The Antique Drums of War (Volume 33) (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series) - Softcover

McRandle, James H.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0890966117 ISBN 13: 9780890966112

Publisher: Texas A&M University Press, 1994

Synopsis

Why is war, with all its terror and destruction, so seemingly attractive to humankind? The Antique Drums of War provides a deeply thoughtful and provocative consideration of the sources of war: in archaic instincts, social ritual, animal behavior and evolutionary logic, mythmaking, and psychology. It traces the continuity of such aspects of war as unit size, tactics, and the function of uniforms from primitive beginnings through recent wars. The actual experiences of men in battle, drawn from the personal reminiscences of soldiers from various periods of history, give a sense of immediacy to the narrative.

James H. McRandle portrays modern war, despite its dispassionate, computerized brutality, as a kind of ritual that resembles in many of its particulars the ritual of war as practiced since the earliest ages of humanity. But ritual is only one of the characteristics of the institution of war. Mythmaking, psychological techniques, social forces, instinctive responses to fear, and aggressiveness are all martialed and manipulated through ritual to serve war’s purposes.

Some of Mcrandle’s conclusions will be controversial, particularly his argument that warfare served to promote gene flow between separated and isolated groups of Homo erectus and early Homo Sapiens. Throughout, his novel approaches and use of eclectic intellectual perspectives will stimulate those concerned about the possible causes of war and war’s possible remedy.

About this title

About the Author

James H. McRandle, who served as an infantry rifleman in World War II, holds a Ph.D. in history from the University of Minnesota. He has taught European and recent German history at Purdue University and UCLA. His previous publications on National Socialism and German military history led him to the study of the two world wars and the memoirs of veterans, and later to work with prominent ecologists and ethologists on issues of war. He lives now in Bellingham, Washington.

From Library Journal

McRandle, who has written previously on German military history, portrays modern war as the continuation of a tradition of ritual that has been practiced since the earliest ages of humanity. Mythmaking psychological techniques, social forces, intensive responses to fear, and aggressiveness are all martialed and manipulated through ritual to serve war's purposes. This provocative consideration of the sources of war traces the continuity of such aspects as unit size, tactics, and the function of uniforms. Firsthand accounts of battle from various periods of history give a sense of immediacy to the narrative. Some of McRandle's conclusions will be controversial, particularly his arguments that warfare served to promote gene flow between isolated groups of Homo erectus and Homo sapiens. Recommended for military history collections.
Michael Coleman, Alabama Regional Lib. for the Blind & Physically Handicapped, Montgomery
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0890966117
• ISBN 13: 9780890966112
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 232