War Before Civilization

[David L. Pelovitz]

On Thu, 18 Jul 1996, RICHARD ROMEO wrote:

> Just read a review in the NY Times of a new book called War Before 
> Civilization by Lawrence Keeley (prof. of anthropology at Univ. of 
> Chicago) which basically refutes the notion that warfare before the rise 
> of civilized states was somehow different, gentler, more stylized, a 
> game. (call it the Dances with Wolves syndrome I guess).
> 
> Anyway, doesn't a claim like this undermine Stencil's (and Pynchon's?) 
> view that WW1 or the balance of power shennigans  that led up to it 
> somehow changed the rules of warfare in that  something unique (V.?) was 
> born in this god-foresaken century.
> 
> Is 20th century warfare (or societal deaths ) so unique as Stencil claims 
> it be I guess is what I'm asking...(I don't think GR applies since atomic 
> weapons forever changed the rules)

Well, WWI did introudce airplanes and mustard gas to warfare.
But I tend to think better weaponry made genocide easier
in the 20th century, but the idea of mass cruelty was hardly
new.

But the fact that Pynchon makes Stencil teh mouthpiece for a
belief in WWI as a turning point in the rules of warfare
doesn't mean Pynchon believes it.  After all, the Dutch slaughter
of the dodoes in GR makes them seem intent on genocide.
	
David Pelovitz - dqp5805 at is4.nyu.edu