What is the difference between absolute war and real war? Why is this distinction important?
The two chapters of Clausewitz’s On War are brief, but quite rich. Clausewitz served as an officer in the Prussian army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. It was from this vantage point that he observed a remarkable transformation in the way war was waged — a transformation going on around him even as he wrote, and a transformation he was amongst the first to highlight. In these two readings, Clausewitz lays out the revolution in war at the end of the eighteenth century, first in general or theoretical terms, and then in historical terms.
General Suggestion: Pay very careful attention to his main points, especially in the first chapter, “What is War?” You might find it particularly useful to read “What is War?” quickly, then turn to “Scale of the Military Objective and the Effort To Be Made,” and then re-read “What is War?” carefully, in light of the historical examples and account.
“What is War?” is a classic, and perhaps the single most important essay on the nature and logic of warfare written since the end of the eighteenth century. This piece develops several ideas about war and how it is waged that recur throughout the course, and are developed (or critiqued) by several other authors. Pay special attention to Clausewitz’s distinction between absolute and real war, and to the purpose this distinction serves in his argument. Also note the relation between war and the political objectives to be achieved by waging war.
The second piece, “Scale of the Objective and the Effort To Be Made,” addresses much the same terrain as the first, this time from an historical angle. Make sure to trace the historical development Clausewitz lays out, especially after 1500, and in particular what he claims to be the distinguishing features of the revolution in war at the end of the eighteenth century.
Assignment for September 14
In about two typed, double-spaced pages altogether, please address the following:
(1.) What is the difference between absolute war and real war? Why is this distinction important? (from the first Clausewitz chapter)
(2.) What exactly is the “revolutionary change in the way war was waged” that occurred at the end of the eighteenth century in France? In what respects is it a departure from the past, and why should we care? (from the second chapter)
(3.) How might the revolution in war at the end of the eighteenth century bring real war closer to absolute war? (synthesis of propositions in the two chapters)
Requirements: 2 pages
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