| Evan A. Laksmana | Singapore, 1 April 2008 |
Today, I had a class on “The Revolution in Military Affairs”, where I had to present a summary of this week’s readings on the ways of war–these include John Keegan’s History of Warfare, Victor David Hanson’s Carnage and Culture, along with smaller pieces by US military strategists.
What was interesting about today’s class was the argument that war, contrary to my Clausewitzian mind, was nothing more than a “cultural expression” (Keegan). Granted that Keegan clearly either misintepret Clausewitz or didn’t actually read On War–or both. But the idea that “culture” defines war and warfare is an intriguing argument.
Filed under: Defense Transformation, Military History - General
