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Strategy: The Logic of War and Peace, Revised and Enlarged Edition Paperback – January 31, 2002

by Edward N. Luttwak (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 75 ratings
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“If you want peace, prepare for war.” “A buildup of offensive weapons can be purely defensive.” “The worst road may be the best route to battle.” Strategy is made of such seemingly self-contradictory propositions, Edward Luttwak shows―they exemplify the paradoxical logic that pervades the entire realm of conflict. In this widely acclaimed work, now revised and expanded, Luttwak unveils the peculiar logic of strategy level by level, from grand strategy down to combat tactics. Having participated in its planning, Luttwak examines the role of air power in the 1991 Gulf War, then detects the emergence of “post-heroic” war in Kosovo in 1999―an American war in which not a single American soldier was killed. In the tradition of Carl von Clausewitz, Strategy goes beyond paradox to expose the dynamics of reversal at work in the crucible of conflict. As victory is turned into defeat by over-extension, as war brings peace by exhaustion, ordinary linear logic is overthrown. Citing examples from ancient Rome to our own days, from Barbarossa and Pearl Harbor down to minor combat affrays, from the strategy of peace to the latest operational methods of war, this book by one of the world’s foremost authorities reveals the ultimate logic of military failure and success, of war and peace.
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  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press
  4. Publication date
    January 31, 2002
  5. Dimensions
    6.12 x 1 x 9.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    9780674007031
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0674007031
  8. See all details
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About the Author

Edward N. Luttwak is the author of several books, including Coup d’État: A Practical Handbook; Strategy: The Logic of War and Peace; and The Rise of China vs. the Logic of Strategy, which have been published in twenty-five languages. His articles have appeared in the London Review of Books, the Times Literary Supplement, Foreign Affairs, and Tablet.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0674007034
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press; 2nd edition (January 31, 2002)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780674007031
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0674007031
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.12 x 1 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 75 ratings

About the author

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Edward N. Luttwak

Edward N. Luttwak

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Edward N. Luttwak b. Arad, Romania. Ed schools in Palermo, Sicily and in England; LSE (BSc) & Johns Hopkins PhD. Five languages. Serves or has served as a consultant to: the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force; he is/has been an adviser to Treaty Allies of the United States. He founded and directs a conservation cattle ranch in the Bolivian Amazon. He is the author of various

books and more articles including: The Rise of China viz the Logic of Strategy, Coup d'Etat: a practical handbook, Strategy: The Logic of War and Peace, The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire, The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire, The Endangered American Dream, and, Turbo-Capitalism: Winners and Losers in the Global Economy. His books are also published in: Arabic, Chinese (both Beijing simplified and Taipei traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Indonesian (Bahasa), Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mongolian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (and Brazilian Portuguese) Romanian, Russian, Spanish (Castilian, Spain, in Argentina and in Venezuela), Swedish, and Turkish. Before ever writing of strategy and war, he was combat-trained (Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and fought as a volunteer or a contractor in several countries on two continents. Likes Hebrew songs & the Greek & Latin classics. His best article is : "Homer Inc." in the LRB.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
75 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

M. Zsoldos
5.0 out of 5 stars Nonetheless I recommend this book to anyone remotely intersted in strategy
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2017
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Very thought inducing and very interesting views. Well worth the read, it ives you unique insights. Negative is that it's bit arrogant and the languge is often bit pretentious and maybe purposefully overcomplicated to make the book seem wiser than it is. Nonetheless I recommend this book to anyone remotely intersted in strategy, military, military history or even politics in general.
5 people found this helpful
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Brian Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars Kindle please
Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2020
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Absolutely essential wisdom, the only thing I don’t like is it isn’t available on kindle, lugging paper around is unnecessary “friction”
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Paul B
4.0 out of 5 stars Good for the younger reader, but not especially insightful
Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2006
Although interesting and in some points insightful, the author of the book principally seems to miss the point of multidimensional strategy. Rather than thinking of strategy as an equation on a multidimensional graph, with defense and offense combining with strengths and weaknesses of opposing forced to produce the best operation, Luttwak seems to view modern strategy and tactics more in linear Napoleonic terms, calling this a paradox. Of course, there is no paradox in this logical endeavor, as the 'social' forces in strategy cannot be said to ever create a true paradox.

