Is Clausewitz's unfinished work On War still worth reading and Essay

Is Clausewitz's unfinished work On War still worth reading and studying in the 21st century - Essay Example Military generals and war diplomats of modern period continue to depend on Clausewitz for better war strategies. This paper takes a brief look at his famous book, On War, translated by J.J.Graham. Clausewitz, could not complete his book during his lifetime. Whatever is left behind by him in the form of On War has been sufficient for the future war scholars and military officers to understand war as a subject of study. The fact that the book was written before the modern war- weapons were invented, and that the book is interesting even in this nuclear age itself speak volumes about the greatness of the work. The book is not altogether without criticism or negative qualities, but its acceptance as a source for the war specialists is stronger than its negative aspects. It is being taught in the military schools and many debates and critical analyses based on the book have continued to take place. On War is divided into eight sections, with each section having several chapters. A wide ranging topics related to war are defined and discussed by the writer with apt examples from history. It is very difficult to give here the exact content of the book in the condensed form due to the enormity of the various aspects of war dealt by Clausewitz. At the same time, any discussion of a topic like war demands that all its aspects are taken into consideration. Hence, the attempt here is to embrace as many facts given by the author as possible. Book I, chapter 1, gives clear a definition of war. According to Clausewitz, â€Å" war is nothing but a duel on an extensive scale†(Clausewitz, 1873). He says that it is an act of violence. This is a clear confession. He stresses that in war there is no sprit of benevolence or any kind of moderation . After rejecting such absurd views, he goes on to highlight that, even in a civilized society, passionate hatred of each other is the basic instinct for waging war. It is not an