The Real Meaning of ‘F Troop’

 

The prime exemplar of McWhiney & McDonald’s celtic hypothesis in popular culture is F-Troop. The dramatic dyad between English and Irish culture found its natural home and classic statement in Somerville & Ross’s The Irish R.M.*—where the local Irish get the edge on the Englishman.

In the United States, the dramatic dyad shifts from literature to television. But the conflict remains much the same in all its essentials. In F-Troop, Sergeant O’Rourke, having an Irish last name, generally outsmarts Captain Parmenter, who has an Anglo-Norman name. The Indian conflict and the American Civil War were only incidental to the plot—the real storyline is O’Rourke’s outsmarting the U.S. army and Parmenter, while remaining loyal, broadly speaking, to American ideals (including making money).

Thus, the real battle of wits is between the Irish and the English—in America—which, in itself, continued the prior established literary tradition. Of course, this made more sense to the public at a time when Hollywood’s writers remained connected to (and, generally, supportive of) the Western literary canon.

Seth Barrett, ‘The Real Meaning of “F Troop”,’ New Reform Club (May 29, 2023, 9:26 AM), <https://reformclub.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-real-meaning-of-f-troop.html>; 

*R.M. is an abbreviation for resident magistrate.