Sea of Green: The Submarine Association
What do you first think picture when you hear the word, “submarine”? For most, the nautical vehicle which the word denotatively means. For many others, the wacky pop-art style icon that the Beatles appropriated for their 1966 release, “Yellow Submarine”. The associated symbol somewhat depends on the childhood household environment, but the Beatles held so much cultural significance that even your birth year is enough to dictate what pops into mind.
While today’s submarines are used for research and exploration, the 50s and 60s mainly considered the military vessel. Steeped in Vietnam and the Cold War, it was hard for the public to view them as anything other than threats. In 1960, the first ballistic missile submarines were deployed by the US and the Soviet Union to join their large existing fleets of submarines in their waiting game strategies. The development of the USS Nautilus, the first nuclear powered submarine, marked a crucial point in the nuclear deterrent plan. The news covered a constant game over who sunk who. The only non-military cultural icons of submarines were Submarine Voyage, a 1959 Disneyland ride, and Auguste Piccard, an attraction at the 1964 national Swiss exposition. It makes sense then that the most popular band of the 60s would be able to turn the connotative tides.
“Yellow Submarine” might be a demilitarization response. The Beatles’s repeated messages of love and John Lennon’s strong anti-war sentiments appear often in their track record. “Yellow Submarine” is a nonsensical children’s song whose zany lyrics convinced fans it spoke to the current time period, but Paul McCartney revealed it did not. “It’s a happy place, that’s all. You know, it was just… We were trying to write a children’s song. That was the basic idea. And there’s nothing more to be read into it than there is in the lyrics of any children’s song.” They kept insisting on the emptiness of the lyrics, but critics and writers would not settle. The single topped every major British chart for four weeks, and reached number two in the US on Billboard Hot 100. Schoolchildren and strikers repurposed the tune for their own chants. The UK streets constantly echoed the tune. A writer for the San Francisco Oracle in 1966 wrote, “the Yellow Submarine may suggest, in the context of the Beatles’ anti-Vietnam War statement in Tokyo this year, that the society over which Old Glory floats is as isolated and morally irresponsible as a nuclear submarine.” Times Magazine thought it as a “symbol of the psychedelic set’s desire for escape.” Perhaps an escape from Vietnam, or more generally, warfare. It’s tough to draw such deep political meaning from such an innocent-sounding song and music video. George, Ringo, John and Paul dance around on the colorful bridge of the vessel, as they fly through a sea of surreal clocks, limbed fish, and alternate versions of themselves.
The USS Nautilus and the “Yellow Submarine” are two sides of the same coin. While they both stand for exploration and travel, they differ in their associated values. The Nautilus for combative advancement, technological progression, nuclear sufficiency. The Yellow Submarine for friendship, leisure, and adventure. These paint a stark contrast between the intuitive first thought that follows the word. It’ll likely be rare for anyone born earlier than 1950 to automatically associate Beatles. But there’s a good chance that children who grew up in English and American households (where it was most popular) post-1960 will have been so exposed to the song and accompanying animated 1968 film that it remains the primary word icon.
To test this theory, a sample of 172 undergraduate students from Northeastern University in Boston, MA were polled. Three options were given, along with a write-in box for other answers. The question was, “What initially comes to mind when you first hear the word, ‘submarine’?” The three given options included ‘military water vehicle’, ‘The Beatles’, and ‘the sandwich’. 115 students selected ‘military water vehicle’ making this answer the majority at 66.8%. 44 students selected ‘The Beatles’, putting that at the second highest selected option at 25.5%. Three students thought of the sandwich, and other various write-ins included Submarine Voyage at Disney, the pitching style, and Walt Grace’s Submarine Test, January 1967 by John Mayer. Though the watercraft dominated the poll, 25% demonstrates ridiculous staying power, especially after 54 years. Also considering that today’s students live in a post-Beatles world, whose parents were the primary engagers. The 25% would be a much higher number if polled fifty years ago, but a quarter of participants after half a century does reveal true cultural and linguistic penetration. The research was a bit skewed in my limitation of polling; ideally, a more diverse set of participants in terms of age and location would better answer the question about generational influences.
While the Yellow Submarine was not able to overtake the collective associated definition, it changed a concept from wartime to crazy fun eclecticism for many children. Bringing positive and vibrant imagery to an otherwise frightening weapon is another step away from a militarized public. Other words that have similarly been somewhat overtaken by cultural influences include zeppelin, avatar, godfather, nirvana, and matrix. I likely didn’t need to list the corresponding band or movie for you. All these cultural references don’t stray too far from the meaning of the original word in their performance, but expand on it in some way. What the Beatles did, and what content creators should be encouraged to continue, is turning an aggressive concept completely around to create positivity.
By Adam Regenstreif
