each part), its structure being simple.
One more fact which is worth attention is that the oath of Rangers is formed from the first person singular (I volunteered…, I will endeavor…, never shall I fail…). It confirms the fact, the concept of individualism, specific for Western countries, especially for the USA, finds its reflection in the text of the military oath as well. At the same time the oath of Belarusian Scouts is pronounced from the first person plural (WE SWEAR!), moreover, the ceremony is collective, and the words are pronounced in chorus. It proves the fact that esprit de corps is especially strong in Belarusian Special Operations Forces, and the concept of sacred Special Forces brotherhood prevails in their ideology.
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The lexical contents of the texts under consideration are also different. The oath of US Rangers is more saturated with detailed information concerning their activities, behavior, physical and mental state, actions in different situations, etc. The superiority of the ranger unit is proclaimed in every part of the oath and is summed up in their motto, “Rangers lead the way”. At the same time the oath of Belarusian Scouts concentrates on such moral categories as faith, duty, honor, respect, disregard of self. The emphasis is made not on the superiority of the unit, but on the total devotion to the military service and discharging of duty, the motto being “In any place, at any time, any tasks!”
Thus, we see, that though US Rangers and Belarusian Special Forces Scouts are intended to perform the same functions, the texts of the military oath differ both structurally and by contents. This fact proves that ideology and mentality of armed forces in different countries is not similar. And in order to co-operate in the military sphere effectively, or in order to estimate the possible enemy correctly, it is necessary to analyze language units.
https://yandex.by/video/search?p=1&filmId=13566694878331709753&text=US%20rangers%20take%20oath%20video
https://yandex.by/video/search?p=3&filmId=18018518440357675214&text=US%20rangers%20take%20oath%20video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyfFLx8IwhA
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