Message to Garcia - Literature review Example

Message to Garcia Meaning of the message In this essay, Hubbard relays the account of an obedient and courageous soldier by the name Rowan (Hubbard, 1899). His message encompassed relaying how a true follower and any other person ought to conduct him or herself once given a responsibility to undertake. This is by undertaking any task with the intention of achieving a certain goal not only personal but for the common interest of either a society or other personalities. This daring action is evident in Rowan’s action whereby after given a letter to present to Garcia does not hesitate to inquire either direction or any other demands before embracing the mission presented to him (Hubbard, 1899). Hence, this ought to be to be similar to any subject intending to adhere completely to specifications given to him in ensuring completion a certain task. Rowan after embracing the mission mandated to him results to full concentration in ensuring he managed to hand over the letter to Garcia irrespective of his location in the jungle. Hence, this called for employment of what the experience he had acquired so far without asking the sender “how” and “in which manner” he as one person would manage to reach where Garcia was (Hubbard, 1899). In his quest of expounding how being courageous and obedient can catapult an individual to great heights of success, the author emphasis on the aspect of focus (Hubbard, 1899). This is especially when it is a person’s responsibility to undertake and accomplish a certain task instead of trying to come up with justifications. Justifications in this case refer to excessive questioning leading to involvement of other people of the same rank in the name of staff or friends to give a hand (Hubbard, 1899). This is evident in Hubbard’s elaboration when he gives an example of a boss inquiring his secretary to search for a given personality but ends up resulting to numerous questioning and eventually involvement of friends. Based on Hubbard’s article, this is lack of inner motivation and focus in attaining one ones intends to have. Hence, lead to failures among numerous people. Relation of message to the military The historic setting of the message is during the period of Spanish American war hence it leans toward military activities. The message clearly relates to the military through work ethics. He celebrates the work ethics displayed by soldiers and in his case, he praises Colonel Rowan who delivered a letter to Garcia despite difficulty. In this case, Rowan symbolises other soldiers and military personnel. War had ensued and the president needed to deliver a message to Garcia, but mails and telegrams could not reach him (Hubbard, 1899). Someone suggested Rowan who indeed set out on a mission and he accomplished it. The fact that somebody mentioned him shows that his work had always been effective. Rowan traversed the hostile country on foot to deliver the letter to Garcia who was in Cuba. Roman did not ask for a plan on how to execute his mission, he did not ask for back up, neither did he give up or complain; he set out to do his job and accomplish it successfully (Hubbard, 1899). His success was a prerequisite to the success of US in the Spanish-American war. The Commander of the United State Army for his great achievement honoured rowan. The Commander was so proud of him that he said, “I regard these achievements as one of the hazardous and heroic deeds in military warfare (Hubbard, 1899).” Hubbard strongly suggests that the Colonel had ingredients of success that were needed everywhere. Hubbard appreciates the work of the military who all they do is accomplish their mission as their priority. From his letter, it is evident that the military do no question, object or ask for help, the instead accomplish the work they have been assigned to do (Hubbard, 1899). The message uses the military as an example to encourage the readers to have such an independent personality of getting work done instead of questioning or seeking help. The military represent the aspects of self-reliance, and the energetic as well as brave way of tackling problems. Hubbard complains that there are no more men and women like Rowan who are willing to take on a responsibility till the end, people who have a strong work ethic and get their job done, done correctly, and done punctually. Hubbard condemns the activities of people who do not have independent action like Rowan; people who are unwilling to gladly accept an obligation and do it well. He says that characters are responsible for making the society and nation at large far from achieving socialism (Hubbard, 1899). He says, “If men will not act for themselves, what will they do when the benefit of their efforts is for all? (Hubbard, 1899).” He gives the example of a bookkeeper who if sent to deliver a message, will make four stops on the way and by the time, he reaches his destination, he has forgotten what he was to collect (Hubbard, 1899). The fact that he message of the letter relates to the way of lives of the military is evident from the fact that it was given to every US army or US navy enlistee in both worlds wars. A copy was also given to the Marine non-commissioned officers upon their promotion. The content of the message aimed at motivating the soldiers and reminded them of their duties during the wars. As he concludes, Hubbard says how much he admires people like Rowan who accomplish their missions well. He continues to say that with civilization, such people will enjoy their desires since they will be on demand everywhere (Hubbard, 1899). How it applies to Soldiers and leaders In his article, Hubbard stressed on obedience by giving an example of Andrew Rowan, a young American lieutenant who accomplished a complex mission assigned to him by President McKinley of the United States (Hubbard, 1899). According to McKinley’s, Rowan was to take a message to Garcia, a leader of the Cuban forces (Hubbard, 1899. In the message, President McKinley was asking whether the US troops were to intervene in the ongoing war against Spain (Hubbard, 1899). This task was heavy for one person because unlike the 21st century that is marred by many technologies where by just clicking one button, a message can be sent from the US to any nation around the globe. During McKinley’s reign, there were no such technologies and a person was to take the mission in person. Rowan accepted the mission without any questions. Because Rowan was a lieutenant officer, he is used as an example in lessons about obedience in many military institutions. As military personnel, one ought to obey his or her superiors and to only comply to their requests but ensuring that the task assigned is done in a right manner and perfectly to the leader’s satisfaction (Hubbard, 1899). Apart from soldiers, leaders also learnt a lot of lessons from Hubbard’s article because just like president McKinley, they should use such tasks in order to identify the hardworking employees. Rowan’s action was a clear indication that he was not only hardworking but also loyal to his boss due to the complex task he took without asking questions or excuses. His task was hard because for him to reach Cuba, he was to pass through a jungle in addition to seeking Garcia because he did not know where to locate him due to lack of telephones and mails like the present day (Hubbard, 1899). Whenever leaders are hiring new staff, whether in organizations or military, it is normally advisable that they get employees who portray certain skills such as the ability to work and accomplish tasks given to them without raising any complications (Hubbard, 1899). According to Hubbard’s article, leaders never wish to hire a staff who becomes older than his or her actual age, that is though he is still young and energetic, he or she behaves like an old person by doing tasks assigned to him slowly, in some cases, the person fails to take a task at all (Hubbard, 1899). Therefore, while conducting an interview, leaders should first assign little tasks to the aspiring employees in a move to determine which person fits the job. Elbert Hubbard’s article, A Message to Garcia, published in 1899 received a lot of applause due to the way in which he had elaborated on the importance of obedience and honesty. The article gives an example of Andrew Rowan who obeys President McKinley’s order and accepts the task given to him of delivering a letter to Garcia who was a leader of the Cuban forces. Through Rowan’s exemplary performance, many organization’s use him as an example of obedience. References Hubbard, E. (1899). A Message to Garcia. Retrieved from PBS. (2014). A Message to Garcia: Work, Ethics, Loyalty and Obedience. Retrieved on 26th March 2014 from Read More