War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning ANNOTATION
Nominated for the 2002 National Book Critics Circle Award, General Nonfiction.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Drawing on the literature of combat, from Homer and Shakespeare to Erich Maria Remarque and Michael Herr, Hedges shows how human beings are conditioned to embrace what he calls "the myth of war" - the idea that combat is noble, selfless, and glorious. And yet if human history is any guide, nations and imperiums have stumbled and even fallen when they believed the myths peddled about war and about themselves. The reality of war, which Hedges knows first-hand, is about the destruction of culture, the perversion of human desire, and the embrace, ultimately, of death over life.
SYNOPSIS
NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST
“A brilliant, thoughtful, timely and unsettling book.... Abounds with Hedges harrowing and terribly moving eyewitness accounts.... Powerful and informative.” —The New York Times Book Review
The introduction, discussion questions, author biography, and suggested reading list that follow are designed to enhance your group’s discussion of Chris Hedges’ provocative book War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning.
FROM THE CRITICS
Slate.com
Hedges' account of the horrors of war follows a confession of rare
and frightening honesty.
Molly Ivins
I highly recommend Chris Hedges' splendid little book...His understanding is profound and was earned on the ground.
Jonathan Power
If...I thought Bush and Blair would give it time I would happily send them a copy to read.
New York Times Book Review
A brilliant, thoughtful, timely and unsettling book...it will rattle jingoists, pacifists, moralists, nihilists, politicians and professional soldiers equally...
Salon.com
As the 'war on terror' continues on its...potentially catastrophic course, America would do well to heed Hedges'...warning.
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