Of Arms and Men: A History of War, Weapons, and Aggression

All ProductsApparelAutomotiveBabyBeautyBooksClassical MusicDVDDigital MusicElectronicsGourmet FoodHealth & Personal CareJewelryKitchen & HousewaresMagazinesMiscellaneousMusicMusic TracksMusical InstrumentsOffice ProductsOutdoor LivingPC HardwarePet SuppliesPhotoRestaurantsSoftwareSporting GoodsTools & HardwareToysVHSVideo (DVD & VHS)Video GamesWirelessWireless Accessories

by: Robert L. O'Connell

Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 355.009
EAN: 9780195053609
ISBN: 0195053605
Label: Oxford University Press, USA
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 384
Publication Date: April 19, 1990
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Studio: Oxford University Press, USA

---

Alternate Versions: Click to Display

Related Items:

• The Pursuit of Power: Technology, Armed Force, and Society since A.D. 1000
• Makers of Modern Strategy from Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age
• The Face of Battle: A Study of Agincourt, Waterloo, and the Somme
• Technology and War: From 2000 B.C. to the Present
• Blood Rites: Origins and History of the Passions of War
• see more

Browse for similar items by category:

• Books > Specialty Stores > Custom Stores > Qualifying Textbooks > General AAS
• Books > Subjects > Entertainment > Music > History & Criticism
• Books > Subjects > Entertainment > Music > General
• Books > Subjects > Entertainment > Music > General AAS
• Books > Subjects > History > Military > Weapons & Warfare > Conventional > Firearms

---

Editorial Review:

Product Description:
The appearance of the crossbow on the European battle field in A.D. 1100 as the weapon of choice for shooting down knights threatened the status quo of medieval chivalric fighting techniques. By 1139 the Church had intervened, outlawing the use of the crossbow among Christians. With this edict, arms control was born.
As Robert L. O'Connell reveals in this vividly written history of weapons in Western culture, that first attempt at an arms control measure characterizes the complex and often paradoxical relationship between men and arms throughout the centuries. In a sweeping narrative that ranges from prehistoric times to the nuclear age, O'Connell demonstrates how social and economic conditions determine the types of weapons and the tactics used in warfare and how, in turn, innovations in weapons technology often undercut social values. He describes, for instance, how the invention of the gun required a redefinition of courage from aggressive ferocity to calmness under fire; and how the machine gun in World War I so overthrew traditional notions of combat that Lord Kitchener exclaimed, "This isn't war!" The technology unleashed during the Great War radically altered our perceptions of ourselves, as these new weapons made human qualities almost irrelevant in combat. With the invention of the atomic bomb, humanity itself became subservient to the weapons it had produced.
Of Arms and Men brilliantly integrates the evolution of politics, weapons, strategy, and tactics into a coherent narrative, one spiced with striking portraits of men in combat and penetrating insights into why men go to war.




Rating: - Interesting - picks up and keeps going after page 61
The first 20 or so pages did not rivet me, so the book sat on the shelf for years. However this Memorial Day I picked it up again, and the depth-of-analysis beginning on page 61 I found very cool. A bow is not a bow ! Of course I've never fired anything but a fiberglass techno-marvel - what was the draw-weight of an English Longbow, why did it have to be long, what was the effective range ? The author has a nice feel for details-that-matter, and there is no "padded" feel - at least after page ... Read More

---

Rating: - Fascinating and quite enlightening, though somewhat out-of-date
This book was published in 1989, during the final phases of the Cold War. In it, author Robert L. O'Connell looks at the history of Western man's relationship to weapons. As the author goes through the military history of the West, from ancient Sumer to the invention of the nuclear weapon, he shows that warfare has swung like a pendulum between two poles. At one end is the Homeric view of war, wherein it is cloaked in rules and traditions which moderate and "humanize" it. At the other end is the interspecific ... Read More

---

Rating: - Evolution of Technology and Warfare
Scholarly analysis of technologies impact on war. Chronicles the evolution of politics and economics into study of technology and warfare. Striking narrative of how the evolution of weaponry changes the nature of war and how man perceives war. In an era were defense budgets are centered on technology, this book infuses man into the equation.

---

| Mall Directory Front Page | Shopper Favorites Web Search |

All ProductsApparelAutomotiveBabyBeautyBooksClassical MusicDVDDigital MusicElectronicsGourmet FoodHealth & Personal CareJewelryKitchen & HousewaresMagazinesMiscellaneousMusicMusic TracksMusical InstrumentsOffice ProductsOutdoor LivingPC HardwarePet SuppliesPhotoRestaurantsSoftwareSporting GoodsTools & HardwareToysVHSVideo (DVD & VHS)Video GamesWirelessWireless Accessories

 View Shopping Cart or Checkout 

MALL.ShopperFavorites.com