War: What is it good for?
eBook - ePub

War: What is it good for?

The role of conflict in civilisation, from primates to robots

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eBook - ePub

War: What is it good for?

The role of conflict in civilisation, from primates to robots

Book details
Table of contents
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About This Book

War is one of the greatest human evils. It has ruined livelihoods, provoked unspeakable atrocities and left countless millions dead. It has caused economic chaos and widespread deprivation. And the misery it causes poisons foreign policy for future generations. But, argues bestselling historian Ian Morris, in the very long term, war has in fact been a good thing. In his trademark style combining inter-disciplinary insights, scientific methods and fascinating stories, Morris shows that, paradoxically, war is the only human invention that has allowed us to construct peaceful societies. Without war, we would never have built the huge nation-states which now keep us relatively safe from random acts of violence, and which have given us previously unimaginable wealth. It is thanks to war that we live longer and more comfortable lives than ever before.And yet, if we continue waging war with ever-more deadly weaponry, we will destroy everything we have achieved; so our struggles to manage warfare make the coming decades the most decisive in the history of our civilisation. In War: What Is It Good For? Morris brilliantly dissects humanity's history of warfare to draw startling conclusions about our future.

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Information

Publisher
Profile Books
Year
2014
ISBN
9781847654540
Topic
History
Subtopic
World History
Index
History

Table of contents

  1. Copyright Page
  2. Contents
  3. List of Illustrations
  4. Introduction: Friend to the Undertaker
  5. 1. The Wasteland? War and Peace in Ancient Rome
  6. 2. Caging the Beast: The Productive Way of War
  7. 3. The Barbarians Strike Back: The Counterproductive Way of War, A.D. 1–1415
  8. 4. The Five Hundred Years’ War: Europe (Almost) Conquers the World, 1415–1914
  9. 5. Storm of Steel: The War for Europe, 1914–1980s
  10. 6. Red in Tooth and Claw: Why the Chimps of Gombe Went to War
  11. 7. The Last Best Hope of Earth: American Empire, 1989–?
  12. Notes
  13. Further Reading
  14. Bibliography
  15. Acknowledgments
  16. Index