|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
|
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
"The communal march against an enemy generates a warm, unfamiliar bond with our neighbors, our community, our nation, wiping out unsettling undercurrents of alienation and dislocation," writes Chris Hedges, a foreign correspondent for the New York Times. In War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, Hedges draws on his experiences covering conflicts in Bosnia, El Salvador and Israel as well as works of literature from the Iliad to Hannah Arendt's The Origins of Totalitarianism to look at what makes war so intoxicating for soldiers, politicians and ordinary citizens. He discusses outbreaks of nationalism, the wartime silencing of intellectuals and artists, the ways in which even a supposedly skeptical press glorifies the battlefield and other universal features of war, arguing not for pacifism but for responsibility and humility on the part of those who wage war.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
From Library Journal
This moving book examines the continuing appeal of war to the human psyche. Veteran New York Times correspondent Hedges argues that, to many people, war provides a purpose for living; it seems to allow the individual to rise above regular life and perhaps participate in a noble cause. Having identified this myth, Hedges then explodes it by showing the brutality of modern war, using examples taken from his own experiences as a war correspondent in Latin America, the Middle East, and the Balkans. These examples highlight the devastating effects of war on life, community, and culture and its corruption of business and government. Hedges is not a pacifist, acknowledging that people need to battle evil, but he thoughtfully cautions us against accepting the accompanying myths of war. This should be required reading in this post-9/11 world as we debate the possibility of war with Iraq. For all libraries.
Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ. Lib., Parkersburg
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ. Lib., Parkersburg
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
When our own nation is at war with any other, we detest them under the character of cruel, perfidious, unjust and violent: But always esteem ourselves and allies equitable, moderate, and merciful. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
When our own nation is at war with any other, we detest them under the character of cruel, perfidious, unjust and violent: But always esteem ourselves and allies equitable, moderate, and merciful. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The real story about war,
By
This review is from: War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning (Paperback)
Chris is a journalist and war correspondent. He's coveredmany of the bloodiest conflicts in the last 15-20 years. In spite of the danger, he found himself addicted to the rush of war. If you ever want to read what war is really about and how One quote: The best antidote? A real leader. Vote for Dennis Kucinich who
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book for our times,
By Edward Estry (Hirakata-shi, Osaka Japan) - See all my reviews
This review is from: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning (Paperback)
Chris Hedges brings war into a clear perspective; its causes, its effects and its reasons. Only by coming to terms with these aspects of war can humanity overcome the inevitable ultimate consequences.This book should be translated into all languages and be required reading for high school students all over the world.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chris Hedges Explodes the Myth of Heroic War,
By
This review is from: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning (Paperback)
In this powerfully honest book by this Pulitzer prize-winning New York Times Journalist, we see through a glass darkly into war as necrophilia, war that in the beginning looks like love. Hedges, who has a Masters of Divinity from Harvard, speaks with brutal honesty of his own addiction to the adrenaline rush of war as he witnessed it in El Salvador, the Middle East and the Balkans. He writes about Thanatos, the death instinct in the human psyche in constant struggle with Eros, the impulse to love. He exposes what he calls the "god-like exhileration of destroying" that emotionally maimed veterans reflect on later as "nothing gallant or heroic, nothing redeeming." He shows us in graphic detail how he almost lost his soul, but was redeemed by love in partnership that recognizes both the fragility and sanctity of the individual. He warns us that this flirtation with weapons of mass destruction is a flirtation with our own obliteration, an embrace of Thanatos. With humility and grace, he reminds us that "love alone can save us." Hegdes' message is one that the world desperately needs to hear.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > History > Military
- Books > Nonfiction > Philosophy > Ethics & Morality
- Books > Nonfiction > Politics
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
