Why is there such a pronounced difference in how the military treats officers vs enlisted people? This even extends to how they are treated when a POW, as seen in Bridge Over River Kwai.

Question

I *completely* understand that there needs to be a hierarchy, but there seems to be a big discontinuity between these different classifications. When I was in the Navy, I noticed this extended to eating accommodations, and even how ships were built (different hallways for enlisted and officers to walk down). This may have made sense “back in the day”, but why does this separation continue to exist today?

In: 222

Answer 1

Even in private-sector businesses, you’ll see a separation between management and non-management staff, in terms of their compensation, perks, privileges, and how they comport themselves. It’s just socially awkward to be in a supervisory role to a bunch of people, and also act like you’re “Just one of the gang”. Sooner or later, you’re going to be in a position where you have to force your subordinates to do something unpleasant. You don’t need to be an asshole about it, but maintaining a separation can help lubricate those interactions.

Because military outfits place a much higher emphasis on *obedience* than you need at Dunder Miflin, it’s all the more critical to instill that sense of rigor and separateness. At the end of the day, these are tried and tested leadership techniques which have worked with real humans for centuries, for men quite literally facing down death.