His understanding of why nations go to war is not particularly insightful (Machiavelli said the same thing five centuries ago) but is well written and intelligent to be an enjoyable read. It would prove very useful for the young reader attempting to discover what strategy is.

Luttwak's choice of military events to prove his theory is, of course, circumspect. But whose is not? Hart cherry-picked, as did Clauswitz and every other military strategist. He should not be faulted on this point, as it in no way detracts from the main issue of paradox.

The seeming lack of morality on conflict resolution demonstrates a lack of understanding of the necessities of fourth generational war, but does not demonstrate a lack of understanding of basic strategy or a lack of ethics. The subject of abstract strategy deserves ethics no more than the study of abstract math. Nevertheless, since the creation of the near real time war correspondent, it is impossible to consider war without considering public morality. The concentration camps of the British in the Boer War were effective. The complete and utter annihilation of Carthage also was effective. But both would now be untenable positions. Luttwik does not offer an answer for the European power at war about what to do to win a war. His lack of an answer for the paradox would by necessity eliminate the answer.

The book raises insightful questions and forces the reader the question his own assumptions about strategy, never a bad thing. Although ultimately a failure on the overriding theme, everything else to do with this book makes it enjoyable, and worth reading.
10 people found this helpful
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William Yerazunis
5.0 out of 5 stars It's not fiction: it's a history of strategic conflict.
Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2016
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It's not a work of fiction- it's a history of strategic conflict.

Yes, I learned a lot from it.
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Gunnar
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2017
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bought as a gift.
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Raymund Eich
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended for science fiction writers
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2012
Although it especially helped me write my military science fiction novel,  Take the Shilling , any fiction writer, whether focused on science fiction or not, would benefit from considering Luttwak's main thesis. In any strategic contest, (a situation where two directing minds pursue incompatible goals), a straightforward course of "best" action followed by one side will bring out responses from an opponent, thus negating the advantage of the "best" action, if not outright reversing it to the opponent's favor. Since essentially every story worth reading is about a strategic contest, the applicability to fiction writers should be apparent. Further, Luttwak's discussion of relational maneuver--the application of one side's strengths against the opponent's weakness--has relevance to writers trying to craft fresh, unexpected plots, while leaving out the parts readers skip. (Hint: in military parlance, those parts are "attrition.")

Turning to sf writers, Luttwak raises two points they should especially consider. First, many an sf story involves an ultimate technology, a technology to end history, which gives its first wielder an insurmountable and eternal advantage. (H.G. Wells' "The Land Ironclads" is one of the first, but nowhere near the last). Luttwak's discussion of the levels of strategy, working up from the technical to the tactical, operational, theater, and grand-strategic levels, with all the ways a technically "best" action can be negated by an opponent, demolishes the "technology that ends history" subgenre of sf.

Second, wise strategic thinking takes into account the workings of the opponent's mind, and because we have incomplete intelligence and understanding of our opponents, wars break out more often than they would in a world of perfect knowledge. When writing about strategic contests involving non-human minds, whether aliens, robots, or something else, the greater difficulty to understanding such minds suggests armed suasion would be less predictable, war more likely to break out, and peace even more of a worthy achievement.
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Rafael Laginha do Nascimento
5.0 out of 5 stars Autor consagrado na área de Estudos Estratégicos!
Reviewed in Brazil on August 31, 2017
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Excelente livro! Autor consagrado e que aborda muito bem a estratégia da guerra com abordagem feita levando em consideração conflitos contemporâneos.
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A. P. Farrell-vinay
5.0 out of 5 stars Luttwak, rather late for the Cold war. Still absorbing.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 13, 2017
Verified Purchase
A fascinating view of and approach to strategy. Critical to moving beyond the "who did what to whom and how" school of military history because it gives you a structure permitting you to investigate "why".

Luttwak's quite wrong about some trivial historical issues and misses some opportunities to reinforce his points with others, none of this detracts from a most valuable book.

I wish this had been on the Birmingham WW-I MA course reading list.
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sankar ramachandran
5.0 out of 5 stars Its a great scholarly work where theory underpins the narrative
Reviewed in India on September 23, 2015
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This is a first class book. Its a great scholarly work where theory underpins the narrative, backed by empirical facts. its lucid, well written and a a necessary read for the professional scholar as well as the subject enthusiast.
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