Overall, in spite of its flaws and sometimes contradictory insights, it is one of the very few books in the Western world that seeks to present a theory of war. First, it is seen as ‘the one truly great book on war yet written’ and second, as ‘often quoted but little read’.
Most scholars would agree that On War can generally be characterised in two diametrically opposed but accurate ways. On War is a standard source for those interested in war and armed conflict, in particular after the 1976 translation by Paret and Howard. ‘The worst readers are those who behave like plundering troops: they take away a few things they can use, dirty and confound the remainder, and revile the whole.’ Is On War still relevant in the world of today’s conflict? With the rise of intrastate conflicts, civil wars and, in particular, terrorism in the last two decades, some thinkers consider On War as a relic from the past. The work is based on rigorous analysis of the wars of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, all being wars between nation-states.
It is a standard source for those interested in the phenomenon of war and armed conflict. First published in Germany in 1832, On War, consisting of eight books numbering more than seven hundred pages, is still widely read. Libraries have been filled with works and critiques analysing, examining, deconstructing, explaining, glorifying or reviling Carl von Clausewitz’s seminal work On War.
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